Attend a workshop. Next, write a brief report about what you learned by replying to my post here, for extra credit.
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Attend a workshop. Next, write a brief report about what you learned by replying to my post here, for extra credit.
ENG_Finals_Workshop_Flyer-1Powered by:
8 thoughts on “Extra final exam prep–extra credit opportunity”
I attended the ENG_Finals_workshop from 6:00-8:00 p.m. on Wednesday December 4th. The reading session for “The Anxiety of Eating”&”The Ethics of Eating Animals” by Michael Pollan. The teacher is Igwe Williams, he went through paragraphs one to paragraphs seven. The paragraph one basically talks about the difficulties of navigating the many food choices in the American supermarket. People have problem of choice and food. There are no such thing as an American culinary tradition. The paragraph two is talking about in supermarket, using labels to navigate the dangerous things in food, knowing what information is trustworthy, bioengineered foods, preservatives, artificial colors and flavors, gluten-free, pesticide-free, organic , wild caught vs farmed, so many changes to what is considered healthy, how to companies compensate by adding different unhealthy ingredients, the influence of industries over what is considered healthy. In paragraph three, it talks about being an omnivore gives human more choice, we have the ability to survive food extinction and other disasters, having more cognitive capability, something that contributed to human evolution. In paragraph four, it talks about the characterizing our relationship with food, as being able to move beyond survival and onto taking pleasure from eating, we have the ability to make our food more tasty. Additionally, it mentions culture differences and how they help to navigate the omnivore’s dilemma. Paragraph six talks about a practical example of how food rules help us to navigate the omnivore’s dilemma. Paragraph seven, the teacher mentioned that talks about the cannibalism as an extreme example of behaviors that taboos can help us with.
From this workshop, I hear so many options and interpretation from others students. I am surprised that the students are very engaging during the workshop. The teacher goes very slow because there are always have students want to share their opinions. It is a great experience. I am highly recommend other students to attend the workshops.
I attend the in-person workshop on Wednesday 4th with Mary Giancoli from 11:00am to 12:00pm. The workshop was about the text “The Anxiety of Eating” &”The Ethics of Eating Animals” by Michael Pollan. On the session, the students read all the paragraphs one by one and we talked about what we understand about each of the paragraphs. It was helpful to see different points of view about it.
On Saturday, December 7th, I attended the workshop with the facilitator Bachi Ayala in-person from 4:00pm to 5:00pm. The workshop was about the text ”The Gatekeepers Who Get to Decide what Food is ‘Disgusting”’ by Jiayang Fan. Ayala divided the session in 3 parts: his notes about the text, talk about the structure of the final essay and questions. It was good to hear other person’s notes about the text, but on that one was a little harder since the text was longer, so we didn’t read the text together or talk about our own perspectives, the first part was just the facilitator’s notes about important aspects of the text. But it still was a valid opportunity to learn more about the text.
I attended the ENG_Finals_workshop from 2:00-3:00 p.m. on Tuesday December 10th. The reading session for “The Gatekeepers Who Get to Decide What Food is ‘Disgusting’” by Jiayang Fan. The teacher started with “What is the Omnivore’s Dilemma?” (The Omnivore’s Dilemma is knowing what to eat when there are very little natural limitations to what humans can eat. Many of the reasons we struggle with knowing what to eat are reflected in the two readings are what causes this dilemma, including: 1,Danger (Deadly foods, allergies, fear of trying something new). 2,Not wanting to seem weird by eating foods that other people typically don’t eat. 3,Cultural purposes. 4,Disgust by the taste, smell, sight or feeling of the food. 5,Empathy for the living thing that was killed to make the food. ) and then she went through the article. After went through the article she came back the the talking points. (1) Omnivore: Many species are considered herbivores or carnivores. Their lifespan and ability to survive depends on their diet and whether the food they need to eat to live is available to them. Fan uses the example of koalas only being able to eat specific leaves as a part of their diet. Humans are unique in a sense that we have more versatility in what we’re able to eat as omnivores. Many of the limitations we have when it comes to our diet are often self-imposed or based on societal norms. (2)Cultural Norm/Traditions: The way we eat can be affected by cultural beliefs and traditions that we follow. Many religions, cultures, and countries have their own dishes that are specific to them, as well as limitations on what they don’t eat or are not allowed to eat. This can affect how a person views foods that are from different cultures or countries. If someone visits a country with food that is different from their home country, they may be hesitant to try the new foods. There also may be foods that are unconventional to us, such as some of the foods in the museum, but they are considered normal in other cultures or countries. (3) Food Consumption: Food is an essential part of living, and the kinds of foods we eat are important to our own health and safety. The food we consume can also shape our identity and expand our tastes.
Food consumption is also something that we can take for granted, especially when we waste food because we don’t like it, or we refuse to try new things. This is something that Fan notes in her essay as a reason for why she will eat a food even if she doesn’t like it. Food was not as accessible to her family, so she knows how valuable it is. (4) Social Construction: Social construct is the rules we have given ourselves to follow as a society. Examples of social construction include: the meaning of words, the value of money, what is considered right and wrong, etc. When it comes to food, social construction is what society has agreed upon is considered “normal” and “acceptable” food to eat. Many of the foods included in the Disgusting Food Museum are considered foods that are not considered “normal” because some part of the food or the process used to make the food is unconventional. (5) Community : Food can be a good way to bring people together, especially when it comes to having similar tastes or following specific rules. For example, if a specific religion or culture has rules that they need to follow when it comes to food, that may bring them together. Likewise, people that dislike certain kinds of foods or are from a different country may come together with dishes that they prefer or that remind them of home. (6) Ethical Decision and Responsibility: Ethical decisions are related to our morals and what we believe to be right or wrong. When it comes to eating, we may refrain from eating certain things because we do not agree with the process used to make the food, or we do not feel that it is fair to kill and consume another living being. Ethics and social construct also are the reason why it is immoral to eat certain things, such as pets or other people. Even when it comes to “acceptable” meats and processed foods, we struggle ethically knowing how the food is made. That is why we choose to not watch or learn about how the food was made because it can lead to so much disgust and empathy that we would have to stop eating foods we are used to. (7) Dilemma: The dilemma that humans face is how to enjoy food when there is so many dangers or food that is not conventionally accepted. We have a variety of foods to choose from, yet we do not have any guidance toward a specific diet to follow which creates a dilemma as to what foods to eat. We also struggle to expand our tastes because of fear of trying new things and disgust. (8) Disgust: Disgust is something that we experience when we see, smell, taste, or touch something undesirable. Disgust is what prevents us from eating or drinking something that we don’t like or associate with something negative. For instance, many of the foods in the museum are considered disgusting not only because of their taste, but also their smell, their appearance, the way it feels, or the process used to make the food. Fan presents the idea that disgust can sometimes hold us back from trying new things. For example, bugs are edible, but we typically don’t eat them because we consider bugs to be gross.
Lisa Lupo’s session virtual session on the 10th of december 2024 was really helpful in making sense of The Omnivore’s Dilemma and tying it into what we’ve been talking about in class. She went over some key paragraphs in the reading, broke them down, and explained the main thesis Fan was trying to get at. She also shared “talking points,” which were overlapping themes from our discussions, and they made it easier to connect the reading to the bigger picture. One of the most interesting parts was when she brought up the Disgusting Food Museum. She talked about how foods that seem gross to us might be totally normal in other cultures, which got me thinking about how much our personal experiences shape what we find acceptable. She also mentioned her visit to the Museum of Failure and how some products that didn’t work at first eventually became successful. She tied the two museums together by explaining how disgust and failure are connected to what society rejects or accepts. Lisa spent a good amount of time explaining how disgust isn’t always about something being harmful but it’s often just about what we’re not used to. That idea really stuck with me because it’s such a simple but powerful way to think about cultural differences. At the end, she did a quick recap of the main points, which tied everything together nicely. Overall, the session felt like a good mix of diving into the reading and exploring bigger ideas. It made me think differently about food, culture, and even failure.
The first paragraph discusses the difficulty of choosing food in American supermarkets, where there is no clear culinary tradition. Paragraph two talks about confusing food labels and industry influence on health. Paragraph three explains that being omnivores gives humans more food choices and adaptability. Paragraph four highlights how food is not just about survival but pleasure, with culture helping us navigate choices. Paragraph six provides an example of how food rules help. Paragraph seven mentions cannibalism as an extreme taboo.
The workshop was engaging, with students sharing their thoughts. It was a great experience.
On Saturday, December 7th, I attended a workshop Bachi Ayala from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. The session focused on the text “The Gatekeepers Who Get to Decide What Food is ‘Disgusting'” by Jiayang Fan. Bachi divided the workshop into three parts: his notes on the text, a discussion about the structure of the final essay, and a time for questions. This session was helpful for me.
The workshop on December 10th focused on Jiayang Fan’s article about the challenges of food choices, known as the Omnivore’s Dilemma. It discussed reasons for food aversion, such as danger, cultural influences, disgust, and empathy. Humans, unlike other species, can eat a wide variety of foods, but social norms, ethics, and personal preferences shape what we consume. Disgust often prevents us from trying new or unconventional foods, even if they are safe or nutritious.