UMass Boston

Students walk up steps to plaza through fall trees past Campus Center.
Food & Empire

Course Overview

Date / Time Location Credits Minimium Tuition*
1/26/26 - 5/13/26
TuTh 12:30p.m. – 1:45p.m.
University Hall Y02-2110 3 $2065 (guest students)
Date
1/26/26 - 5/13/26
Time
TuTh 12:30p.m. – 1:45p.m.
Location
University Hall Y02-2110
Credits
3
Min. Tuition*
$2065 (guest students)

Description

This course surveys the history of food and empire since 1500. Food literally connects our bodies to global history: what we eat now - and why we eat it - result from centuries of unequal economic, political, and cultural interactions. Food also symbolizes the power relations that have shaped human identities, diets, and health over the last 500 years. Using scholarly writings, fiction, film, and field trips in the Boston area, we will explore how histories of empire and globalization have shaped contemporary foodways and the global politics of food provisioning today.

Guest registration opens January 12

Course Details