Miłość od kuchni. O roli jedzenia w wybranych utworach pisarek hindusko‑amerykańskich
Gourmet Love. The Role of Food in Selected Works by Indo‑American Female Writers

Author(s): Iwona Filipczak
Subject(s): Language and Literature Studies, Studies of Literature, Theory of Literature
Published by: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Śląskiego
Keywords: ethnicity; immigration; food; Bharati Mukherjee; Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni; Jhumpa Lahiri
Summary/Abstract: Love stories often provide the thread for the literary works of American female writers of Indian origin. Also, the topic of food is important in such texts: the representations of food, related rituals (preparation, consumption) play a significant role in the literature of the diasporas, because they are a way of emphasising cultural distinction and building the identity of a specific group (Mannur). The purpose of the article is to discuss the ways of representing love with the use of food‑related motifs in three works by Indo‑Americanfemale writers: a novel by Bharati Mukherjee Jasmine (1989), in Mistress of Spices (1997) by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni, and in Jhumpa Lahiri’s A Temporary Matter from the collection titled Interpreter of Maladies (1999). Based on the presented analyses, it is possible to conclude that for female writers from the first generation of immigrants, the topic of love is partly intertwined with the confrontation of distinct, diverse cultures. Cuisine‑relatedmotifs in the novels of Mukherjee and Divakaruni highlight culture differences and help explore identity issues. Jhumpa Lahiri is a representative of the second generation of immigrants; her story presents the topic of love told with the help of food‑related elements and disconnected from the ethnic background and shows the universal human experience. Food is a metaphor of love presented as an attitude based on involvement, and does not convey additional meanings.

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