Tastes of Paradise

There is a fascinating difference between the approach to new commodities and their adoption taken by Mintz in Sweetness and Power and that chosen by Schivelbusch in Tastes of Paradise. Schivelbusch’s focus is almost entirely on the changing forms of the consumption of commodities, not on their other properties (such as their means of production, the people who do that production, or the methods by which they are transported and distributed). Nevertheless, in spite of the fact that I think Schivelbusch never so much as uses the word commodities to describe his subjects, I must disagree with Jessica that it is not a commodity history. Much more than Mintz, Schivelbusch is concerned with his subjects (IE the commodities) and the specific rituals surrounding their use. His fundamental question is about how the products are ascribed value, and what values are ascribed to them. This means that he is questioning the social structure that produces commoditization. Admittedly, it is not in a particularly formal manner – Schivelbusch is writing in a very casual, essentially popular style.

I found interesting the focus Schivelbusch placed on the concept of the ‘acceleration’ inherent in modernity. After reading the sections discussing distilled beverages and cigarettes, I am somewhat surprised that his chapter on spices made no mention of phenomenon like the sale of premixed spice combinations, which are essentially marketed as a culinary short-cut to producing specific styles of cuisine (and are a huge marketing scam-they’re absurdly marked up compared to the costs of the individual components) which seems to me to be the same sort of acceleration.

As an aside, I think this book is the first one for which I personally would change the book order. Having already read Sacred Gifts, Profane Pleasures, I think that this book should immediately follow that book, as they essentially cover different aspects of the same subjects.