SPAN 216 | (Wo)men of Maize: Food Cultures of the Americas

This course examines the importance of various food products in the development of the original civilizations of the American continent, and the impact that the crops imported by the colonizers have had on the destruction of human cultures and natural ecosystems. Crops native to the Americas (corn, potato, tomato, squash, beans, cacao) and those introduced during colonial times (sugarcane, rice, coffee, bananas), have defined the modern world's foodscapes and have shaped the culture, the history, the economy and the politics of countries around the world. The course will focus on corn in particular, examining its farming, harvesting and cooking methods throughout history, reviewing religious myths and cultural traditions connected to it, and studying its presence and relevance in today's food industry and in our daily lives.