Imagining the possibilities – food as leisure in a fragmented world. Part 1

摘要

This special issue, split into two parts, intervenes in the growing literature exploring foodin/as/and leisure. The two parts do so by exploring food and leisure through the lens ofliquid modernity. The issue derives from the observation that those who engage infood in leisured spaces for leisure purposes are performing food and identity asalready-in-being. Little, if any, attention is paid to food relations and the wider worldview in which these complex relations are negotiated. Our focus in this special issue isto explore food and leisure relations within the context of liquid or late modernity. Webegin the editorial of the first part of this special issue by providing background for ourinitial interest in food as leisure. Following this, we give context to the contributions byexploring Bauman’s (2000) notion of liquid modernity. We then provide an overview ofthe ways in which a number of the defining characteristics of liquid modernity, forexample, freedom and individualization have remediated our understanding of food asleisure, and indeed the way food as leisure informs our view of the world.