Thomas Gustafson

At the heart of the humanities is cultural study, and the study of culture at the university is primarily done through the study of literature, music, art, philosophy, religion, and language itself.  This course, however, is governed by the premise that the pursuit and cooking of food—those twin cooperative acts—give birth to culture, and that sophisticated cultivation of  the way we transform the raw into the cooked to affect taste—the art of cuisine—has become a mark of urbanity.  This course will explore the interplay between food and culture, studying the history of civilizations through the history of food, beginning with a focus on an America and Europe transformed by the collision of cultures that Columbus initiated in 1492 and concluding with a focus on California cuisine and the food commerce and culture of Los Angeles.

The course will include field trips in and around Los Angeles to places such as the Grand Central Market, the Hollywood Farmer’s market, and an heirloom tomato farm. Each student will research a favorite food or spice and how it has proliferated around the world, while examining how political events and scientific inventions affected this progression.   The “final exam” for the course will take place at the Caribbean restaurant “Cha Cha Cha” where we will test the mahi mahi mango taco, discuss its cultural significance, and then head to Pinkberry’s in Koreatown for a dessert of green tea frozen yogurt.   Films such as “Like Water for Chocolate” and “What’s Cooking” will accompany readings for the course drawn from the writings of food lovers, anthropologists, historians and poets.

The course will be taught by Thomas Gustafson, a professor of English, Carol Gustafson, an urban ecologist, and Jennifer Houst, a farm ethnographer and professional chef.  Their home is Birnkrant Residential College, where Thomas and Carol serve as resident faculty.

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