The Controversy Of Preparing Meals

The food that someone eats can easily tell another person a lot about who they are, where they come from and most importantly, what that food means to themselves. However before chowing down on a meal, it is extremely important to prepare and cook the food. In this paper I will assessing why cooking a meal for someone is a considered communication. I will support my idea by providing appropriate examples from everyday life. I will also argue how it fits into Richard G. Jones’ definition of communication along with the definition from Bernard Berelson, using evidence and explanatory skills to define each aspect of each definition. Last but not least I will conclude this paper by summarizing the importance of a cooked meal and how a cooked meal …show more content…
Jones states that communication is a process of creating symbols by sending and receiving messages whether that be through non-verbal or verbal interaction which is also influenced by several contexts (Jones). The action of cooking a meal for someone is able to impressively represent this definition for many reasons. The meal that is being cooked acts as the symbol whereas the chef of the meal acts as the sender and the person who eats the meal is the receiver. The meal being cooked can be a message of love between couples or pleading if cooked by a teenager trying to as his or her parents for money. The process of cooking the meal is also a non-verbal communication as speaking does not need take place therefore the process of cooking a meal can evoke ideas that are portrayed through the final product. It can also represent the context of a conversation depending on the type of food that is being cooked or how it is being cooked. Cooking a meal for someone is a demonstration of communication as appropriately fits Jones’ definition of communication. The act of cooking meal is a nonverbal communication that can send messages of all feelings and thoughts to the receiver who eats the cooked …show more content…
Berelson indicates that the act of communication is a transmission of information, ideas, emotions or even skills through the use of symbols (Berelson). The act of cooking is often referred to skill and by taking these skills, it is often turned into a profession where chefs express their creativity through the foods that they present to audiences. Each and every ingredient can be a symbol of culture and or language. The process of cooking a meal may also depict the life style someone lives through the act in which he or she takes to prepare the meal. For example a college student may prepare a quick and easy to go meal for his or her roommate as both of them are actively busy where as a mother or father may take their time to cook a meal for his or her family. Also very similar to Jones’ definition of communication, the dish can represent the feelings or ideas of the person cooking it. By sending out these ideas or feelings through the act of cooking, the receiver can interpret the act as an act of kindness or manipulation depending of who he or she is. Cooking a meal for someone is an act of communication as it becomes of symbol to express creativity, culture, language and feeling to those eating the meal of observing the preparation of the