So this is my last post. It feels like eating the leftovers after a perfectly ruined dinner...
As for the questions I asked myself in the first post, here's what I've found:
- How is the subject of food treated in Dutch children's books?
Food is used as a catalyst for change. In Otje, it was to set off the story. In Pluk van de Petteflat food was used to resolve a situation. It also worked to offset a transformation. Adults behaved as children and it helped one of the kids' mother, Mrs Helderder, to become a little less uptight.
- How is it treated in Dutch literary work?
In literary work, food is used for its strong metaphorical potential. Interestingly enough, the focus lies on hunger and lack of food.
- What difference is there between food aimed at children and adults?
The difference is the real, tangible food that often serves an extra purpose (comfort, transformation) in children's books, and the aspects we associate with food (eating, starving, tasting) used in a different context (often sex) in adult literature.
- How is Dutch food portrayed in foreign literature, if at all?
It is represented, but in a rather generic, maybe even stereotypical way (Edam cheese as the main identifier of Dutch-ness).
Thank you for reading!
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