Women's Work: How Culinary Cultures Shaped Modern Spain

Spain's cuisine is now recognized as part of Spanish patrimony, but there is still little known about how it became a symbol of Spain's modernity and the roles of modern Spanish women in daily cooking. Womens Work places these efforts in their historical context to understand better the roles of food within an uneven modernization process. It also reveals the paradoxical messages women have navigated in texts about a daily practice that shaped their domestic and work lives. Culinary writing engaged these debates and reached women in the kitchen, shaping their thinking about their roles in modernizing Spain.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 260 pages
Publication date: 30 October 2022
Publisher: Vanderbilt University Press

Spain's cuisine has gained international recognition, attracting tourists worldwide and earning it a place on the Spanish patrimony. However, there is limited knowledge about how Spanish cooking became a symbol of Spain's modernity and the roles of modern Spanish women in daily cooking. This book explores the efforts to articulate a new, modern Spain through various genres and media, particularly focusing on women's work. By placing these efforts in their historical context, Womens Work offers a deeper understanding of the roles of food within an uneven modernization process. It also reveals the paradoxical messages women have navigated, even in texts about daily practices that shaped their domestic and work lives.

Domestic activities, including cooking, played a significant role in women's daily lives, while debates about their citizenship and participation in the public sphere were ongoing. At the same time, progressive intellectuals began to see Spanish cooking and eating as a measure of Spanish modernity. Womens Work demonstrates how culinary writing engaged these debates and reached women in their kitchens, shaping their thoughts about their roles in modernizing Spain.

The book explores the various genres and media through which these efforts were expressed, including cookbooks, culinary journalism, and feminist literature. It also examines the ways in which culinary writing intersected with other forms of women's work, such as domestic labor and activism. By analyzing these texts, Womens Work sheds light on the complex and multifaceted ways in which women contributed to Spain's modernization and the challenges they faced in achieving gender equality.

In conclusion, Womens Work provides a valuable contribution to the study of food, gender, and modernity in Spain. It offers a fresh perspective on the roles of women in shaping Spain's culinary culture and highlights the complex negotiations and contradictions they faced in their efforts to modernize their country. The book is a must-read for anyone interested in Spanish history, culture, and women's studies.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780826504890