Should/does food matter?

For all people, food is a necessary tool of survival. This tool, however, is not viewed the same way by everyone. The relationships people have with food depend on their location, their traditions, their economic status, even their gender. No two people have the same thoughts when it comes to food. Some people are able to eat whatever and whenever they want. Food is more of a source of entertainemnt for them than a life source. There are some people whose relationship with food is the exact opposite. No amount of food is taken for granted, because they so rarely get it. This blog will explore the complex role that food serves in our society, why is serves so many different roles for people, and begin to differenceiate the need for food and the NEED for food. Western society has a odd facination with separating non-gendered items or things into feminine and masculine groups. Some are more obvious, such as clothes or colors, but it seems that everything is touched by these classifications in some way. One thing that may be less obvious is food. When a heterosexual couple goes into a restaurant, it is assumed that the woman will order a salald and the man will order something with meat. Where did these classifications come from? When did a salad become the assumed dish for a woman, and meat for a man? How do these align with societies views? It can be assumed that men started to be associated with meat due to the amount of protein in it, and protien coaxes muscle development if used with exercise. But is a salad not also, if not more so, a more healthy post-workout meal? These gender oriented foods say more about society as a whole than the food itself does. Assigning something as arbitrary as genders to food shows the metal state of Western society. Many people have noticed these roles are attepmt to break them, but the thought of a female salad and a male hot dog, lets say, is so engrained in the minds of people that it seems it will be a while before they are in any way shaken. This matters because not only is gendered objects/notions ridiculous, but it shapes how people in society act. Perhaps there is a woman who prefers to not always get a salad, but is made to feel bad about he choices by the people around her. Or, perhaps, there is a vegetarian man who is looked down upon by society for not being the man he is supposed to be. Regardless of the situation, gendered food is alive and well and, unfortunately, an integral part of society.