Good Example Of Essay On Reaction Paper

In his essay, Ball addresses the issue of Greek and specifically Crete culture in relation to the Mediterranean diet that is famed for its healthy nature across the world. The main point put across by Ball is that most authors of Cretan cookbooks draw heavily from Greek Nationalist ideologies regarding aestheticism and folklore. Kolleen on the other hand in his article focuses on French tradition and tastes in wine by telling the fictional story of two Frenchmen Ludwig and Hippel on their journey across Germany. Kolleen tries to establish a link between French culture, national identity and hygiene to its dietary tendencies especially involving the consumption of wine.
Ball’s ideologies regarding the Mediterranean diet are reasonable because he presupposes that other nations can still formulate their version of the Mediterranean diet with their locally available ingredients. In the text, it is implied that the food, mainly used by the Greek and more specifically the Crete, is the reason for their extended life expectancy compared to other sections of Europe. It is not a high-quality argument on Ball’s part mainly because there may be other reasons such as climatic conditions that may result in a superior life span for the Cretes. Kolleen suggests that drinking wine by the French is an essential component of hygiene, yet fails to explain using medical records or professional sources why he thinks so. The idea of soldiers under the influence of wine performing better than those who had taken beer is not reliable because there was no use of a control group, one which was sober during the marching exercise.
The arguments proposed by both Ball and Kolleen regarding Greek and French culture respectively are logical to a large extent, and their conclusions can be supported by evidence they present in their texts. Ball justifies his conclusion by citing a research conducted where the conclusion was that Greeks lived longer generally due to their consumption of the Mediterranean diet, fewer quantities of red meat, drinking olive oil which is thought to have medicinal properties and drinking wine conservatively (Ball, 4). Kolleen explains the French’s beliefs about wine and its role in hygiene, as a means of expressing solidarity and social stratification. The discussion of Hippel and Ludwig’s story sheds more light regarding the French culture especially during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries (Kolleen, 44).
The two texts are aimed at discussing the role of diets in the determination of national cultures, identities and trends. By giving an account of both the Greek with their Mediterranean diet and the French with their vegetables, wine and fruits, the authors reveal the cultures of these communities in high detail. The use of cookbooks has also been exposed to give a hint of the interaction of cultures on a local level and an international level (Ball, 4). By critiquing various cookbooks, Ball can come to a reasonable conclusion on the role played by cookbooks in the establishment of a group’s culture.

Works Cited

Ball. Erick L “Greek Food After Mousaka: Cookbooks, “Local” Culture, and the Cretan Diet” Journal of Modern Greek Studies, Volume 21, Number 1, The Johns Hopkins University Press May 2003, pp. 1-36 (Article)
Guy Koleen M “Wine Consumption and the Making of French Identity in the Late Nineteenth Century” Rituals of Pleasure in the Land of Treasures Chapter 3 Routledge 2001pp. 34- 47 Print.