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Food and Society in Classical Antiquity (Key Themes in Ancient History)
Peter Garnsey
Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
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Food in the Ancient World (Ancient Cultures)
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Food: A Culinary History (European Perspectives)
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Cities, Peasants and Food in Classical Antiquity: Essays in Social and Economic History
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The Classical Cookbook
ASIN: 0521645883 |
Book Description
This is a broad-based, comprehensive general study of food in antiquity. The book deals with food as food or nutrition, the discussion revolving around the concrete issues of food availability and the nutritional status of the population. It also treats the nonfood uses of food, focusing on the role of food in forming and marking the social hierarchy. Food defines the group, whether social, religious, philosophical or political.
Download Description
This is the first study of food in classical antiquity that treats it as both a biological and a cultural phenomenon. The variables of food quantity, quality and availability, and the impact of disease, are evaluated and a judgement reached which inclines to pessimism. Food is also a symbol, evoking other basic human needs and desires, especially sex, and performing social and cultural roles which can be either integrative or divisive. The book explores food taboos in Greek, Roman, and Jewish society, and food-allocation within the family, as well as more familiar cultural and economic polarities which are highlighted by food and eating. The author draws on a wide range of evidence new and old, from written sources to human skeletal remains, and uses both comparative historical evidence from early modern and contemporary developing societies and the anthropological literature, to create a case-study of food in antiquity.
Amazon.com
Desire is a dangerous thing, and the relationship between the citizens of ancient Athens and their desires was a complex and troubled one. James Davidson's Courtesans and Fishcakes is a brilliant and kaleidoscopic examination of daily life in classical Athens, and the life he reveals is simultaneously more alien and more familiar than we might have imagined. From fish-guzzling gourmands to the ambiguous eroticism of vase paintings, the cradle of Western culture is artfully, and frequently amusingly, anatomized. Davidson believes that many historians, under the influence of Foucault, are guilty of imposing modern views of desire, and particularly sexuality, on Greek culture, resulting in a simplistic interpretation of what was an extremely complicated issue. He refutes the prevailing opinion that sex in Athens was a simple binary opposition of penetrator and penetrated, drawing on a remarkable number of sources to show how sexuality was a slippery commodity rooted in intricate social negotiations, a characteristic shared with many other objects of desire, from eels to undiluted wine. Davidson sometimes assumes a little too much knowledge on the part of his audience--some basic information about the size of the Athenian population would have been helpful--but in spite of this Courtesans and Fishcakes is both accessible and provocative, offering a fascinating portrait of the private and public lives of ancient Athenians. --Simon Leake
Customer Reviews:
Scholarly book for educated readers.......2007-03-12
Be advised: this book is slow reading. Unlike Athenians at fish fests you will not gorge on the paragraphs as they come hot off the pages. I am a book a day man but this fellow took me more than two weeks. I will admit to other reading during that time , but this book was not for work, which is often the case with chapter a day reads. I know my Lit Crit theory. I have a little Latin and less Greek, and I needed them for this book, and yet every so often a wonderful prospect of words and word connectedness blossomed from this suggestive title, sort of like those rather suggestive amarillis stems and blossoms. I would add, that familiarity with contemporary literary critical theory would also help in appreciating what Davidson has achieved which is a learned and creative picture of that shaping and yet alien culture which was Athens.
Any teacher who has had to explain how tragedy fits into the Athenian vision with its strict moral code but lacking the ideas of sinful guilt will appreciate the careful path the author treads as he looks at a very different vision of addiction and desire from that we find in modern culture. Keep a good dictionary nearby while reading. Keep a bookmark too. You will want to, pause, set this side frome time to time, and think
Extraordinary!.......2005-04-11
A marvelously written, intricate weave from an incredible array of sources that illuminates the significance of Greek appetites (especially for fish -- yes, fish -- and for sex, in multiple forms and layers) and attitudes toward them, and thus, on the way, as it were, what was regarded as virtuous, that the author convincingly shows were central to social, philosophical and poltical life in classical Athens. An extraordinary book offering amazing insights. One awaits the next set of revelations, if there are more to be delivered to us, by Mr. Davidson, with something resembling opsophagia. A tour de force!
brings the ancient world to life but tough to finish.......2004-03-12
The best part of the book is how it brings the ancient world to life. What did these folks do day-to-day? That said unless you're doing an academic thesis on this topic you might lose interest halfway through.
Not just for classicists.......2003-04-17
While I would grant that this is a scholarly work by a serious historian I found it an engaging read and quite fascinating. It is one of the few books I have read that really helps one get into the mindset (mentalite) of another civilization, far distant in time and space. I don't think one needs an encyclopaedic knowledge of ancient Greece to appreciate this book but some exposure to other studies of mentalites might be helpful.
Fishy stuff.......2001-10-23
This isn't a bad book. The writing is pretty good and it is loaded with trivial facts about Athenians. It is interesting in that one gets to flirt with entering quite an alien culture and gets to try and equate it with how we live today.
The author never really brought this alive for me but it was good enough that I finished it.
Book Description
In Food in the Ancient World, a respected classicist and a practising world-class chef explore a millennium of eating and drinking.The book focuses on ancient Greece and Rome, but also looks at Persian, Egyptian, Celtic and other cultures. It embraces people from all walks of life, from impoverished citizens subsisting on cereals, chickpeas and even locusts, to the meat-eating elites whose demands drove advances in gastronomy. The authors reveal how food - used to uphold the social system and linked by philosophers to moral character - played a pivotal role in the ancient world. They describe religious sacrifices, ancient dinner parties and drinking bouts, as well as exotic foods and recipes.Extending from Syria to Spain, and from the steppes of Russia to the deserts of North Africa, this evocative account gives readers a taste of the ancient world.
Average customer rating:
- Every food writer should have a copy
- Primarily Archaeological.
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Food in Antiquity: A Survey of the Diet of Early Peoples
Don R. Brothwell , and
Patricia Brothwell
Manufacturer: The Johns Hopkins University Press
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ASIN: 0801857406 |
Book Description
A world-wide survey of the eating and drinking habits of early peoples, Don and Patricia Brothwell's Food in Antiquity covers a broad geographical range, from the early populations of Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, and the Americas to the more familiar Egyptian, Mesopotamian, Greek, and Roman worlds. From meat, insects, vegetables, and fruits to cooking oils and beverages, each source of sustenance is described in terms of who consumed it, how it was prepared, and how it spread from its region of origin.
The Brothwells' treatment is engaging and the information they provide fascinating. We learn, for example, that the vinegar carried by Roman foot soldiers on long marches was mixed with water to serve as a refreshing drink and that fungi provided a reliable source of diet for peoples from Europe, Australia, Japan, and China. The authors consider such questions as whether St. John ate carob or actual locusts in his desert hermitage and whether ancient farmers may have rid their crops of troublesome pests by capturing and eating them. They discuss cannibalism, food taboos, and the radical changes that took place with the introduction of the domestication of animals. The story they unfold is a compelling one that sheds much light on the intricate detective work, the problems and rewards, of biological research in archeology.
Customer Reviews:
Every food writer should have a copy.......2006-10-03
This book bills itself as ' a world-wide
survey of the eating and drirking habits
of early peoples'. It's actually a bit
more restricted than that-more of a survey
of what is known archaeologically about
food and drink in pre-modern times.
The book has two great uses. First, for
the eternally curious food-lover, it's a
wonderful browse. The dryly humorous section
on the food value of insects,for example,
is enough of a delight to be worth reading
aloud. The first page of the section on
drinks has the droll observation "It is
sobering to consider that the neglected jar
of fruit juice. . . . .set man along the
road to alcoholism and the illicit still."
The section on cannibalism is perhaps worth
the price of the whole volume.
The second use of this book is as a reference
for the writer and student. Since things
are their history, there's scarcely any
treatment of food, drink or cooking that
would not benefit from at least a reference
to their origins. Organized by type of
foodstuff, this book may be all anyone needs
to know. For those who wish to go further,
there are useful notes and a generous bib-
liography.
By focussing on material culture and archae
ology, the book avoids the trickier
questions of ancient diet as a whole.
What did early man eat? Well, this book gives
some pieces of an answer, but certainly
not a comprehensive picture. As so often
the case with academic writing, it's good
to be familiar with the subjects at hand
so as to avoid being caught up in in
accuracies-honey, for example, does not
ferment in spite of the authors' suggestion.
An excellent source and a jolly diversion,
this is a valuable addition to the scholarly
cook's library.
Lynn Hoffman, author of The New Short Course in Wine and the forthcoming novel bang-BANG from Kunati Press.
Primarily Archaeological........2000-03-30
I picked up this book thinking that it would be a nice survey-style introduction into the various foods and dishes of the ancient world--especially the Classical Mediterranean, given the mosaic on the cover. However, this reads far more like an archaeological treatise recording processes of animal and plant domestication since the Neolithic. With a plethora of taxonomic and anatomical information that's of little use to the non-specialist, the book nevertheless manages to intrigue on occasion, with some tidbits; especially fascinating are the chapters on insects as food and on beverages. Most of the work focuses on the classical and near-eastern civilizations, but occasional mention is made of the mesoamerican cultures as well. Worth reading, but by no means a comprehensive work on early diets.
Book Description
Craving dolphin meatballs? Can't find a reliable restaurant for boiled parrot? Have a hankering for jellyfish omelettes, sows' wombs in brine, sheep's brain pate, or stuffed mice? Look no further than Around the Roman Table, a unique hybrid cookbook and history lesson. A portrait of Roman society from the vantage point of the dining table, kitchen, and market stalls, Around the Roman Table offers both an account of Roman eating customs and 150 recipes reconstructed for the modern cook.
Faas guides readers through the culinary conquests of Roman invasions—as conquerors pillaged foodstuffs from faraway lands—to the decadence of Imperial Rome and its associated table manners, dining arrangements, spices, seasonings, and cooking techniques. With recipes for such appetizing dishes as chicken galantine with lambs' brains and fish relish, Around the Roman Table is ideal for food aficionados who wish to understand how the desire for power and conquest was manifested in Roman appetites.
"There are many misconceptions about the food of ancient Rome that Faas sets out to correct. The result is half cookbook, half history book and is entirely fascinating to both chef and antiquarian alike."—Washington Times
Book Description
This cookbook on the main ancient peoples studied today-the Romans, Mesopotamians, Egyptians, and Greeks--is a stupendous resource for middle and high school students and other interested cooks. Besides the Romans and the Greeks, the ancients left behind few recipes, and so the author has meticulously researched what food knowledge is available from written sources, such as Petronius's The Satyricon, and archaeology to approximate the everyday and special cuisine of the ancients. This detective work and reconstruction result in a wealth of successful recipes that will bring cooks as close as possible to the foods that likely would have been eaten and prepared. Each group is covered in a chapter that begins with a narrative overview of the environment and resources, cuisine and social class, and a note on sources. Bulleted lists on major foodstuffs, cuisine and preparation, and dining habits follow to quickly familiarize readers with the basics. The recipes are then organized by type of food. A multitude of period food trivia as well as sample menus for different meals, social classes, and occasions complement the 207 recipes.
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Famine and Food Supply in the Graeco-Roman World: Responses to Risk and Crisis
Peter Garnsey
Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0521375851 |
Book Description
This is the first full-length treatment of food supply and food crisis in classical antiquity. Hunger was never far away in the world of Greece and Rome, yet ancient historians have generally left unexplored the role of the food supply in shaping the central institutions and practices of ancient society. This book demonstrates that a study of systems of food supply and their breakdown leads to a fuller understanding of political behaviour, social mechanisms and economic relationships in classical antiquity.
Dr Garnsey poses the following questions: What caused food crisis? Was it a common feature of the Mediterranean region in antiquity; how frequently did it assume the proportions of famine? What 'famine relief' measures developed in urban communities; did popular pressure play a role in their evolution? How adequate were those measures? Did different political systems find different solutions to the problems of supply and distribution of food? How did the peasantry, who made up the bulk of the population, cope in the face of the constraints imposed by nature and man?
The author provides detailed case studies of Athens and Rome, the best known states of antiquity, but also illuminates the responses to the problems of the food supply in the mass of ordinary cities and rural communities in the Mediterranean world between roughly 600 BC and AD 500.
The book will be of interest to ancient historians studying the politics, economy and society of classical antiquity; it will be of equal importance to social scientists of all kinds concerned with the problems of famine and food supply in other complex societies and those who have become attuned to the issue of world hunger and areseeking a longer perspective. It is written with the non-specialist in mind as well as the scholar.
Average customer rating:
- Follows culinary explorations through four great ancient civilizations
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Food in the Ancient World (Food through History)
Joan P. Alcock
Manufacturer: Greenwood Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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Food in Medieval Times (Food through History)
ASIN: 0313330034 |
Book Description
The ways of life of four great ancient civilizations-- Egyptian, Greek, Roman, and Celtic--are illuminated here through their foodways. As these cultures moved toward settled agriculture, a time of experimentation and learning began. Cities emerged, and with them consumer societies that needed to be supplied. Food Culture in the Ancient World draws on writings of classical authors such as Petronius, Galen, and Cato, as well as on archeological findings to present intimate insight into ancient peoples. This volume will be indispensable as it complements classical history, cultural, and literature studies at the high school and college levels and will also inform the general reader. The book begins with an overview of the civilizations and their agricultural practices and trade. A full discussion of available foodstuffs describes the discovery, emergence, usage, and appraisals of a host of ingredients. A subsequent chapter covers food by civilization. Chapters on food preparation, the food professions, and eating habits provide a fascinating look at the social structure, with slaves and women preparing and serving food. Accounts of the gatherings of slaves and freedmen in taverns, inns, and bars and the notorious banquet, symposium, feast, and convivium of the elite are particularly intriguing and crucial to understanding male society. Other aspects of ancient life brought to life for the reader include food for soldiers, food in religious and funerary practices, and concepts of diet and nutrition. Many Classical recipes are interspersed with the text, along with illustrations.
Customer Reviews:
Follows culinary explorations through four great ancient civilizations.......2006-07-03
College-level collections with strong holdings in either ancient history or culinary history will want to take a close look at Food In The Ancient World, part of Greenwood's 'Food Through History' series: it follows culinary explorations through four great ancient civilizations - Egyptian, Greek, Roman and Celtic - and uses the writings of classical ancient authors along with archaeological findings to follow the lives of ancient civilizations through agricultural and culinary habits. Discussions of available ingredients, different foods by civilization, food preparation and serving habits, and more reveals social, religious and culinary trends alike.
Book Description
This is a collection of essays in the social and economic history of Greece and Rome by a leading historian of classical antiquity. They are grouped in three overlapping sections, covering the economy and society of cities; peasants and the rural economy; and food supply and famine. The essays, all previously published, are presented together with bibliographical addenda by Walter Scheidel that summarize and assess scholarly reaction to the author's work. The range of subject matter and approach is wide and the treatment original and provocative.
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Moveable Feasts: From Ancient Rome to the 21st Century, the Incredible Journeys of the Food We Eat
Sarah Murray
Manufacturer: St. Martin's Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0312355351
Release Date: 2007-11-13 |
Book Description
Today the average meal has traveled thousands of miles before reaching the dinner table. How on earth did this happen? In fact, long-distance food is nothing new and, since the earliest times, the things we eat and drink have crossed countries and continents. Through delightful anecdotes and astonishing facts, Moveable Feasts tells their stories.
For the ancient Romans, the amphora---a torpedo-shaped pot that fitted snugly into the ship’s hold---was the answer to moving millions of tons of olive oil from Spain to Italy. Napoleon offered a reward to anyone who could devise a way of preserving and transporting food for soldiers. (What he got was the tin can.) Today temperature-controlled shipping containers allow companies to send their frozen salmon to China, where it’s thawed, filleted, refrozen, and sent back to the United States for sale in supermarkets as “fresh” Atlantic salmon.
Combining history, science, and politics, Financial Times writer Sarah Murray provides a fascinating glimpse into the extraordinary odysseys of food from farm to fork. She encounters everything from American grain falling from United Nations planes in Sudan to Mumbai’s tiffin men who, using only bicycles, carts, and their feet, deliver more than 170,000 lunches a day.
Following the items on a grocery store shopping list, Murray shows how the journeys of food have brought about seismic shifts in economics, politics, and even art. By flying food into Berlin during the 1948 airlift, the Allies kept a city of more than two million alive for more than a year and secured their first Cold War victory, appealing to German hearts and minds---and stomachs. In nineteenth-century Buffalo, the grain elevator (a giant mechanical scooping machine) not only turned the city into one of America’s wealthiest, but it also had a profound influence on modern architecture, giving Bauhaus designers an important source of inspiration.
In a thought-provoking and highly entertaining account, Moveable Feasts brings an entirely fresh perspective to the subject of food. And today, as global warming makes headlines and concerns mount about the “food miles” clocked by our dinners, Murray poses a contentious question: Is buying local always the most sustainable, ethical choice?
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