Article Discussion: “To Dine Splendidly”

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Article Discussion: “To Dine Splendidly”

The article, ‘To Dine Splendidly,’ links politics, pots, and food. According to Bray (2003), food has an essential role in a community’s undertakings regarding the source of power; society is defined based on the ability to prepare meals. Human beings’ social interaction constitutes culinary equipment complemented by cuisine and cooking. Negotiation of power and the establishment of social hierarchies rely on feasting. For instance, the Inca State provides an example of the prominence of hospitality and reciprocity in society. The Inca State was provided with labor services by local communities which ranged from getting involved in public works projects and cultivating fields. This situation underlines the connection between the Andean and modern food ways.

The words ‘to dine splendidly’ refer to the act of dining on quality food that has been prepared differently and served on more unique pieces (Bray, 2003). Today, this phrase does not hold the same meaning due to the existence of elite food. Elite cuisine differs from the baseline Andean food by "quality, quantity, and diversity of foodstuffs, and differences in modes of preparation, serving, consumption, and disposal” (Bray, 2003, p.102). Preparing food the Andean way was a time-consuming activity; this is no longer the case as the preparation of elite cuisines today takes little time. Nonetheless, the elite and baseline Andean diet have no differences concerning the elemental composition.

According to the article, maize was part of the haute foods which made up Andean cuisine. Concurrently, Bray (2003) argues that in the modern society maize is still popular as most people consume it though not frequently. Some foods have changed in value over time, for example, today corn is more famous, and this popularity has been in existence for many decades, but the way it is prepared has continually evolved. Presently, people have warmed up to the idea of eating salads, which people considered as poisonous; the Andean people did not like consuming raw fruits and vegetables. Foods such as lobster have moved from being commoner food that was usually eaten by prisoners in the past to one of the most expensive delicacies.

In the Inca State, women were not assumed to be equal to men as they were imprisoned to work to a point when they...