Talking with your mouth full: Gustatory Mmms and the embodiment of pleasure
In this article by Wiggins (2010), the author investigates the expression of pleasure derived from food from a socially interactive and digressive lens. Published psychological works on food and eating investigated individual consumption, and only conceptualized the somatic experiences of food, which may be regarded as a lack in appreciating the parts played by social dialogue and interaction (elements of the experience of eating). Pleasure derived from food was investigated herein in a qualitative nature by looking at examples of mealtime conversations in family and group settings, with the “gustatory mmm” denoted as the key phrase of analytical interest. The intonation and order of mmm is critical to the expression of pleasure, and represents an immediate and unprompted manner to express pleasure, albeit lacking in distinct details. In addition, the gustatory mmm personifies an individual’s sensation of pleasure. Thus, the author comments on the three levels of contribution that this work provides. Firstly, it expands on existing research in eating exercises to include the domains of social interaction and conversation. Secondly, it brings about conversations on discursive psychology and expands its domains with additional true-to-life material. Finally, this work adds to the increasing accretion of conversational analysis on mmms and response expressions. [NPID: Gustatory expressions, pleasure from food, discursive psychology]
Year: 2002
