Week 2 Blog Post

  The Globalisation of Italian Cuisine

Conduct a brief interview with a member of your family and discuss one of the flows or scapes of globalisation that has changed or affected their lives in some way.

The entire notion behind the concept of globalisation is its ability to connect people and enable them to reach beyond their own place (Rantanen, 2005, pg. 12). The consideration of the role of the media and communications is therefore highly important for the concept of globalisation (Rantanen, 2005, pg. 17). The entire world is enhanced by media and communications due to its ability to encourage worldwide social relations. According to Rantanen, globalisation is a process where worldwide economic, political and cultural social relations have become increasingly mediated across space and time (Rantanen, 2005, pg. 8). This means that media and communications have helped to create new kinds of interaction and have facilitated in the development of globalisation.

In order to gain some insight into how globalisation affects people in their everyday lives, I conducted an interview with my mother and questioned her perception of the media and globalisation. I asked her several general questions, such as ‘how do you think globalisation of the media has directly affected your life?’ I also examined what she defined ‘globalisation’ and ‘the media’ as and how they intertwine with each other in order to determine her perception of the media in relation to globalisation. To conclude my interview, I asked my mother about her experience with the media in relation to accessing worldwide information and how this has helped in her everyday life.

The main aspect of my mother’s life which has been influenced by globalisation is her culture. This is an example of how ‘cultural flows’ help to communicate cultural practices around the world and how traditions and skills move across national boundaries. My mother’s parents migrated from Italy before she was born in order to start a new life in Australia. Even though they had moved countries, there were many traditions and cultural values which they brought along with them. A main characteristic which directly affects my mother is her culinary skills and her appreciation of food. My grandmother has taught my mother hundreds of recipes which she incorporates into her life daily. These recipes have been passed on from generation to generation, and due to my mother’s interest in Italian food, she constantly accesses the internet in order to search for different recipes and new methods of cooking. The ability to access this information has inspired her and enriched her love for Italian cuisine.

The interest in Italian cuisine has also translated into many facets of the media. There are currently several television shows that feature Italian chefs preparing meals all over Italy in new and exciting ways. Many internationally recognised chefs, such as the United Kingdom’s Nigella Lawson, cook many different variations of traditional Italian meals that have been altered for this day and age. These well-known chefs also allow their viewers access to websites with detailed information on each recipe and tips for perfecting their culinary skills. There is a strong sense of global community, where professional chefs from all over the world can share their passion for cooking with their viewers.

“Although everybody lives a local life, phenomenal worlds are for the most part truly global” (Rantanen, 2005, pg. 10). The world of cooking has been enhanced by globalisation and has developed with new technology and progressed to create an innovative means of accessing new information. The improved access to new material has heightened my mother’s love for cooking and enabled her to progress in her daily life as well.


Source: Rantanen, T 2005, ‘Theorizing media and globalization’, Media and globalization 2005, Sage Publications, London, pp. 1-18