Introduction
Food and film are a recognized subfield in film scholarship (Ferry 2003; Keller 2006; Zimmerman 2010; Bower 2012; Baron et al. 2014), and food and gender are thoroughly explored in women’s and gender studies (Allen 1984; Counihan 1999; Bordo 2003; Avakian and Haber 2005; Inness 2011). This entry brings together these two areas by way of the concept of “food worlds.” I shall begin with a brief description of the concept “food world,” describe existing scholarship on food and gender and on food and film, and then show that most films assume and illustrate gendered food worlds.
I am using the term “food world” to refer to the meanings that food and the activities surrounding food and eating have for a person. Each of us bears particular relationships to eating and food, and these relationships are shaped by our experiences, as well as biologically and culturally...
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References
Allen, J. (1984). Women and food. Journal of Social Philosophy, 15(2), 34–41.
Avakian, A. V., & Haber, B. (Eds.). (2005). From Betty Crocker to feminist food studies: Critical perspectives on women and food. Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press.
Baron, C., Carson, D., & Bernard, M. (2014). Appetites and anxieties: Food, film, and the politics of representation. Detroit: Wayne State University Press.
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Counihan, C. M. (1999). The anthropology of food and body: Gender, meaning and power. New York: Routledge.
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Inness, S. A. (Ed.). (2011). Cooking lessons: The politics of gender and food. Landham: Rowman & Littlefield.
Keller, J. R. (2006). Food, film and culture: A genre study. Jefferson: McFarland.
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Films
Arau, A. (Director). (1992). Like water for chocolate. Santa Monica: Miramax Lionsgate.
Badham, J. (Director). (1993). Point of no return. Burbank: Warner Brothers.
Berges, P. M. (Director). (2005). The mistress of spices. Westmount: Christal Films.
Besson, L. (Director). (1990). La femme Nikita. Beverly Hills: MGM.
Gers, G. (Director). (2008). Disfigured. Canoga Park: Cinema Libre.
Gordon, M. (Director). (1959). Pillow talk. Universal City: Universal Studios.
Hallstrom, L. (Director). (2000). Chocolat. Santa Monica: Miramax Lionsgate.
Hicks, S. (Director). (2007). No reservations. Burbank: Warner Brothers.
Kaplan, D. (Director). (2009). Today’s special. Niwot: Flatiron Films.
Lee, A. (Director). (1994). Eat, drink, man, woman. Beverly Hills: MGM World Films.
Lee, A. (Director). (2010). The recipe. Seoul: Film It Suda.
Nettelbeck, S. (Director). (2001). Mostly Martha. Hollywood: Paramount Classics.
Ripoll, M. (Director). (2001). Tortilla soup. Culver City: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.
Scafaria, L. (Director). (2012). Seeking a friend for the end of the world. Universal City: Universal Studios.
Tarlov, M. (Director). (1999). Simply irresistible. Los Angeles: 20th Century Fox.
Torres, F. (Director). (2000). Woman on top. Los Angeles: Fox Searchlight.
Wang, W. (Director). (2006). Last holiday. Hollywood: Paramount Pictures.
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Crouch, M.A. (2014). Food Worlds, Film, and Gender. In: Thompson, P., Kaplan, D. (eds) Encyclopedia of Food and Agricultural Ethics. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6167-4_497-1
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