Eat Drink, Man, Woman And Culture

Culture and Tradition: Eat, Drink, Man, Woman

The film Eat, Drink, Man, Woman, was written and directed by Ang Lee in August of 1994. Throughout the film the main characters express cultural and personal significances to food preparation and consumption. Food preparation and consumption was especially important in this film because of the rich traditions practiced in Chinese culture that often involved traditional cooking and family gatherings. The family’s “Sunday dinner torture ritual”, was an example of the deep rooted relationship between food and culture, and how the customs of a culture can change over time as generations pass. Irony, assimilation, double consciousness, and internalized oppression are some of the many literary terms and

Jia-Chien appeared to be experiencing double consciousness throughout most of the film; a term that was coined by W.E.B. Du Bois in the early 1900’s (Pittman, 2016). Double consciousness is a term or concept that describes a person’s internal conflicts of feeling like their identity is divided (Pittman, 2016). This usually occurs under hegemony and in an oppressed society when an individual view themself through the eyes of their oppressor. Jia-Chien worked in the corporate world as an airline executive. She was a woman in a corporate profession that men usually worked. The film suggested that traditionally a women’s place in Chinese culture was, marrying young and working as a school teacher. Pre-modern societies in Chinese culture were mostly patriarchal, with the men holding the authority and leadership roles. Although Jia-Chien was hard working and good at the job, her rank in the organization presented some challenges for her as a woman. She was working alongside men who did not work as hard as she did and she felt like she had to do more in order to be promoted. Jia-Chien’s on the job experiences with gender equality presented a case of double consciousness for her. She also had internal conflicts of staying true to the gender role in her culture that involved getting married or her staying home and caring for her father, as opposed to venturing out and assimilating with modern society. This status marker presented internal conflicts for Jia-Chien in most of the film. Jia-Chien’s personal significance to food preparation and consumption was exemplified in the scene after she was told about her promotion. Jia- Chien arrived at her boyfriend’s apartment and cooked a huge traditional style Chinese dinner for just the two of them. Jia-Chien looked to be at peace as she prepared and cooked dishes that had cultural significance to her. Jia- Chien cooked elaborately whenever