Gastronomica: The Journal of Critical Food Studies, 2015
Galeto al primo canto is an Italian-Brazilian culinary specialty of the Gaúcho Highlands region o... more Galeto al primo canto is an Italian-Brazilian culinary specialty of the Gaúcho Highlands region of southern Brazil’s Rio Grande do Sul state. This ample repast of roast chicken, polenta, pasta, and other dishes is associated with nineteenth-century Italian immigration to the Gaúcho Highlands. Galeterias, restaurants that serve the meal, are today a featured part of the region’s gastronomic tourism and have been officially recognized as the intangible cultural heritage of the city of Caxias do Sul. The history of the dish and contemporary claims to cultural heritage illustrate the shifting meanings of Italian ethnic identity within the Brazilian nation-state and highlight the discursive role that tourism and heritage institutions play in the cultural production process.
Gastronomica: The Journal of Critical Food Studies, 2015
Galeto al primo canto is an Italian-Brazilian culinary specialty of the Gaúcho Highlands region o... more Galeto al primo canto is an Italian-Brazilian culinary specialty of the Gaúcho Highlands region of southern Brazil’s Rio Grande do Sul state. This ample repast of roast chicken, polenta, pasta, and other dishes is associated with nineteenth-century Italian immigration to the Gaúcho Highlands. Galeterias, restaurants that serve the meal, are today a featured part of the region’s gastronomic tourism and have been officially recognized as the intangible cultural heritage of the city of Caxias do Sul. The history of the dish and contemporary claims to cultural heritage illustrate the shifting meanings of Italian ethnic identity within the Brazilian nation-state and highlight the discursive role that tourism and heritage institutions play in the cultural production process.
This article describes the Ethnography of the University Initiative (EUI), a six-year-old cross-c... more This article describes the Ethnography of the University Initiative (EUI), a six-year-old cross-campus program at the University of Illinois that offers students the opportunity to conduct original ethnographic and archival research on their own institutions and supports faculty who guide that ...
This article draws on data from ethnographic fieldwork in an urban housing project to examine the... more This article draws on data from ethnographic fieldwork in an urban housing project to examine the social context and meanings of surgical sterilization for low-income women in Brazil. Low-income women resort to sterilization because they distrust or are unsatisfied with alternative methods and because it helps them to fulfill the requirements of modern, responsible motherhood. Although sterilization is an option among few alternatives, and one that has subjected women to greater medical management and intervention, I argue that sterilization also represents poor women's active struggle to improve their lives and to resist the burdens placed on them by unequal gender relations. This article contributes to a growing anthropological literature that demonstrates how reproduction has become a central site where social values are constituted and contested, and it details women's diverse responses to the process of medicalization.
GALETO AL PRIMO CANTO, a meal of roasted chicken and traditional accompaniments, is a culinary sp... more GALETO AL PRIMO CANTO, a meal of roasted chicken and traditional accompaniments, is a culinary specialty of the Serra Gaúcha (the Gaúcho Highlands) region of Brazil's southern-most state, Rio Grande do Sul. The name galeto al primo canto (literally, " chicken at first crow ") refers to the youth of the fowl, which are slaughtered at less than a month of age. 1 The young meat is appreciated for its tenderness. The tradition of roasting the small birds and serving the accompanying foods (including polenta and pasta) belongs to nineteenth-century Italian immigrants to the South Region of Brazil. As with so many products of an immigrant encounter, local origins are elided and galeto al primo canto is commonly referred to as " Italian " food. Today, restaurants that serve the meal, called galeterias, are featured in the region's gastronomic tourism and recognized as part of its cultural heritage. While contemporary descendants celebrate their Italian ethnicity, this has not always been the case. The history of galeto al primo canto and contemporary claims of cultural heritage illustrate the shifting meanings of Italian ethnic identity within the Brazilian nation state and highlight the discursive role that tourism and heritage institutions play in the cultural production process. Foods and foodways are increasingly touted as " cultural heritage " at local, national, and international levels and are a thriving focus of cultural tourism. Eating the foods of another land is a powerful way for travelers to experience an unfamiliar locale and culinary tourism capitalizes on the enjoyment of memorable dining. Deciding what and where to eat can also be an anxiety fraught dilemma for those away from home, even though the ubiquity of transnational food chains and industrial food products largely frees today's travelers from what was once the tyranny of an innkeeper's table d'ôte (see Spang 2000). As an anthropologist and " Brazilianist, " I relish the opportunity to try new foods and I have found commensality to be one of the most profound forms of participant observation. Sharing meals with friends and colleagues in Brazil nourishes our friendship and my understanding of Brazilian society. Traveling with my (often less adventuresome) North Ameri-can college students on study abroad in Brazil, however, has required a preoccupation with suitable food and dining options even when the menu was far from exotic. It has been through my fieldwork and teaching in the South of Brazil that I came to know galeterias and their signature menu. Galeterias are common throughout the South of Brazil but are not well known outside the region. 2 Galeterias are especially associated with the city of Caxias do Sul, which claims to be the home of the first galeteria. Caxias do Sul has in fact recently officially recognized the galeteria as intangible cultural heritage and a local committee nominated the " invention of the galeteria " for inscription with Brazil's National Institute for Cultural and Artistic Heritage (IPHAN). Like UNESCO's Lists of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity , 3 IPHAN recognizes cultural heritage of immaterial nature including traditional knowledge and craft; celebrations; forms of expression; and places, such as markets, fairs, and sanctuaries , that house collective cultural practices (IPHAN n.d.). Concern for heritage foods (and localized culinary practices) has emerged as part of larger efforts to preserve cultural diversity and traditional customs in the face of national or Abstract: Galeto al primo canto is an Italian-Brazilian culinary specialty of the Gaúcho Highlands region of southern Brazil's Rio Grande do Sul state. This ample repast of roast chicken, polenta, pasta, and other dishes is associated with nineteenth-century Italian immigration to the Gaúcho Highlands. Galeterias, restaurants that serve the meal, are today a featured part of the region's gastronomic tourism and have been officially recognized as the intangible cultural heritage of the city of Caxias do Sul. The history of the dish and contemporary claims to cultural heritage illustrate the shifting meanings of Italian ethnic identity within the Brazilian nation-state and highlight the discursive role that tourism and heritage institutions play in the cultural production process.
Gastronomica: The Journal of Critical Food Studies, 2015
Galeto al primo canto is an Italian-Brazilian culinary specialty of the Gaúcho Highlands region o... more Galeto al primo canto is an Italian-Brazilian culinary specialty of the Gaúcho Highlands region of southern Brazil’s Rio Grande do Sul state. This ample repast of roast chicken, polenta, pasta, and other dishes is associated with nineteenth-century Italian immigration to the Gaúcho Highlands. Galeterias, restaurants that serve the meal, are today a featured part of the region’s gastronomic tourism and have been officially recognized as the intangible cultural heritage of the city of Caxias do Sul. The history of the dish and contemporary claims to cultural heritage illustrate the shifting meanings of Italian ethnic identity within the Brazilian nation-state and highlight the discursive role that tourism and heritage institutions play in the cultural production process.
Gastronomica: The Journal of Critical Food Studies, 2015
Galeto al primo canto is an Italian-Brazilian culinary specialty of the Gaúcho Highlands region o... more Galeto al primo canto is an Italian-Brazilian culinary specialty of the Gaúcho Highlands region of southern Brazil’s Rio Grande do Sul state. This ample repast of roast chicken, polenta, pasta, and other dishes is associated with nineteenth-century Italian immigration to the Gaúcho Highlands. Galeterias, restaurants that serve the meal, are today a featured part of the region’s gastronomic tourism and have been officially recognized as the intangible cultural heritage of the city of Caxias do Sul. The history of the dish and contemporary claims to cultural heritage illustrate the shifting meanings of Italian ethnic identity within the Brazilian nation-state and highlight the discursive role that tourism and heritage institutions play in the cultural production process.
This article describes the Ethnography of the University Initiative (EUI), a six-year-old cross-c... more This article describes the Ethnography of the University Initiative (EUI), a six-year-old cross-campus program at the University of Illinois that offers students the opportunity to conduct original ethnographic and archival research on their own institutions and supports faculty who guide that ...
This article draws on data from ethnographic fieldwork in an urban housing project to examine the... more This article draws on data from ethnographic fieldwork in an urban housing project to examine the social context and meanings of surgical sterilization for low-income women in Brazil. Low-income women resort to sterilization because they distrust or are unsatisfied with alternative methods and because it helps them to fulfill the requirements of modern, responsible motherhood. Although sterilization is an option among few alternatives, and one that has subjected women to greater medical management and intervention, I argue that sterilization also represents poor women's active struggle to improve their lives and to resist the burdens placed on them by unequal gender relations. This article contributes to a growing anthropological literature that demonstrates how reproduction has become a central site where social values are constituted and contested, and it details women's diverse responses to the process of medicalization.
GALETO AL PRIMO CANTO, a meal of roasted chicken and traditional accompaniments, is a culinary sp... more GALETO AL PRIMO CANTO, a meal of roasted chicken and traditional accompaniments, is a culinary specialty of the Serra Gaúcha (the Gaúcho Highlands) region of Brazil's southern-most state, Rio Grande do Sul. The name galeto al primo canto (literally, " chicken at first crow ") refers to the youth of the fowl, which are slaughtered at less than a month of age. 1 The young meat is appreciated for its tenderness. The tradition of roasting the small birds and serving the accompanying foods (including polenta and pasta) belongs to nineteenth-century Italian immigrants to the South Region of Brazil. As with so many products of an immigrant encounter, local origins are elided and galeto al primo canto is commonly referred to as " Italian " food. Today, restaurants that serve the meal, called galeterias, are featured in the region's gastronomic tourism and recognized as part of its cultural heritage. While contemporary descendants celebrate their Italian ethnicity, this has not always been the case. The history of galeto al primo canto and contemporary claims of cultural heritage illustrate the shifting meanings of Italian ethnic identity within the Brazilian nation state and highlight the discursive role that tourism and heritage institutions play in the cultural production process. Foods and foodways are increasingly touted as " cultural heritage " at local, national, and international levels and are a thriving focus of cultural tourism. Eating the foods of another land is a powerful way for travelers to experience an unfamiliar locale and culinary tourism capitalizes on the enjoyment of memorable dining. Deciding what and where to eat can also be an anxiety fraught dilemma for those away from home, even though the ubiquity of transnational food chains and industrial food products largely frees today's travelers from what was once the tyranny of an innkeeper's table d'ôte (see Spang 2000). As an anthropologist and " Brazilianist, " I relish the opportunity to try new foods and I have found commensality to be one of the most profound forms of participant observation. Sharing meals with friends and colleagues in Brazil nourishes our friendship and my understanding of Brazilian society. Traveling with my (often less adventuresome) North Ameri-can college students on study abroad in Brazil, however, has required a preoccupation with suitable food and dining options even when the menu was far from exotic. It has been through my fieldwork and teaching in the South of Brazil that I came to know galeterias and their signature menu. Galeterias are common throughout the South of Brazil but are not well known outside the region. 2 Galeterias are especially associated with the city of Caxias do Sul, which claims to be the home of the first galeteria. Caxias do Sul has in fact recently officially recognized the galeteria as intangible cultural heritage and a local committee nominated the " invention of the galeteria " for inscription with Brazil's National Institute for Cultural and Artistic Heritage (IPHAN). Like UNESCO's Lists of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity , 3 IPHAN recognizes cultural heritage of immaterial nature including traditional knowledge and craft; celebrations; forms of expression; and places, such as markets, fairs, and sanctuaries , that house collective cultural practices (IPHAN n.d.). Concern for heritage foods (and localized culinary practices) has emerged as part of larger efforts to preserve cultural diversity and traditional customs in the face of national or Abstract: Galeto al primo canto is an Italian-Brazilian culinary specialty of the Gaúcho Highlands region of southern Brazil's Rio Grande do Sul state. This ample repast of roast chicken, polenta, pasta, and other dishes is associated with nineteenth-century Italian immigration to the Gaúcho Highlands. Galeterias, restaurants that serve the meal, are today a featured part of the region's gastronomic tourism and have been officially recognized as the intangible cultural heritage of the city of Caxias do Sul. The history of the dish and contemporary claims to cultural heritage illustrate the shifting meanings of Italian ethnic identity within the Brazilian nation-state and highlight the discursive role that tourism and heritage institutions play in the cultural production process.
Uploads
Papers by Gina Hunter