Fourteenth International Conference on Food Studies

Abstract

Both group and individual Identity are often reified or performed through food. In Appalachia, these identity shaping foodways are often defined by “traditional” means such livestock rearing, forgeable goods, wild game, and preservation. While some of these methods are glorified as a return to the mythical “simpler times”, some are met with disgust and mockery. Utilizing preliminary ethnographic interviews for a larger dissertation project, this paper explores the ways in which perceptions of Appalachian foods across this noble-nasty spectrum are influenced by both class-based and racial ideologies that uphold the myth of American “whiteness”. Ultimately, this paper argues that the consequences of the noble-nasty spectrum towards Appalachian food reflects a larger, problematic ideological commitment to the “correct” performance of identity through hegemonic and supremacist standards.