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Article: The Rituals of Dinner.
- Article from:
- Nutrition Health Review
- Article date:
- September 22, 1991
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1991 Vegetus Publications. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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For humans, the act of eating has always been characterized by ritual, no matter how spontaneous or impulsive the effort. In a wide sweeping attempt to chronicle the development of civilized dining, the author manages to argue convincingly that rules of food consumption eventually led to conduct of human behavior.
The Rituals of Dinner encompasses eating rituals from the ancient Greeks to cannibalism, the Eucharist, formal dinners and picnics. From the sublime to the ridiculous, Visser says, there is an inherited format to the proceedings.
"Throughout history, we bring our culture with us," she writes. "With all the possibilities for pleasure and ...