Community by de-synchronization

I remember when I was growing up hating to set the table for dinner every single night. But as I grew older and oncemy sister moved out, we began to eat at the table less and less; until by the end of junior year it was a rare occasion for the family to sit together at the table. I'm not really sure what caused the change in my family's supping dynamics, but I am pretty sure my family pretty well represents the evolution of the food dynamic over the past 60 to 70 years. In the article "Eating on the Edge" by Horwitz which I read recently, Horwitz describes the change from sit down meals to the individualistic eating on the go. In his article, Horwitz references British sociologist John Urry, who credits this change to the "de-synchronization of time-space paths" (42). This idea strikes me as the most accurate way to describe the evolution of the meal. As stated earlier, my family used to eat dinner together nightly, but as different changes in my family's schedule occurred, meals together became more and more spaced out. The change in my father's work schedule so he had to start work by 5 a.m., my mother bringing more and more of her work home to work on at night, my sister leaving for the local university, and myself having more and more homework to do nightly, created a de-synchronization and therefore a change in eating patterns and habits. My family became mo and more spread out, starting by taking the meal which was prepared by a parent to our work spaces, to eventually "fending for ourselves" as my family called it. Horwitz also brings up an interesting point about Swanson TV dinners. TV dinners allowed for the family to still eat together while still having a sense of freedom. I think the TV dinners also represent the de-synchronization of schedules because at this point in time, more and more women were beginning to enter the work place. This ment that women were no longer home all day, spending their time cleaning, cooking, and nuturing young ones. TV dinners allowed for women to have access to full meals for their families while putting in far much less time and effort. Perhaps the evolution towards eating alon and on the go is a movement for social justice. It removes the patriarch style eating patterns which forced women to do the cooking while the man sat at the head of the table. But that being said, the social interaction gained through food and the sense of community that is created is still desired. Maybe in the end, "Eating on the Edge" will allow for an evolution past patriarchal eating habits and a movement towards eating together solely for the sense of community which it creates.