A Tale of Easter Ovens: Food and Collective Memory

D a v id S u tto n A Tale of Easter Ovens: Food and Collective Memory A T A T I M E W H E N D R I N K S A V A I L A B L E I N G A S S T A T I O N C O O L E R S P R O M I S E e x o tic in g re d ie n ts to b o o s t y o u r m e m o ry p o w e rs, m y o w n in te r ­ e s t in fo o d a n d m e m o ry m e e ts w ith b e m u s e m e n t fro m frie n d s a n d co lleag u es.' B o th th e stu d y o f fo o d a n d o f m e m o iy a re re la tiv e ly re c e n t su b je c ts in a n th ro p o lo g y a n d so cial scien c e m o re g en e rally , a n d th u s th e ir co n v e rg en c e still p ro v o k e s su rp rise a n d curiosity. In th e w o rd s o f o n e co lleag u e, “F ood a n d m e m o ry ? W h y w o u ld an y o n e w a n t to re m e m ­ b e r a n y th in g th e y h a d e a te n ? ” (see S u tto n , 2001: 1) In th is essay I w ish to re fle c t o n th is q u e stio n , a n d in k e e p in g w ith th e th e m e o f th is issu e, p o se th e q u e stio n in te rm s o f “so cial” o r “c o llec tiv e” m em o ry . In w h a t w ays d o es fo o d , in g e ste d in to in d iv id u a l b o d ies, fe ed so cial m e m o ry ? R ecently, a n u m b e r o f sch o lars h av e su g g ested th a t th e to p ic o f social m e m o iy su ffers fro m a la c k o f p re c isio n in d e fin itio n , a la c k o f c o m m o n m e th o d o lo g y a n d a lack o f th e o re tic a l d e v e lo p m e n t (C lim o a n d C attell, 2002; G o ld en , 2005; H o ltz m a n , 2006). In th is e ssa y I h o p e to m a k e a sm a ll c o n trib u tio n to c la rity in e x p lo rin g w h a t w e m e a n b y m e m o ry , h o w fo o d is im p lic a te d in v e ry d iffe re n t ty p e s o f m e m o ry , a n d h o w th e s e d iffe re n t ty p e s o f m e m o ry re la te to e a c h o th e r. T h is w ill n o t b e a re v ie...