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Title |
Analyzing Grief in Food Literature through the Rites of Passage: A Case Study of The Shopping Route of an Old-Fashioned Girl and Crying in H Mart |
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Author |
Wang, Wan-Yu |
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Ph. D. Student, Department of Taiwan Culture, Languages and Literature, National Taiwan Normal University |
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Abstract |
This paper aims to analyze and compare two works of literature written by female authors born in the 1980s, focusing on food literature surrounding the period of before and after their mothers' passing. The books are The Shopping Route of an Old-Fashioned Girl and Crying in H Mart: A Memoir. By examining the experiences and memories revolving around food, cooking, and gatherings between the mother and daughter, the paper seeks to elucidate the three stages of the Rite of Passage theory: separation, transition, and incorporation. Firstly, in the separation stage, the authors' writings on food memories evoke a sense of loss. As their mothers' lives gradually fade, both works depict the process of preparing for a banquet, an extraordinary event, with the aim of bringing hope to their ailing mothers, attempting to rescue them from the despair of the separation stage. Next, in the transition stage, the identities of the daughter/ the living and the mother/ the patient become blurred as they pass down culinary skills. Both texts describe the gradual process of learning and teaching, involving "teachingreplacement-acknowledgment." However, there are differences in whether this identity transition is completed, leading to identity confusion. Finally, the incorporation stage is addressed through post-funeral gatherings and the recreation of the mothers' signature dishes, which compensate for the dissatisfaction of the transition stage. This stage involves reconnecting with family through shared meals, allowing the living to move beyond their grief and reflect on the meaning of life. This study aims to expand the anthropological theory of the Rite of Passage by interpreting and comparing the themes of loss in food literature, hoping to engage in dialogue with existing Taiwanese food literature. |
