essay response

Address the following questions in essay form.  Consider key arguments and examples presented by the authors and imagine you are putting them in conversation with each other.  You are expected to be able to summarize the works in your own words in addition to offering an in-depth discussion and analysis of how the readings expand the field of food studies. Make sure you thoroughly read through all of the questions, directions and requirements before beginning to write your answers.

Choose 4 of the 7 essay questions provided below to answer.  Clearly paste the question(s) you choose before writing each essay response.  The essays should be written like a formal academic paper.

Drawing on Mead’s piece(chap 1), discuss the American moralization of body size and intolerance of obesity. Why do Americans have “peculiar attitudes”about how citizens should eat and exercise?  Compare and contrast her arguments in relation to Bordo’s(chap 18) exploration of disordered eating and body image issues, citing and explaining at least two points of similarity and two points of difference in detail.

Explain Williams-Forson’s(chap 9)arguments examining the politicized meanings and associations about food and race historically and contemporarily. Provide an example applying her analysis of where you think this sort of approach to food studies might be illuminating.  How does Holt-Gimenez and Harper’s (https://foodfirst.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/DR1Final.pdf) explanation of racism in the food system add to this? Drawing on both authors’ points, expand further on what societal change is needed today.

Slocum(chap 15) argues that some markets produce “white food space.” What does she mean by this? What market characteristics contribute to “whiteness?” Explain how “white food spaces” are related to the alternative food movement and why it is important for us to consider the implications more broadly? How do Dixon’s piece on Food Deserts ( https://thenewtropic.com/food-deserts-insecurity-miami-1/ ) and Wile’s piece on Food Scarcity (https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/article244014172.html )  contribute further to this discussion? Offer specific examples from each.

Present the key points addressed by Taubes(https://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/09/opinion/sunday/why-nutrition-is-so-confusing.html) in his New York Times piece. Examine how they can be discussed in relation to Barthes’ claims(chap 2) and the way he writes about consumption.  Note at least two ways these authors made you think differently about the narratives surrounding food and nutrition.

Explain Poppendieck’s(chap 38) critiques of campaigns focused on hunger as an issue and what she cautions against.  Compare her arguments to specific points presented in Gilligan’s( https://slate.com/human-interest/2014/02/food-deserts-and-fresh-food-access-arent-the-problem-poverty-not-obesity-makes-people-sick.html) Slate piece. How does this impact your own thoughts about the issue of hunger and its potential solutions? 

Levkoe(chap 40) argues, “Food is more than just another commodity and people are more than just consumers.” How does this statement reflect the aims of the food justice movement? How does this statement embody Levkoe’s experiences and observations in The Stop? Citing specific examples from his piece, how does Schlosser (chap 33) further contribute to the discussion? How did these readings shift your thinking about food and culture on a larger scale?

What four reasons does Albritton(chap 24) give for why the term “starvation epidemic” does not get as much attention as the term “obesity epidemic” does? Summarize and explain why these factors persist and how it impacts our views on these issues. Furthermore, draw on Julier’s(chap 37) piece to examine the main arguments behind her analysis of the “political economy of obesity” and the functional alternatives she proposes. How do Albritton and Julier demonstrate why social science is integral to understanding hunger, the “obesity epidemic” and the food system more broadly?

Requirements:

Content:  Each essay should include a complete response to the question by critically engaging the readings and course materials. The readings must be specifically cited in the paper by paraphrasing the authors’ arguments and/or directly quoting from the work. The points taken from assigned sources should be fairly and accurately represented, and you must clearly demonstrate that you can apply the readings along with your own words as relevant to the discussion. You must provide clear and specific examples so that someone who has never read these pieces could follow your arguments.

the essay should be clearly written, well-organized, and easy to understand, with no grammatical and mechanical errors. You must cite and format references properly in APA format.

Sources:  Provide the source(s) you use in your essay in proper APA format, both by using in-text citations and providing a full reference list at the end . All sources should be cited and referenced

Length: The essay should be approximately 2500 words long total (about 625 words per question minimum).