Moral Foods: The Construction of Nutrition and Health in Modern Asia

Moral Foods: The Construction of Nutrition and Health in Modern Asia explores how foods became moral entities, how moral food regimes reveal emerging systems of knowledge and enforcement, and how these developments have contributed to new Asian nutritional knowledge regimes. The collection focuses on cross-cultural and transhistorical comparisons across Asia, bringing into view a broad spectrum of modern Asia.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 356 pages
Publication date: 30 December 2020
Publisher: University of Hawai'i Press

Moral Foods: The Construction of Nutrition and Health in Modern Asia delves into the intricate relationship between food and morality in contemporary Asia. It explores the historical, cultural, and societal factors that have shaped the perception of foods as moral entities, shedding light on the emerging systems of knowledge and enforcement that govern these perceptions. Through a comprehensive examination of cross-cultural and transhistorical comparisons across Asia, the collection offers a broad perspective on modern Asia, encompassing East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, and global communities of Western knowledge, practice, and power outside Asia.

The first section, titled "Good Foods," delves into the establishment of food norms and rules in modern Asia. It examines how ideas about what constitutes good food and a good body have evolved over time, with shifts occurring at different junctures. This section explores the interplay between local foods and knowledge systems, privileging them in some instances and foreign foods and knowledge systems in others. It uncovers the complex dynamics that shape food preferences and consumption patterns in Asia.

The second section, titled "Bad Foods," delves into the characteristics that make foods bad and even dangerous. It goes beyond mere aesthetic or sensory considerations, highlighting the potential harm that certain foods can cause to individuals and societies. Bad foods are not merely unpleasant or undesirable; they can undermine the stability and development of both individuals and communities. This section explores the symbolic pollution associated with foreign foods, which are perceived as threats to traditional foods, national stability, and the well-being of the nation and its people.

The third section, titled "Moral Foods," focuses on the embedded themes of good versus bad in projects aimed at shaping modern persons, subjects, and states in Asia. It examines how the ambiguities and malleability of foods and health contribute to the construction of moral narratives and ideologies surrounding food consumption. By exploring the ways in which moral foods are manipulated, transformed, and consumed, the chapters raise intriguing questions about the dynamic position of Asian societies within larger global flows, connections, and disconnections.

Collectively, the chapters in Moral Foods provide a rich and nuanced understanding of the complex interplay between nutrition, health, morality, and power in modern Asia. They shed light on the ways in which food norms, perceptions, and practices are shaped by historical, cultural, and societal factors, and how these developments contribute to the construction of new Asian nutritional knowledge regimes. The book offers valuable insights into the ways in which food choices and consumption patterns can impact individual well-being, societal stability, and the broader geopolitical dynamics of the region.

Weight: 500g
Dimension: 153 x 228 x 27 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780824888428