essay

Culture enters through the kitchen: women, food, and social boundaries in rural Greece

gender & power in rural greece • Princeton, N.J. • Published In 1986 • Pages: 195-214

By: Dubisch, Jill.

Abstract

In contrast to the general belief in Greece and elsewhere that pollution evolving from female sexuality and bodily processes are both indicators and reasons for women's subordination and inferior status in the society, this article takes a somewhat different approach to the oppositions of male/female, culture/nature, and purity/pollution by analyzing instead the ways that women function as controllers of pollution, both their own and that of others, and act as transformers of natural products (foods) and processes (food preparation) into cultural ones. Dubisch examines in detail the concept of body symbolism, the symbolism of pollution, and social boundaries and proposes a relationship between the body (particularly the female body), the house, and social order. To analyze this relationship the author explores the connections between pollution, boundary maintenance, the house and kitchen, the role of food, and the symbolism of the body (pp. 195-196).

HRAF PubDate

2003

Region

Europe

Sub Region

Southeastern Europe

Document Type

essay

Evaluation

Creator Type

Ethnologist

Document Rating

5: Excellent Primary Data

Analyst

John Beierle ; 2002

Field Date

no date

Coverage Date

not specified

Coverage Place

Cycladic Islands, Greece

Notes

Jill Dubisch

For bibliographical references see source 31: [Dubisch]

LCCN

86003183

LCSH

Greece