ANTH 310D | Food and Culture Dr. Adams |Spring 2015 Melissa Correll Developing Your Research Topic

Dish Potato Chip Sandwich Food Anthropology You Choosing a dish related to you will lead to a more interesting project (you’ll enjoy the research more and produce higher-quality work if you care about what you are doing) You’ll consider how these concepts intersect

Dish Potato Chip Sandwich Food Anthropology You Fond memories Childhood Still like it Family bond How is this dish relevant to you?

Dish Potato Chip Sandwich Food Anthropology You Fond memories Class Latchkey kid Working parents independence Childhood Still like it Family bond

Dish Potato Chip Sandwich Food Anthropology You Fond memories Class Latchkey kid Working parents independence Childhood Still like it Family bond Convenient Pale, bland Cheap Easy Processed White bread, mayo, chips What do you know about this dish?

Dish Potato Chip Sandwich Food Anthropology You Fond memories Class Latchkey kid Working parents independence Childhood Still like it Family bond Convenient Pale, bland Cheap Easy Processed White bread, mayo, chips Social Context Anthropologists in this field You will need to identify relevant anthropologists, and to consider the social context of the dish

Dish Potato Chip Sandwich Food Anthropology You Fond memories Class Latchkey kid Working parents independence Childhood Still like it Family bond Convenient Pale, bland Cheap Easy Processed White bread, mayo, chips Social Context What is “white trash?” Anthropologists in this field

Dish Potato Chip Sandwich Food Anthropology You Fond memories Class Latchkey kid Working parents independence Childhood Still like it Family bond Convenient Pale, bland Cheap Easy Processed White bread, mayo, chips Social Context What is “white trash?” Lack of sophistication How is identity constructed? Class & race intersect Anthropologists in this field Ask yourself: What do I already know? What do I need to find out?

Dish Potato Chip Sandwich Food Anthropology You Fond memories Class Latchkey kid Working parents independence Childhood Still like it Family bond Convenient Pale, bland Cheap Easy Processed White bread, mayo, chips Social Context Processed food in America What is “white trash?” Lack of sophistication How is identity constructed? Class & race intersect Anthropologists in this field Is there something uniquely American about convenience food? New ideas may occur to you throughout the process

Dish Potato Chip Sandwich Food Anthropology You Fond memories Class Latchkey kid Working parents independence Childhood Still like it Family bond Convenient Pale, bland Cheap Easy Processed White bread, mayo, chips Social Context Processed food in America What is “white trash?” Lack of sophistication How is identity constructed? Class & race intersect Anthropologists in this field Is there something uniquely American about convenience food? Matt Wray (sociologist) Preliminary research helps you identify relevant scholars. Be sure to check their credentials – you need at least three sources from an anthropologist!

Dish Potato Chip Sandwich Food Anthropology You Fond memories Class Latchkey kid Working parents independence Childhood Still like it Family bond Convenient Pale, bland Cheap Easy Processed White bread, mayo, chips Social Context Processed food in America What is “white trash?” Lack of sophistication How is identity constructed? Class & race intersect Anthropologists in this field Is there something uniquely American about convenience food? James Hartigan (anth) Matt Wray (sociologist) With more research, I found an anthropologist who writes about “white trash”

Dish Potato Chip Sandwich Food Anthropology You Fond memories Class Latchkey kid Working parents independence Childhood Still like it Family bond Convenient Pale, bland Cheap Easy Processed White bread, mayo, chips Social Context Processed food in America What is “white trash?” Lack of sophistication How is identity constructed? Class & race intersect Anthropologists in this field Is there something uniquely American about convenience food? James Hartigan (anth) Matt Wray (sociologist) Is there something uniquely American about “white trash?” Do you see common themes emerging? New questions may arise

Dish Potato Chip Sandwich Food Anthropology You Fond memories Class Latchkey kid Working parents independence Childhood Still like it Family bond Convenient Pale, bland Cheap Easy Processed White bread, mayo, chips Social Context Processed food in America What is “white trash?” Lack of sophistication How is identity constructed? Class & race intersect Anthropologists in this field Is there something uniquely American about convenience food? James Hartigan (anth) Matt Wray (sociologist) Is there something uniquely American about “white trash?” Connected ideas helped me to generate a preliminary research question: How does processed comfort food (such as the potato chip sandwich) embody the characteristics of the socially constructed identity “white trash?”

To do efficient research, you need a strategy. Ask yourself these three questions (and answer them as best you can) to formulate a strategy: What do I (think I) know about _________? What do I need to find out about _______? Where might I find that information? Librarians are here to help every step of the way! We want to help!