Political transition and gastrodiplomacy in Chile. Reconciliation at the table

Abstract

The analysis of political transitions usually emphasizes political, ethical, and historical components. However, transitions may also be interpreted as a particular historical change related to the re-building of the nation and re-bonding of the national community, where cultural hegemony is at stake. Based on a mixed approach of political sociology and symbolic anthropology, this article argues that the re-building and re-bonding process is performed in various scenarios, in particular those organized around cuisine and food consumption. Through the analysis of public discourses found in secondary sources, our main goals in this stud are to interpret and describe gastrodiplomacy during Chilean transition as a tool for reconciliation as well as put forward a theoretical framework that overlaps political theory, theatrical metaphor, and ritual theories to account for the symbolic components of national reconciliations and political transitions.