The Place Space Townsville 2015 H
Hello there BA1002 people!
This is your ‘Blog Space’, a place where you reflect and share any thoughts or feels about the course content; both lectures and readings. Before you ask, YES! This is a compulsory component of your BA1002 experience and a part of your grade! Looking forward to your upcoming posts!
- Floss
"When we die, our bodies become the grass, and the antelope eat the grass. And so we are all connected in the great Circle of Life" - Mufasa
Tuesday 10 November 2015
Tuesday 22 September 2015
Blog 6: Hunger for Being Noticed
( https://www.google.com/search?q=food+porn&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0CAcQ_AUoAWoVChMIyoOWqOSJyAIVxBemCh26AQvV&biw=1920&bih=946#imgrc=BNEXHJJ4EZ-RKM%3A )
In this week’s class, we have been focusing on food and what
role it plays in our virtual network. Personally I believe that is does have an
influence and strangely, probably more often than what Facebook intended it to have.
Foods presence is mostly prominent in photos being uploaded of friends who are
impressed by a meal they have prepared or have had prepared for; feeling the
necessity to upload it so the online society can all witness the marvellous
creation they had the pleasure of indulging in.
The term ‘food porn’ has been trending on Facebook for a
couple of years now and is described as photos of delicious foods that make
viewers envious. This was especially common when users were going out to a
fancy restaurant or were impressed with their own cooking skills and wanted to
display it to the online world. In terms
of ‘self’, I believe it takes a certain type of person to upload their
food. A group of people who send each
other photos of their food might do so in situations where their intentions are
too show off or to make others jealous. Personally I believe it’s similar to
body image shots and I would dare to link it with self-esteem issues and public
acceptance needs.
Your community identity can determine what types of foods
you upload, for example; body builders
will show off how much protein they are eating, or people who want to be
perceived as wealthy might upload exquisite meals that have been prepared for
them. Personally, uploading food to social media seems quite pointless to me
and if an individual really wanted to see nice foods they will search for it on
the internet, they do not need it shoved in their face through their news feeds
begging for likes.
References:
Atkins, P and Bowler.I (2001). Food in Society: Economy,
culture, geography. London, United Kingdom: Hodder Headline Group.
Kuttainen, V. (2015). BA1002: Food Networks [PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved from learnjcu.jcu.edu.au
Kuttainen, V. (2015). BA1002: Food Networks [PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved from learnjcu.jcu.edu.au
Monday 21 September 2015
Food, Glorious Food
Psychologist Maslow introduced the world to
the hierarchy of human needs in 1943 with the five stages. Your core stage
being biological and physiological, which included you air, food, water,
shelter, warmth, sleep, and sex (McLeod, 2007). Maslow described it as a way to
reach your maximum potential and happiness you had to complete the hierarchy
step by step (McLeod, 2007). Food plays a large part in developing an identity
for a culture, or a particular place (Atkins & Bowler, 2001). It can give
power to particular people, for those that can afford lavish foods and always
remain full, to those who can’t and are constantly hungry. But food does much
more than give a community identity or a person power, it contains all six key
concepts that are the basis of this subject. Power, space and place, self and
community identity, reality/virtual, communication, and finally exchange
(Kuttainen, 2015). Each culture that has had to migrate creates its own place
in their new space, by attaching to old traditions, they exchange food with
each other to bring family and friends together. You can communicate through
food to show various emotions or skill sets. Such as a big family dinner
representing unity and love for one another. And lastly the concept of food
holding a sense of reality and virtuality in its history and stories (Kuttainen,
2015).
Food is a basic concept that many people
take for granted as a daily routine of our lives; it isn’t until we’re stripped
of it and left to starve do we note its true value to our survival. But still
there are many out there who can’t afford
food and are stripped of essential life sustaining factors, yet we turn a
blind eye. Why worry about something that doesn’t affect you or your family
personally. The human race can be selfish, but no one should be denied the
basic humanistic needs when they can no longer afford them. Granted you shouldn’t
rape someone due to sex being a primal need.
References
Atkins, P.
& Bowler, I. (2001) Foods in society:
Economy, culture, geography. London, England. Arnold Publishers
Kuttainen, V. (2015). BA1002: Space: Networks, narratives, and the making of place, week 8
notes [PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved from https://learnjcu.jcu.edu.au
McLeod, S. (2007) Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.
Retrieved from: http://www.simplypsychology.org/maslow.html
Image Reference:
McLeod, S. (2007) Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.
Retrieved from: http://www.simplypsychology.org/maslow.html
Blog VI: Food and the Impact on Culture
http://www.designboom.com/weblog/images/images_2/lara/818_images/eat_love_exhibition/eat_Love_03.jpg
Food is not only a vital part of life - in terms of actually having to eat to survive - it is also an important part of social life. To bring it closer to home, we will take a look at the Greek culture. Now of course it goes far beyond just food, but a big part of what makes culture important is food. It brings people together, and encourages conversation. The influx of Greek migrants to Australia brought with them their wonderful and vibrant food culture. From honey puffs to souvlaki, Australians swallowed it up whole! As Kuttainen (2015) said; "food is not just food", it is the social fuel which ignites the flames of conversation and passion. In the very first sentence of The Origins of Taste, Atkins & Bowler (2001) wrote that next to a biological necessity for food, there is equally a socio-culutral necessity for food.
What is it about food that sparks conversation? Perhaps because it usually exists in a place of communal gathering, and as social beasts, we do what is natural to us, talk. Perhaps it is because we feel at ease when eating, something to occupy our hands, and reduce the anxiety of the situation. To tie this in with the digital realm; look at Instagram, the phone application which allows you to upload pictures of things you have taken during your day and display them to your friends. A lot of people use this application to upload photos of meals they have consumed during the day, much to the ire of many people, but it just goes to show that people are interested in food in ways more than just a pure biological form. To add to this point, the reality TV show revolution is in full swing, and cooking shows are the big craze of the day too. People love food, in more ways than just eating it. It gives us a forum to talk and to interact with each other, and that is what we love to do.
References
Kuttainen, V. (2015). BA1002: Our Space: Networks, Narratives, and the Making of Place, Week 7 Notes [PowerPoint slides. Retrieved from https://learnjcu.jcu.edu.au
Atkins, P. and Bowler, I. (2001). Food in Society: Economy, Culture, Geography. London, United Kingdom: Arnold.
Food Can Transform And Create
In this week’s lecture the thought that ‘food can transform culture and culture can transform food’ (Kuttainen, 2015) was discussed. This thought resonated with me as I have had a recent change in my life that had this type of knock-on effect. About a year ago my mother was diagnosed with a disease that disables a large portion of her hearing and can cause her to have large periods of vomiting and dizziness- as in days of this. There wasn’t much information on this disease, and there’s hardly a single permanent fix, but my family and I scoured the internet and any books we could find and we discovered that a diet with low-to-no salt and sugar, raw foods diet could help to at least prevent the dizziness and vomiting. So we implemented this diet and I have noticed a vast change in the way my family approaches meals. We were never very unhealthy but we did all love our salt. Now ever meal we have has zero added salt and its ingredients have low salt content. It’s transformed the culture of our household to one that is more creative with food, especially the use of herb and spices to substitute the salt loss. In this way, I have been able to experience the transformative properties food has on a culture and vice versa.
This concept is also relevant to Tumblr, as is the concept in the reading that ‘food is an expression of identity’ (Atkins & Bowler, 2001). On an individual blog, if there are mainly pictures of ‘healthy’ foods, as in this blog, then the identity of the blogger is seen as a healthy person and from there assumptions are made. Likewise, if someone once posted about mainly fast foods or indulgent foods and then gradually changes their aesthetic to the one previously mentioned, a person following that blog will assume they are endeavouring to change their habits in real life as well.
References
Kuttainen, V. (2015). BA1002: Food Networks [PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved from learnjcu.jcu.edu.au
Essie (2015) NourishingEssie [Blog] Retrieved from http://nourishingessie.tumblr.com/
Image credit
Crossman, V. (2015) Vegan Family Recipes [Screenshot of Blog] retrieved from http://veganfamilyrecipes.tumblr.com/
food online
When thinking
of sharing food and culture one often thinks of all senses (sight, smell,
touch, sound and taste) coming together in a face to face experience with
others. However food and culture can also be expressed in a non-face to face
way. Cook books and social networking sites come to mind and both are, usually
highly selective in content and discursive in intent (ATKINS and BOWLER, 2001, p.
274-275).
In this week’s lecture Victoria Kuttainen (2015) talks about how food is an
expression of our identity. This is an interesting idea when considering social
networks. Take Instagram for example, a place to not only post pictures of what
you’re eating but what you’re doing, wearing and who your with. One does not
simply post pictures of their bacon and egg roll with no bacon, egg or roll (just
organic avocado and field mushrooms on a plate) on Instagram without also
posting pictures of their berd with flowers in it (hipster
Instagram culture). Thus your identity is not solely passed on the food
posted but on a variety of different posts. A Tumblr blog on the other hand can
have no connection to the posters true identity.
Thus the idea
that food is an expression of our identity is more relatable to Tumblr blogs. I
place where you can post nothing but pictures of Japanese food and you will receive
messages from followers in Japanese. You are judged on nothing but what you
post so it’s understandable that people will jump to conclusions when making
the connection of who you are and what you like. This can be both an empowering
and disempowering experience.
REFFERENCES:
REFERENCES:
Atkins, P and Bowler.I (2001). Food in Society:
Economy, culture, geography. London, United Kingdom: Hodder Headline Group.
Kuttainen, V. (2015). BA1002: Food Networks [PowerPoint
slides]. Retrieved from learnjcu.jcu.edu.au
IMAGE CREDITS:
Isaiah Webb (2014)
Horn of plenty: Retrieved from: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2878840/Artist-Incredibeard-takes-hipster-beard-art-trend-outrageous-new-lengths-amazing-facial-hair-sculptures.html
Sunday 20 September 2015
Food and Culture
Blog 4.
The thought that food can
manipulate and transform cultures isn’t new, however the importance of tracking
and mapping of it is. As said by Kuttainen (2015) in
this weeks lecture, “Food can transform culture and culture can
transform food”. So by having the understanding of this lets try to take a step
back and look at the bigger picture. Food can transform culture? If who
controls the food can effect our culture then what ramifications does that have
on culture? Personally I work in hospitality and I can see as clear as day, when
the chefs change the food so dose the customers and when the people changes so
does the food, reaffirming what was said in the weeks lecture. What is
surprising tho is how drastic the change is and how by transforming spaces and
places we also create new identities of the original place. So when looking at
the changes in food and maybe trying to understand its narrative behind it
creates a garden on unanswered questions.
This blog I would like to touch
on something that show how food can manipulate places and spaces, identities
and even communities. I was somewhat being a cyberflaneur the other day when I
cam across a video on
YouTube that showed a town that was filled with obesity ridden people. When
watching all I could remember was thinking to myself that these people have so
many fatty food restaurants in the town an the identity of the community started
to transform built on the choices of restaurants and eating habits. So as I sat
and watched these people describe their lives some mentioned that they seemed
powerless and that they felt as if they have nowhere else to eat. So I thought
and came to the conclusion that the power struggle between people and
corporations will always exists it may just come down to what your narrative is
and what identity you choose that will determine the powers and where they lay.
Reference:
Kuttainen,
V. (2015). BA1002: Our space: Networks, narratives and the making of
place, week 8 notes [PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved from http://learnjcu/jcu.edu.au
Patel, R. (2007). Introduction. Stuffed and starved: markets, power and the hidden battle for the world food system (pp.1-19). Retrieved from https://learnjcu.jcu.edu.au
Saturday 19 September 2015
Blog Post 6: Advertising Foods on Social Media
Retrieved From https://www.google.com.au/search?q=food+ads+on+social+media&espv=2&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0CAcQ_AUoAWoVChMIib3X2aCCyAIVkwSOCh3dQwVU&biw=1366&bih=643#imgrc=4Zr_J_oAICLFnM%3A
“The food system is shaped by farming communities,
corporations, governments, consumers, activists and movements.” (Patel, 2007) Society’s
opinions of food are susceptible to change, which can be brought about by any of
the above groups. Whilst all the social groups stated do influence the way we
see food another large shaping aspect of food is the ways in which the
individual perceives the various brands and products on offer to them. Whilst
the everyday person is slammed with adverts of food from all sides whether it’s
online, TV, radio, etc. The decision to purchase and eat the food being
advertised is inevitably in the hands of the individual. However, it is very
easy for groups to advertise certain foods that that person is known to enjoy
based on their social media accounts.
Companies based around food now advertise themselves on
social media sites. They do this in order to take advantage of the free advertisement
opportunities and to spread awareness about their products. Attempting to entice
people to purchase food ingredients or to dine with them. With the use of
social media sites a wide variety of groups can influence a consumer’s decision
when purchasing food.
References
Newman, A. (2011). Promoting Products Using Social
Media - Advertising. Nytimes.com. Retrieved 19 September 2015,
from http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/04/business/media/promoting-products-using-social-media-advertising.html?_r=0
Victory, G., & Victory, G. (2014). How to
Promote Products With Social Media: 4 Examples. Social Media
Examiner. Retrieved 19 September 2015, from http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/promote-products-with-social-media/
Blog Post 6: Food network in relation to Hell
In the same fashion that Patel (2007) examines the world food system's reactions to the human influences of necessities for profit, ease of access, the farmers themselves, and activism/social movements, I have been examining the Monster Hunter Hell Facebook group through multiple lenses to show myself different perspectives, and trying to understand different positions on the controversial issues on the group. Patel argues that the act of choosing in this food network has left '...many stuffed and many starved...' (Patel, 2007, pg18). In a metaphorical sense, this applies over to social networks such as Hell, with members of the group's "Network of food" being "stuffed and starved", with group prestige/notoriety being the metaphorical equivalent of food. Members who create the original content can be considered the farmers, the Popular majority, or 'celebrities' of the group, act as a government of sorts, organising through acceptance in this case. This has sometimes left both the creators/farmers and government/popular circles impoverished, as the content creators can become tired of the popular crowds forgetting who made the content, and acting as if they created it themselves, which results in less content, bringing it full circle and showing a metaphorical example of the 'socio-cultural factors' (Atkins & Bowler, 2001, pg 272) of food/content consumption. Atkins and Bowler (2001) also suggest that social groups and classes can be identified by their distinctions of palate, both for food and other items for consumption, such as popular culture and conversation. Monster Hunter Hell has exactly this, with its badge of identity being the more critical, less censored form of monster hunter culture, allowing often the most controversial, or crude content to be associated with the page and group members. In summary, Patel (2007) and Atkins & Bowler (2001) show that food is not just a part of a person's palate, but also can show their cultural identity, and this example of the food networks for the world can be shown also as a network of cultural consumption.
An example of the kinds of culture that can be shared in the group, this specifically being constructive advice. Image taken from: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=966246426766964&set=pcb.1691279441093995&type=1&theater
Patel, R. (2015). Introduction. In R. Patel, Stuffed and starved: Markets, Power and the hidden battle for the world food system (1st ed., pp. 1-18). melbourne: Black Inc Books.
An example of the kinds of culture that can be shared in the group, this specifically being constructive advice. Image taken from: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=966246426766964&set=pcb.1691279441093995&type=1&theater
References
Atkins, P., & Bowler, I. (2001). The origins of taste. In P. Atkins & I. Bowler, Food in society (1st ed., pp. 272-295). London: Arnold.Patel, R. (2015). Introduction. In R. Patel, Stuffed and starved: Markets, Power and the hidden battle for the world food system (1st ed., pp. 1-18). melbourne: Black Inc Books.
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