Eating and drinking are elementary human needs and – going beyond that – always at the same time communication and information carriers. The question of how people feed themselves (e.g. fast food or organic products), how food and dishes are selected, bought, prepared and in what context and ambience and in what society they are consumed goes far beyond the interest in the pure nutritional function of eating and drinking.
Before the extended question horizon of semiotics as a doctrine of signs, this volume will look at various sign systems (besides language also images or space) with the reference point food – with all the associated implications. For example, the selection of certain dishes (e.g. at a banquet) can be seen as a sign from which other actors can draw conclusions on the basis of knowledge that is widespread throughout society. Food itself, together with the associated contexts of meaning, is thus a resource of expression that needs to be analysed.
Within the framework of the anthology, food and drink will be examined in all their diversity of forms and from an interdisciplinary perspective (literary, linguistic, media, cultural studies as well as philosophical, sociological, historical and political science).