Comparing and Contrasting Wong’s “Noodles vs. Sesame Seed Buns” with Dash’s “Rice Culture”

“What did you have for dinner?” is a question asked thousands of times every day. Admittedly, people are facing a difficult problem of choosing what to eat, given the variety of options such as Chinese cuisine, American cuisine, and Japanese cuisine, not to mention many variants within each style. Throughout the years, the food industry has incorporated traditional methods as well as adaptations to a changing society. Fast food, for example, has grown exponentially over the past half century. By contrast, traditional foods such as rice remain a crucial part of food culture. Two essays that highlight this contrast are Seanon Wong’s “Noodles vs. Sesame Seed Buns” and Julie Dash’s “Rice Culture.” Wong’s essay illustrates the significance of fast food, whereas Dash’s essay discusses traditional cooking methods. While both authors talk about food and cultural traditions, Dash uses an informal voice to discuss preserving her traditions, whereas Wong uses an academic voice to describe the evolution of food traditions in Chinese culture. The main topic for both articles is food. Wong reports on the flourishing of fast food in Hong Kong, showing how Chinese fast food companies have made inroads into the Hong Kong market. For example, as Wong points out, “Hong Kong’s fast food industry… is dominated by Chinese companies such as Café de Coral, Fairwood and Maxim.” (123) By contrast, Dash’s “Rice Culture” clearly narrates her own rice tradition. Dash begins by telling us “I come from a family of rice eaters” (138). Apparently, food is the main idea of both Wong’s and Dash’s passages, and therefore, they use food as a reason to develop their stories. Additionally, both authors discuss food in a manner that acts as a springboard to analyzing food’s cross-cultural dimensions. Rice is, admittedly, a basic food in the Eastern world. However, “Rice Culture” tell us how Dash and Aunt Gertie cook rice American style. “Before cooking, Aunt Gertie would wash her

Bibliography: Dash, Julie. "Rice Culture." Mirror on America: Essays and Images from Popular Culture. Ed. Joan T. Mims and Elizabeth M. Nollen. 5th ed. Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martins, 2009. 138-41. Print. Wong, Seanon. "Noodles vs. Sesame Seed Buns." Mirror on America: Essays and Images from Popular Culture. Ed. Joan T. Mims and Elizabeth M. Nollen. 5th ed. Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martins, 2009. 124-27. Print.