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ABSTRACT. Every meal and every drink present in the human diet
carries with it symbolic meanings. In this exploratory study, 29 women
were interviewed about the practices and meanings of special family
meals. What is changing? What remains? What is new is food’s associa-
tion with health, illnesses, and other risks. What is old is the history, the
several social and cultural meanings of food consumer behavior. For the
interviewees, meals still seem to be essential to unite the family and
establish social bonds. In spite of technological developments and the
convenience of foods, the study suggests that the family meal and the
celebration of food will persist because they are events that bring people
together.
RESUMEN. En la actual dieta humana, cada comida y cada bebida
llevan embutidos significados simbólicos. En este estudio exploratorio,
se entrevistó a 29 mujeres sobre las prácticas y comida familiares
especiales. ¿Qué está cambiando? ¿Qué es lo que resta? Lo que hay de
nuevo es la asociación de los alimentos con la comida, la salud,
enfermedad y otros riesgos. Lo antiguo, es su historia, los distintos
significados socioculturales del comportamiento del consumidor
respecto a la comida. Para el entrevistado, las comidas parecen ser una
forma de vital importancia para unir a la familia y establecer bonos
sociales. A pesar de los logros alcanzados con el desarrollo tecnológico
INTRODUCTION
Several changes in food and eating habits have taken place since
World War II–technological novelties such as the freezer and micro-
wave oven, the improvement of food quality, the increase in food quan-
tity and variety, the convenience of packaging, ready-made foods, and
an increase in the habit of eating out. The big rise of the restaurant in-
dustry, for example, reflects not only the increase of a mass market with
standard foods like McDonald’s, but also an increase in individual and
sophisticated experiences. In these cases, consumers seem to subordi-
nate their true social identities to roles prescribed by waiters and chefs.
Along the gamut in means of non-verbal communication, a meal is
one of the main gestures that enable the understanding of people. The
organizations of meals on various occasions, whether they are individ-
ual or in groups, are rituals, which bring with them several meanings.
A meal is recognized as a social bond capable of not only including but
also excluding people. At any rate, meals and celebrations function like
rituals where relationships and alliances are made, and where the bonds
Leticia Casotti 71
apart.” At the same time the success of convenient food, combined with
the use of freezers and microwave ovens, could be enabling people to
have more free time to watch television. This may also be contributing
to the decline of family meals where people share not only food but also
conversation (Dickson and Leader, 1998). Is this really occurring in
such proportion? Do you think that snacking between meals is making
the act of eating less social and more individual? Is the family meal still
alive?
In spite of recognizing the innumerable recent changes that alter the
choice of food and its preparation, Dickson and Leader (1998) complain
about the small amount of evidence in sociological studies as to how
these factors really affect the family meal and its continuation. Which is
more important: the sharing of the components and ingredients of a
meal, or the sharing of time and space? For the authors, meals are funda-
mentally a social event, and the fact that, for example, the habit of eating
out is becoming very popular; this does not necessarily mean that the
family is not being incorporated into this social event. The study done
by Dickson and Leader (1998) seeks to analyze how meals are pre-
sented on television shows and in advertisements, and how these meals
actually take place in real life. The study concludes that the images on
television shows and in advertisements present people predominantly
“picking at” their food or eating by themselves. This does not have any
connection with the habits described by the families interviewed–
parents and kids alike said that they value family meals a great deal.
What is the meaning of “eating out”? The main associations concern-
ing “eating out” made by the interviewees in a study in United Kingdom
were: economy of work (food prepared and served by others); something
special which can be related to what one eats, where and how often; rit-
ual or the organization of the meal (table, menu, time spent, food quan-
tity); the cost involved, the paid meal and the commercial situation, and
the social space of separation from the domestic sphere. The study has
sought to understand the main reasons for “eating out.” The many rea-
sons pointed out can be, in general, associated with pleasure (doing
something different, celebrating, enjoying eating), with respite (relax-
ing from the kitchen), and with need (hunger, being away from home,
social obligation). But, what are the main attitudes in relation to “eating
out?” The study suggests many diverse attitudes: some positives like the
experience itself, the possibility of learning, of escaping from oppres-
sive housework or having fun; and some negatives like being suspicious
about unknown foods (Warde and Martens, 2000). For Krell (1998), an
opponent of the rise in fast-food restaurants, people eat out to reflect on
Leticia Casotti 73
THE RESEARCH
Eating Out
some interviewees, eating out means food prepared and served by oth-
ers; it means not having to work. Even with the changes in the social
roles of women who have entered the workforce–25 interviewees work
outside the house–yet, out of the 29 women from the sample, 17 said
that they cook on a daily basis; 10 reported that they cook occasionally,
and only 2 said that they never do anything in the kitchen. Dickson and
Leader (1998) claim that the main roles associated with women con-
tinue to be the preparation of meals, and the buying of food, making the
event of “eating out” seen, in general, as something special for them
(different, special, fun, pleasant, new).
This perception of eating out as something special seems to be ru-
ined, at times, by children: their choices, their presence, or some kind of
routine with them. Also it is interesting to observe that some of the inter-
viewees did not consider going to fast foods such as McDonald’s with
their children as an experience of “eating out.” Going to those fast-food
restaurants appears, at times, to be a routine, mainly on the weekends.
Warde and Martens (2000) have classified the attitude, “not having kids
around when I eat out” as an attitude of an experienced consumer; that
is, of people who nourish the habit of eating out:
Eating at Home
When talking about street food, the women studied in the sample
generally did not describe their preferred dishes, for example. The ob-
servations that surrounded eating out emphasized environments, differ-
ences, attitudes, habits, preferences, rituals. The same seems not to
apply when the interviewees talked about home food, the food of cele-
brations or of weekends. At home, probably because of the greater per-
sonal involvement with the function, the foods and the dishes were cited
without any difficulty.
Even recognizing that higher economic classes tend to eat a larger va-
riety and quantity of foods (Harris 1996), there were not many differ-
ences in terms of the dishes recalled by the higher and lower classes;
that is, similarities were found. This claim seems to be in accordance
with Mennell et al. (1992), who say that the contrasts related to social
classes in the behavior of the food consumer have declined throughout
time; and with DaMatta (1996), who suggests, in analyzing foods and
parties, that in Brazil what one eats appears to mitigate social differ-
ences, serving as a common denominator in an unequal society.
Some of those interviewed who acknowledged not feeling at ease in
the kitchen seemed to resort to what Barbosa (1992) calls the “Brazilian
jeitinho” for the celebrations at home: to call a relative or friend to cook.
Barthes (1961) points out that in the past only festivities were clearly
marked by food, but that today all situations may be expressed through
food, from celebrations and weekends–to work lunches, which have not
been the objective of this research. What about the day-to-day routines
of families? Do they do the meals together?
The interviewees were asked about their family habits concerning
their meals together. Further, it was explored as to how and where the
meals were made. Dickson and Leader (1998) indicate a division
among the sociologists who have studied the topic. Some suggest that
several changes have taken place, such as an increase in the habit of
80 LATIN AMERICAN BUSINESS REVIEW
The kids always have lunch before me, because I arrive after meal
time . . . They eat in the living-room . . . they sit at the table, but
they can watch TV from there . . . the cable TV is a great inven-
tion! Now I turn on those cartoon channels, and the kids spend all
day watching TV . . . (Lina, 32, C)
However, there are other aspects which have been pointed out, also
suggesting problems for the realization of traditional family meals:
the difficulty adults have with eating next to children’s messes (Bell,
Valentine, 1997), the question of available space, the presence or
absence of the maid.
Even with a lot of television, different schedules, and a lack of maid
support, along with other difficulties cited in the descriptions of family
meals, some of those interviewed still valued the event of having meals
together. Lina (32, C), for instance, besides having the habit of eating to-
gether, suggested considering the event as a ritual when she talked about
the preparation of their youngest son to accompany his parents and older
siblings at family meals; while Cleia (42, A1) noted her satisfaction with
the traditional family meal and with the family all united at meal time:
similar decor and little variety. What does one choose? Familiarity or
change?
Even with the ambiguity of the natural world, a search for the perma-
nence of certain values (nutritional, social and cultural) in food con-
sumed may be noticed. Several attempts have appeared in order to
impose order and coherence on the eating reality of those interviewed
and their families. The reports show that there is a systematic behavior
in relation to the choices of food, whether it is consumed at home or out.
Nevertheless, several signs indicate a great dissatisfaction toward this
search for order and coherence, and a great desire for change.
Although in the reports there appeared several aspects concerning the
women individually, in the sample it seems evident that the consump-
tion of food is a group phenomenon, mainly that of the family. In certain
cases, everything related to family eating habits seemed to be deter-
mined by the children: the menu, eating out, the acquisition of new eat-
ing products. With the increasing fragility of the relationship between
men and women, children seem to be increasing their decision-making
power concerning food consumption within the family. The number of
births is dropping, but the importance of children is increasing. It is
important to note that in this society there is the predominance of indi-
vidual wishes on several social levels, which would not differ in fami-
lies–the strongest nuclei of Brazilian society–and which seem to supply
a social composition model that disseminates to other groups.
The study suggests that food consumption is not defined by a relation
with the choice of the cost benefit, but by past and present experiences.
Price hardly appears in the reports in regard to special meals, or when the
interviewees talk about family meals. Its importance is certainly real, but
it is also camouflaged by many other concerns and several emotional
meanings. The changes in content and in the methods of food preparation
may not be an indication of changes in meals as social events. In spite of
technological developments and the convenience of foods, the family
meal and the celebration of food will persist, because they are events that
bring people together. He who eats alone, will die alone?
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Received: 15/12/2004
Revised: 10/08/2005
Accepted: 29/08/2005