I found the presentation on cooking shows to be fascinating. I personally am a huge fan of Top Chef. I am kind of addicted to it. But I have never really sat down and tried to analyze why this is so. I just figured it was because I was a fan of food and cooking and wanted to try to learn some tricks on how to become a better cook. Yet in thinking about it more critically I came to the realization that was more than just that. In thinking about it deeper, I realized that the comfort I feel in watching cooking shows may also to be to fill a void. Not simply the void of how I myself do not cook and rely on frozen and easy to prepare meals. I also am filling the void of distance from my family. At home there are always meals being made. I have a large family so preparing meals in my house takes help from everyone. It takes the whole family helping to make the meal all come together. It usually is my mother, sister and myself, but sometimes by my complaining about how it should not be a woman’s job to be in the kitchen draws in my dad and brothers. When I am at school I miss it. I miss the Sunday night meals my family does especially. I miss the aroma of foods being prepared. It gives a comforting sense of being “home.” In watching these cooking shows I find that I am partially doing it for the entertainment aspect, but also for the fact that I miss home and my family.
Another major interesting part of the presentation was the concept of “gastro porn.” I had never heard of that terminology and was really interested to learn about it. I had never really thought of food in that sense. All in all I learned a lot from the presentation and would love to learn more because of how fascinating it is as a current topic. Nice job!