Food Nostalgia and the Contested Time

Abstract

In this article, I examine several narratives that express nostalgia through the food of Nanjing, especially those representing the famous halal (qingzhen 清真) restaurant Ma Xiangxing 马祥兴, in order to investigate how narrative time can be manipulated in order to variously position and frame history. After outlining the context of prevalent cultural nostalgia in contemporary China, I begin with a publicity narrative generated by Ma Xiangxing. I then move on to literary representations by authors such as Wu Jingzi 吴敬梓, Huang Shang 黄裳, and Ye Zhaoyan 叶兆言. Finally, I look at “Nanjing 1912,” a high-end shopping and entertainment district that attempts to invoke the Republican era in order to attract consumers. As food nostalgia evolved from a rebellion against modernity to a marketing strategy in China, it has generated narratives that embody a mix of restorative and reflective nostalgia. A linear narration of history and tradition coexists with a circular narration that challenges its accuracy; thus, not only does originality eventually become a meaningless concept, but simulation also precedes and creates reality in the general commercialization of nostalgia in post-reform China.

Keywords

food / nostalgia / Ma Xiangxing / Nanjing / narrative time / restorative nostalgia / reflective nostalgia / post-reform China

RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS

Higher Education Press and Brill