Cheese, Pears, and History in a Proverb

Massimo Montanari is professor of medieval history and the history of food at the Institute of Paleography and Medieval Studies, University of Bologna. He has authored and coauthored more than a dozen books, including Let the Meatballs Rest: And Other Stories About Food and Culture, Food Is Culture; Italian Cuisine: A Cultural History; Food: A Culinary History; and Famine and Plenty: The History of Food in Europe. Beth Archer Brombert is the author of the widely acclaimed biographies, Edouard Manet: Rebel in a Frock Coat and Cristina: Portraits of a Princess. She has also translated extensively from French and Italian.

Series Editor's Preface by Albert Sonnenfeld Acknowledgments 1. A Proverb to Decipher 2. A Wedding Announcement 3. Peasant Fare 4. When Rustic Food Becomes the Fashion 5. A Hard Road to Ennoblement 6. The Ideology of Difference and Strategies of Appropriation 7. A High-Born Fruit 8. When Desire Conflicts with Health 9. Peasants and Knights 10. To Savor (To Know) / Taste (Good Taste) 11. How a Proverb Is Born 12. "Do Not Share Pears with Your Master": The Proverb as the Site of Class Conflict References Index