"Do not let the peasant know how good cheese is with pears" goes the old
saying. Intrigued by these words and their portent, Massimo Montanari
unravels their origin and utility. Perusing archival cookbooks,
agricultural and dietary treatises, literary works, and anthologies of
beloved sayings, he finds in the nobility's demanding palates and
delicate stomachs a compelling recipe for social conduct.
At first, cheese and its visceral, earthy pleasures were treated as the
food of Polyphemus, the uncivilized man-beast. The pear, on the other
hand, became the symbol of ephemeral, luxuriant pleasure-an indulgence
of the social elite. Joined together, cheese and pears adopted an
exclusive savoir faire, especially as the "natural phenomenon" of taste
evolved into a cultural attitude. Montanari's delectable history
straddles written and oral traditions, economic and social relations,
and thrills in the power of mental representation. His ultimate
discovery shows that the enduring proverb, so wrapped up in history,
operates not only as a repository of shared wisdom but also as a rich
locus of social conflict.