Food and drink has been a focal point of modern social theory since the inception of agrarian capitalism and the industrial revolution. From Adam Smith to Mary Douglas, major thinkers have used key concepts such as identity, exchange, culture, and class to explain the modern food system. Food, Politics, and Society offers a historical and sociological survey of how these various ideas and the practices that accompany them have shaped our understanding and organization of the production, processing, preparation, serving, and consumption of food and drink in modern societies. Divided into twelve chapters and drawing on a wide range of historical and empirical illustrations, this book provides a concise, informed, and accessible survey of the interaction between social theory and food and drink. It is perfect for courses in a wide range of disciplines.

About the Author

Alejandro Colás is a Reader in International Relations at Birkbeck College, University of London, and is Director of the postgraduate program on International Security and Global Governance. He is the author of Empire and International Civil Society.

Jason Edwards is a Lecturer in Politics at Birkbeck College, University of London, and is Program Director of the MSc in Social and Political Theory. He is the author of The Radical Attitude and Modern Political Theory and the editor of Retrieving the Big Society.

Jane Levi is a Visiting Research Fellow in History at King’s College, London, and is King’s Mount Vernon Fellow 2017–18. She has contributed to numerous scholarly volumes on food including the Oxford Companion to Sugar and Sweets and the Sage Encyclopedia of Food Issues.

Sami Zubaida is Emeritus Professor of Politics and Sociology at Birkbeck College, University of London, and is a Fellow of Birkbeck College, Research Associate of the London Middle East Institute, and Professorial Research Associate of the Food Studies Centre at SOAS. His books include Islam, the People and the State: Political Ideas and Movements in the Middle East and A Taste of Thyme: Culinary Cultures of the Middle East.

Preface and Acknowledgments vii
1. Introduction: Food, Drink, and Modern Social Theory 1
2. The Natural and the Social: The Agricultural Revolution 21
3. Exchange: The Columbian Exchange and Mercantile Empires 40
4. Culture: Ritual, Prohibition, and Taboo 58
5. Industrialization: Technology, Rationality, and Urbanization 76
6. The Public Sphere: Eating and Drinking in Public 94
7. The Modern State: Alcohol, Alcoholism, and Biopolitics 112
8. Identity: Nationalism, Ethnicity, and Religion 130
9. Distinction: Social Diff erence, Taste, and the Civilizing Process 150
10. Political Economy: The Global Food System 169
11. The Self: Food Choices and Public Health 187
12. Consumption: Media, the Domestic Economy, and Celebrity Chefs 206
Notes 223
Select Bibliography 257
Index 265

Reviews

"[A] well-researched and well-written piece of work, worthy of being used both in teaching and as an inspiration for future research projects."
— Journal of Agrarian Change

"This intriguing collection of original essays serves as an introduction to global food history via the multidisciplinary lens of social and political theory. Few texts achieve the balance demonstrated here."—Warren J. Belasco, author of Food Chains: From Farmyard to Shopping Cart

"This outstanding book meets a clear need in teaching the sociology and anthropology of food and eating—namely, elucidating how that empirical field relates to more general theoretical questions in the social sciences."—Stephen Mennell, Professor Emeritus of Sociology, University College Dublin

"This book covers material that is taught in any sociology of food class, in anthropology courses, and maybe even in a food history class—and it gives a broad overview of social theory and how food fits in. I’d really enjoy teaching a class using this book, now that I come to think of it!"—Ken Albala, Professor of History, University of the Pacific

About the Book

About the Author

Table of Contents

Reviews