Mintz Sweetness And Power

Sweetness and Power by Sidney W. Mintz, encompasses numerous points dealing with the evolution and globalization of sugar throughout history. He makes anthropological analyzes of the consumption of sugar in various societies, along with an in depth discussion on the production of sugar plus its cultural and economic effects. His approach is thorough by discussing its history of technology and change of processing, the biology of taste, slave usage, mercantilist regulation, and social class differences. By evaluating the pre-19th century production, the 17-20th century consumption and addressing the meaning and usage, Mintz confronts the social, economic and political impacts of sugar. Sweetness and Power is divided into five distinct chapters, all concerning different aspects of the development of sugar. The first chapter “Food, Sociality, and Sugar” enumerates that fact of the need for nutrients in early societies. Sugar slowly became an important part of society, by not only becoming a major product, but also being integrated in societies’ culture. With the expansion of travel, sugar became a

There is comparison in how not all countries succumbed to the popularity of sugar by analyzing its development in other countries such as the United States and France. It also covers the development of diet changes in the modern society. Mintz provides beliefs that sugar had an influence in the decline of the three meals a day eating pattern, and encouraged the dependence on prepared foods and the popularity of eating out. Throughout the novel, Mintz provides evidence by loosely following a historical timeline of the development and expansion of sugar. He also utilizes excerpts from more notable writings to further prove the point he is making. His inclusion of reliable and credible authors, philanthropists, historians, etc. further validates his views on