ASB 300: Food and Culture Module 1 Comprehension Check
Comprehension Checks are designed to gauge your understanding of the material presented in Module. To complete the Comprehension Check, download the template, select which questions you would like to answer, type up your responses in the template, and submit the assignment through the link provided here. You are required to use the template as provided. Simply insert your responses into the appropriate space on the template.
You must provide an answer to a question in each of the five question sets (for a total of five questions answered). Each question is graded out of six points for a total of 30 points. Each of your answers should be between about 50 and 100 words and should be written in full sentences. Responses should be primarily written in your own words. Direct quotations should be used very sparingly and if used, should make up less than 20% of your response. You should list which course resource(s) you used to answer the question within the response box. Any citation format is acceptable and you do not need to provide a full references list as it is expected you are only using course sources.* Please see the General Guidelines for Completing Written Assignments for tips on how to paraphrase and avoid plagiarism.
Each student needs to complete their own Comprehension Check. You can study with each another student but you need to complete the Comprehension Check alone.You may NOT share Comprehension Checks with other students and you may NOT upload Comprehension Checks to websites such as CourseHero. Doing so is considered academic dishonesty and is punishable by a grade of 0/30 on this assignment and/or a course grade of XE (failure due to academic dishonesty). Grades can and will be changed retroactively, even after the end of the course.
*You should not use an internet search engine to find answers. All answers are available in the course material and you should rely on these sources.
EXAMPLE
This example presents questions that are not covered in the currently assigned lectures and readings. However, the example illustrates how to properly format your response with (1) using the number of the question answered at the beginning of the response, (2) as appropriate word count, and (3) a citation of the source material. Each response MUST have an in-text citation. This does not mean you should be relying on direct quotations, which in fact, should be used sparingly. You can delete this example from your submission or keep it in.
| Questions –
Select one of the two questions listed to answer. Make sure to start your response with the number of the question you are answering. |
1. What are starvation foods? Provide an example. | 2. What is the myth of nutrition? |
| Your answer –
Remember that responses should be about 50-100 words and direct quotations should be used rarely.
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1. Starvation foods are “foods” that are typically eaten as a last resort. I put foods in quotation marks because sometimes starvation foods aren’t things that we would typically consider as food, such as cardboard. Sometimes though starvation foods are just less-preferred items that would be culturally considered food but wouldn’t be eaten unless desperate. Often these foods are transformed to look like more culturally acceptable food. An example of a starvation food is cardboard prepared to look like pasta (Messer 2007, p. 55). | |
QUESTION #1 (6 points)
| Questions –
Select one of the two questions listed to answer. Make sure to start your response with the number of the question you are answering. If answering #2, make sure to include the name of the theoretical approach and the letter in your response. |
1. How do anthropologists define the concept of cuisine? How is this definition relevant to the anthropological study of food? | 2. Select one of the theoretical approaches to studying food listed below (and discussed in the lecture). Explain how that approach structures how food is analyzed.
(a) Symbolic (b) Structural (c) Political economy (d) Evolutionary |
| Your answer –
Remember that responses should be about 50-100 words and direct quotations should be used rarely.
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QUESTION #2 (6 points)
| Questions –
Select one of the two questions listed to answer. Make sure to start your response with the number of the question you are answering. |
1. What is the original omnivore’s dilemma? What is the modern omnivore’s dilemma. How are they similar and different? | 2. What are the three sources of information needed to solve the original omnivore’s dilemma? Which has been argued to be the most important and why? |
| Your answer –
Remember that responses should be about 50-100 words and direct quotations should be used rarely.
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QUESTION #3 (6 points)
| Question –
Select one of the methods listed to explain. Make sure to include the name of the method and the letter in your response. |
Select one of the following research methods and explain how anthropologists use it to learn about food practices in the past or the present.
(a) Microwear analysis (b) Isotope analysis (c) Residue analysis (d) Participant observation (e) Preload test meal procedure |
| Your answer –
Remember that responses should be about 50-100 words and direct quotations should be used rarely.
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QUESTION #4 (6 points)
| Questions –
Answer the provided question. |
Counihan (1992) discusses her students’ perceptions of “good” and “bad” foods. How do most students define these categories and why? | Counihan (1992) argues that U.S. college students’ food rules and the underlying ideologies that lead to these rules, reflect and maintain class, race, ethnic, and gender boundaries. Select one line of evidence that she uses to support this argument and describe it (in your own words). |
| Your answer –
Remember that responses should be about 50-100 words and direct quotations should be used rarely.
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QUESTION #5 (6 points)
| Question –
Answer the provided question. |
What is cultural relativism? How is it relevant to the study of food? |
| Your answer –
Remember that responses should be about 50-100 words and direct quotations should be used rarely.
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