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‘A Slice of Life’: Food Narratives and Menus from Mass-Observers in 1982 and 1945

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  • Sarah Nettleton
  • Emma Uprichard

Abstract

This paper reports on an analysis of hitherto unexamined documentary data on food held within the UK Mass Observation Archive (MOA). In particular it discusses responses to the 1982 Winter Directive which asked MOA correspondents about their experiences of food and eating, and the food diaries submitted by MOA panel members in 1945. What is striking about these data is the extent to which memories of food and eating are interwoven with recollections of the lifecourse; in particular social relations, family life, and work. It seems asking people about food generates insight into aspects of everyday life. In essence, memories of food provide a crucial and potentially overlooked medium for developing an appreciation of social change. We propose the concept ‘food narratives’ to capture the essence of these reflections because they reveal something more than personal stories; they are both individual and collective experiences in that personal food narratives draw upon shared cultural repertoires, generational memories, and tensions between age cohorts. Food narratives are embodied and embedded in social networks, socio-cultural contexts and socio-economic epochs. Thus the daily menus recorded in 1945 and memories scribed in 1982 do not simply communicate what people ate, liked and disliked but throw light on two contrasting moments of British history; the end of the second world war and an era of transition, reform, individualization, diversity which was taking place in the early 1980s.

Suggested Citation

  • Sarah Nettleton & Emma Uprichard, 2011. "‘A Slice of Life’: Food Narratives and Menus from Mass-Observers in 1982 and 1945," Sociological Research Online, , vol. 16(2), pages 99-107, June.
  • Handle: RePEc:sae:socres:v:16:y:2011:i:2:p:99-107
    DOI: 10.5153/sro.2340
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Edgar Burns, 2010. "Developing Email Interview Practices in Qualitative Research," Sociological Research Online, , vol. 15(4), pages 24-35, November.
    2. Mike Savage, 2007. "Changing Social Class Identities in Post-War Britain: Perspectives from Mass-Observation," Sociological Research Online, , vol. 12(3), pages 14-26, May.
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    Cited by:

    1. Dana Wilson-Kovacs, 2014. "‘Clearly Necessary’, ‘Wonderful’ and ‘Engrossing’? Mass Observation Correspondents Discuss Forensic Technologies," Sociological Research Online, , vol. 19(3), pages 161-176, September.
    2. Liz Moor & Emma Uprichard, 2014. "The Materiality of Method: The Case of the Mass Observation Archive," Sociological Research Online, , vol. 19(3), pages 136-146, September.
    3. Abigail Knight & Julia Brannen & Rebecca O'connell, 2015. "Using Narrative Sources from the Mass Observation Archive to Study Everyday Food and Families in Hard Times: Food Practices in England during 1950," Sociological Research Online, , vol. 20(1), pages 29-72, February.
    4. Viktoria Wallin & Ida Carlander & Per‐Olof Sandman & Britt‐Marie Ternestedt & Cecilia Håkanson, 2014. "Maintaining ordinariness around food: partners’ experiences of everyday life with a dying person," Journal of Clinical Nursing, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 23(19-20), pages 2748-2756, October.

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