Essay On Nostalgia, Soul Food, And Diaspora

Hungry for Nostalgia, Soul Food, and Diaspora in American Home…. is a feeling, a place of belonging, a place of comfort. Food is unique in that it provides a full sensory experience that allows a person to be transported home like nothing else. Food is powerful in that it is not the dish itself that provides nostalgia, but the smells, people and visual experiences associated with it. Food itself provides a tangible link to home, a sense of belonging. Diasporic communities often used food not only to fulfill basic physical needs but as a way of reconnecting with their roots by evoking a psychological affiliation of memories and comfort after a migratory experience. The “melting pot” that is American cuisine is defined and immersed from immigrant diaspora. Immigrants and diasporic communities brought skills, culture, and tradition to America that were inspired by food. Soul food is one of the most prevalent diaspora cuisines that emerged from immigrant African Americans and has become the staple of American cuisine. Soul food not only became a pivotal hallmark of Americanism and the American dream but enabled immigrants to stay connected with their roots and form a new identity.

In many ways, soul food embodies the essence of Americanism and the American dream. Immigrants came to American to find freedom, to find a creative outlet, to find happiness, and to find a new identity. In the same way, soul food offered African- Americans identity through a social outlet of inward expression that ambled them to stay connected with their cultural roots. Identity and the pressure to assimilate is a common theme of novels and short stories written by immigrants and new