Italian Culture through Food

This course explores Italian society, history, and identity through the lens of its culinary traditions. Students will discover how food serves as a window into understanding regional diversity, family structures, social rituals, and cultural values that define Italy. Topics include the historical evolution of Italian cuisine from ancient Rome to the modern era, the significance of regional food identities, the role of the family meal in Italian social life, food and religion, the slow food movement, migrant cuisines and 'gastronativism' as a reaction, and Italy's global culinary influence. Through examining foodstuffs and foodways of current and past Italian society and its changing panorama students will gain insight into how Italians position themselves and their world.