Eating is probably the most basic of human instincts. Most of man’s actions have been shaped by the need to find a suitable next meal. New lands have been explored, species have been exterminated, wars have been fought, and women have been stolen just so that man can eat what he wants rather than what he gets. Food is thus a prime influencer of human behavior right from the macroscopic population-wide scale to the microscopic individual scale.
It is, hence, slightly surprising that gastronomy has not been recognized as a powerful mechanism of delving into the human psyche. For example, we have psychology and psychoanalysis to study the human mind and behavior, but we don’t have gastro-analysis to study human behavior. Food is such a powerful driver of the human mind and soul that it is possible to tell much about a person just from his or her modes of procurement and consumption of food.
In order to provide some direction to the fledgling science of gastro-analysis, let us establish some stereotypes. Stereotyping is a great way of studying human populations, because, let’s face it, stereotyping is fun and is always right, except for the exceptions. On one side, we have the peace-loving, mild-mannered, and compassionate vegetarians or sparing meat-eaters, who can wax eloquent on the different kinds of tofu.
On the other side, we have the assertive, confident meat-lovers, who will stake everything for a fine steak. On a different side, we have the adventurous, sometimes masochistic spice-seekers, who need to shake some chili flakes on all foods. And on yet another side, we have the metrosexual, well-table mannered cheese connoisseurs who know the difference between Couronne French Brie and Brie de Nangis. Then, there are the hearty, well-endowed, deep-fried enthusiasts who believe all creation has to undergo catharsis by going through boiling oil.
Of course, what is food, if it is not washed down with some drinks? There are the brawny, macho, football-watching beer drinkers, who sit opposite the sophisticated, crafty, long-legged wine sippers. There are the hyperactive, yellow-teethed, cubicle-sitting coffee drinkers, versus the dainty, light-headed, colonial cuppa tea drinkers. Even among the coffee-consumers, there are the upwardly mobile, busy, crisp Starbucks’ mochachino drinkers against the laidback, take-life-as-it-comes local-coffee-shop house coffee drinkers.
Food is often associated with pride in the human mentality. People are overcome with rather irrational pride when creating or consuming foods in certain ways. The French, for instance, love spending huge amounts of time and effort on special creations that unfortunately only occupy a tenth of the plate. The Germans and Irish consider it their national duty to support their brewing industries, or die trying.
Then, I know this fine girl named Daniella (name has been changed to preserve anonymity) who freely mixes patriotic fervor with her voracious eating (there may be more mention of this in another article in this newsletter). I know another fine girl named Shining Beautiful Child (name translated from native language) who has innate pride in handling all kinds of foods with chopsticks.
The other revealing behavior indicator of humans is their way of acquiring foods. There are the restaurant-goers who rely on local restaurants to fulfill their dietary requirements, and there are the creationists, who make their foods from scratch. There are people who will not touch a food item unless it has passed their highest levels of safety, cleanliness, and procedural requirements, while there are others who have a relaxed 30-second rule (for the uninitiated, the 30-second rule says that if you drop some food on the floor or carpet, you can still eat it if you pick it up within 30 seconds of dropping it). I can almost hear some people grimacing as they finish reading the last sentence. In the Cosmopolitan House, too, one can observe widely varying behaviors with regard to food creation and acquisition. There is a Predator, an Isolationist, a Forager, a Giver, an Explorer, and a wholesale Producer, among others.
In conclusion, you are what or who you eat or drink. As somebody famous once said, “I am, hence I eat.”
Anand at Halloween