by FRANÇOIS SIMON
The world of gastronomy, too, has been overtaken by the dynamics of hegemonic power. While the dining table is a place of exchange (a form of language), generosity, and giving, over the years it has gradually transformed into a power struggle in which over-mediatized chefs engage in a self-centered monologue — often masculinist. They position themselves as arbiters of “good taste,” while the guest, the vassalized client, is often reduced to a mirror serving the narcissism of the “artist.”
Moreover, this world of imperious master chefs is drifting ever further away from real life and the simple pleasure of eating, recalling Antonio Gramsci’s distinction between political society (great chefs, guidebooks, food critics, influencers) and civil society (food lovers, producers, servers). For on the latter side of the table, there lies an entirely different aspiration — one that leans toward a pastoral dimension, often found in regions with…