Language: A Taste of Reality
Wednesday, March 19, 2014 at 10:15PM 
This week I got the results back for an essay that I wrote for the anthropological theory course that I am doing as part of my MA Anthropology of Food. The essay is called Language: A Taste of Reality. I got a distinction, which made me really happy for several reasons. Firstly, it is my first distinction for this module. I have written two other essays for this unit and both have been just shy of a distinction (which for a closet nerd, like me, can be quite disappointing).
More importantly, I took a bit of risk with this paper, taking one of the theory topics, linguistic relativism, and combining it with my interest in food anthropology. I had been advised against this by the course convenor and, though my tutor was more encouraging, she repeated his warning that it might lead me too far away from the theory and that it would be hard to do a good job within the word limit (2000 words).
Funnily enough, my tutor ended up commenting that one of the things that let the essay down was that I didn't go into detail with my food anthropology examples. Reading over it again, I can see what she means. I was being overly cautious, trying to heed her advice within a tight word limit. I got a good mark in any case, so I don't mind.
I thought it might be worth sharing the essay here, since it is an example of how food can be connected with anthropology at a theoretical level. I haven't edited it for the blog; since it is a formal essay, I think it is best left in the style in which it was written. If this puts you off, it might be worth saying that one of the comments on the essay was that it "is written in a lucid and yet learned fashion". Hopefully more lucid, than learned :)
language, linguistic relativism, phenomenology, reality, taste in Theory
Reader Comments (2)
Well done on your great mark! Very impressed indeed. I have one issue with your post above though…you are totally not a 'closet' nerd…I think you're quite openly a nerd. The best possible nerd there is and one who is still fun and engaging and wonderful all round…but no closet involved!!!!!!!!
Will read your essay at a later date, but read the start and I very much like the opening…I should probably now start listening to the teacher whose class I am in right now….
Hey Cha, you know I am a nerd because you are my sister. Only my family and closest friends know I am nerd. Well, until now that was true. You would be surprised how many people are surprised to discover that I am a nerd and that I get good marks. Apparently I do not give off that vibe at the student bar on a Friday night ;) xx