Realm: Philosophizing Subrealm: Breakfast

[choco_frosh]

Here in Germany, there seems to be endless problems with the question of cultural identity, and especially European cultural identity. The Germans, in reaction to the Hitlerzeit (with its extreme nationalism), seem these days to be trying to persuade themselves that they are, in fact, "Europeans". This would suggest that there is some common European culture, which distinguishes it from, say, the US.
While this isn´t COMPLETELY hogwash, they are ignoring a fundamental fact.

The REAL determinant of culture is breakfast.

Or at least that´s my conclusion after two months in Germany and associated countries, plus assorted touristing around Europe earlier. As an outsider, it seems to me that Germany shares certain fundamental cultural characteristics (fondness for beer and bureaucracy come to mind) with the Benelux countries and with Austria. Similarly, while I know far less about Italy Spain and Portugal, the outsider feels that they share certain similarities. OK, we´re getting into the realm of stereotypes here, but bear with me. Likewise, one naturally tends to treat Scandinavia as a cultural unit, to which the Baltic states might also belong.

And these cultural realms are reflected, in a very fundamental way, in Breakfast.

At least based on my youth-hostelling and textbook-reading experience, the French, Spanish and Italians eat bread (white) when they get up in the morning, accompanied by coffee (or sometimes Cocoa in France...but the French are really very proud of the cultural distinctiveness in other matters, as well, so this is perhaps not surprising). In Germany, Austria and Belgium, they will indeed put out bread and coffee, but will also offer you Bauernbrot, Müsli, cold sausage, and cheese. Without fail. The English (and, from what little I know, the Irish), in stark contrast, drink tea, and traditionally eat cold toast, often accompanied by the infamous Fried Breakfast. Scandinavians...well at least the Swedes (I think), will eat fish for breakfast, which everyone but the Brits finds extremely odd. And based on a conversation with a fellow international student last night, the Russians join the tea-drinking crowd, but typically eat porridge (imaginable n Britain) and/or toasted cheese (not so much).

It should thus be clear that the fundamental cultural determinant is the Breakfast Zone. The US and Canada, it seems to me, form such a zone (habit of eating pancakes, doughnuts and other sweet things for breakfast), though with a number of sub-zones (eg for grits). Germany, on the other hand, clearly forms a cultural zone with the Low Countries and Austria, but should forget about closer union with anybody else. Cultural, it´s just not gonna fly. ;-)

Comments

[http://users.livejournal.com/_jb/]

The US and Canada also form a cereal, porridge or fried breakfast zone. Actually, living in Britain, I don't find it any different for breakfast than North America (lots of cold cereal and porridge), though I don't know about the southern US. Coffee may be more popular in North America. But I imagine that European coffee is much better.