CULTURE & ANTHROPOLOGY STORIES
Anthropological research exploring culture, history, health, and science!
TOPICS
Medical Anthropology
The Vietnam War & Maternal Epigenetics, Uncovering Risks in Female Hormonal Devices, Cartesian Dualism in Modern Medicine, Environments Shape Biology
A Manifesto for a Sustainable Food Culture
The Globalization of Matcha
Disciplined Indulgence in Cultivated Tastes
The Role of Rivalry in Reinforcing Collective Fan Identity
Ancient Anthropology
The Popol Vuh & The Ancient Maya, Ocarinas and Ancient Maya Music
Medical Anthropology
Scroll to explore my research in medical anthropology focusing on health, history, and medicine!
The Vietnam War & Maternal Epigenetics
Nov 2024
Collaborated with India Thomas and Eleanor Long
Abstract
This review explores how maternal stress and malnutrition during the Vietnam War affected offspring through epigenetic changes. Hypothesizing that maternal cortisol levels and malnutrition led to adverse generational health outcomes, the review examines links between war-induced trauma, reproductive health, and intergenerational impacts on immune function, stress responses, and cardiovascular health. The results reveal significant intergenerational impacts of maternal stress and malnutrition during the Vietnam War. Elevated cortisol levels in pregnant women led to epigenetic changes, predisposing offspring to PTSD, immune system dysregulation, and altered stress responses. Malnutrition caused placental adaptations, contributing to high blood pressure and metabolic disorders in children. Studies also linked war exposure to increased congenital malformations and altered DNA methylation patterns. These findings underscore the biological consequences of wartime trauma, highlighting the role of the HPA axis and immune memory in transmitting health effects across generations, with implications for maternal and child health research and interventions. The review emphasizes the intergenerational health impacts of maternal stress and malnutrition during the Vietnam War. Evidence supports epigenetic changes affecting offspring's stress responses, immune function, and cardiovascular health. This underscores the importance of understanding historical maternal trauma to inform modern medical and social approaches addressing inherited health disparities.
Introduction
Compared to other conditions and diseases produced by war, relatively little epigenetic research on reproductive health outcomes has made headway. War causes extraneous amounts of displacement and malnutrition, with conditions of those primarily impacted by the war passed along to offspring. Those directly involved in war often experience heavy psychological trauma, physical abnormalities, exposure to toxins, and malnutrition. Like any immense war conflict, the Vietnam War (1995-1975) disrupted social, economic, and health resources, causing prolonged periods of distress and trauma, especially to pregnant women and to reproductive health overall. As women suffered from malnutrition, distress, and exposure to toxins such as Agent Orange, their pregnancy outcomes displayed apartment cognitive disabilities, birth defects, and higher rates of low birth weights. The following literature review organizes the correlations of maternal health alongside the immune system and development of infants born to mothers who had high blood pressure and cortisol levels during the Vietnam War.
The effects of wartime severely influence maternal health, as housing, food, and standard living conditions become compromised. For example, the use of chemical warfare in South Vietnam, Agent Orange, led to increased rates of miscarriages and premature births. One study conducted by Le, T.N. & Johansson, A. (2001) found that two-thirds of children born to families exposed to Agent Orange had “congenital malformations” within the first year of life. The extensive use of the herbicide produced significant effects on blood pressure disease and mobility disabilities (Duong Trung Le et al., 2022). Additionally, those who directly served in the war saw a slight statistical difference in likely birth defects, although limitations of the study prevented a significant difference between stillbirths (Kang et al., 2000). Numerous studies have gone to research reproductive fertility among women and men who have experienced some form of warfare. Such studies collected by Abu-Musa et al. (2008) measured difficulty in having children, with men having lower sperm counts compared to those who have not experienced war and females experiencing menstrual irregularities due to psychological stress. Those living through war face uncertainty surrounding food, the welfare of family, displacement, and violence, producing increased levels of psychological stress and raising cortisol levels. While psychological distress and malnutrition are products of the Vietnam War, they affect adverse pregnancy outcomes and conditions potentially passed through generations.
Growing evidence of the Vietnam War's impact on maternal health led to changes in offspring's health based on the blood pressure and cortisol levels the mother displays. High levels of cortisol levels in mothers are highly related to low birth weight and high symptoms of postpartum depression (Shriyan, P. et al., 2023). Infants born to mothers who have suffered from severe psychological trauma and elevated levels of cortisol have a higher chance of developing mental health issues themselves. Furthermore, pregnant mothers who experience malnutrition result in having children with higher chances of cardiovascular disease because of the placenta's capacity to adapt to environmental stresses (Satterfield et al., 2021). As the fetal developmental period is the most plastic and most transformative for infants, extreme deprivation of nutrients from war during pregnancy or lack of food thereafter places extreme genetic and physiological changes in an infant.
Cortisol levels and blood pressure are essential indicators of stress response and cardiovascular health, particularly in populations exposed to intergenerational trauma and war. Biological research shows how the psychosocial stress of war alters the immune system. If an infant develops an adaptation to starvation and extreme environmental stressors early on, unhealthy permanent immune system changes may be defined for the rest of the child’s life. This concept is known as the thrifty phenotype, and when applied to malnutrition, it can crucially impair fetal growth and program poorer health later on (Rubin et al., 2016).
The purpose of this review is to dive into the extensive literature on what is currently known about malnutrition and distress related to the Vietnam War on the pregnant mother and the generational and epidemiological impacts it has on the fetus.
Results
The first major link our research revealed is the relationship between maternal stress and cortisol levels in generational offspring. The Vietnam War was marked by feelings of intense fear, uncertainty, and distrust, experienced by soldiers and civilians alike. This emotional environment was amplified by the war's moral ambiguity, which fueled stress. For many pregnant women, an additional layer of trauma came as husbands were drafted, leaving them to navigate pregnancy alone and fear for their partners' safety—a profound source of stress. But how did this affect their children?
In an article written by Ghazi I. Al Jowf and his team of researchers, the molecular biology of susceptibility to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is examined (2021). The article highlights how traumatic stress can lead to PTSD through epigenetic changes which can affect gene expression related to stress responses. This is largely due to changes in the HPA axis and the immune system. According to Al Jowf, the HPA axis is a “hierarchical system comprising the hypothalamic, pituitary and adrenal glands which orchestrate the homeostatic balance of the organism’s response to environmental stress.” Therefore when “human fetuses [experience] severe pregnancy stress [they] will have an altered HPA axis and will have a higher risk of neuropsychiatric disorders later in life” (Al Jowf et al., 2021). Additionally, his team found that “several studies examining traumatic stress exposure in patients found high associations between epigenetic changes and immune system dysregulation and/or PTSD development” (Al Jowf et al., 2021). These findings suggest that trauma-exposed fetuses—whose mothers endured significant stress—may experience epigenetic changes in the HPA axis and immune systems, predisposing them to PTSD, other disorders, and internal system dysregulation.
Similarly, in Ken O’Brien’s study“The Uncounted Casualties of War” (2007), O’Brien discusses the “heritability of PTSD in the children and grandchildren of Vietnam veterans” (O’Brien et al., 2007). His research examines the interplay of nature and nurture through epigenetics, on the transmission of PTSD and other disorders present in the children and grandchildren of the war veterans. From a nurture perspective, he found that “some families harbor a trauma that may date back several generations and have no relation to the current political, cultural or social environment” (O’brian et al., 2007). However, from a nature perspective, previous research cited by O’brian “found a strong statistical relationship behind the genetics for each disorder and concluded that, not only was each of the disorders manifested by traumatic stress in the individual, but was causal in their offspring” (O’Brian et al., 2004). Overall O’brian concludes that there is strong support for the notion that PTSD transmission is genetic and the more research that’s done further backs this assertion. This research further demonstrates how wartime stress in mothers may epigenetically impact stress responses and cortisol regulation in their children and grandchildren.
In Kara Dixon Vuic’s article titled, “Marriage, Motherhood, and Pregnancy in the Army Nurse Corps during the Vietnam War” (2007), the challenges faced by female nurses are addressed. Women were a minority in the military during this war, which heightened the psychological strain of serving while pregnant. Vuic notes that, “pregnancy remained grounds for dishonorable discharge, whether a nurse was married or not” and that the “[only] possible exception [was for] special cases in which the woman terminated the pregnancy or gave the baby up for adoption” (Vuic, 2007). Because of this, some women used pregnancy as a way of avoiding wartime service, while other women sought to hide their pregnancies for as long as possible to avoid being sent home from their wartime duties. This article presents a unique cause of stress for Veteran mothers during the Vietnam War, which could have very well led to epigenetic changes affecting their offspring’s cortisol levels and stress responses.
The second major finding in our research was the impact of maternal malnutrition during the Vietnam War on blood pressure in offspring. Food scarcity and nutrient deficiencies were prevalent during the war, posing severe risks for pregnant women and fetal development. As we’ve discussed in class, this is a major issue for pregnant women because nutrition is critical for the continued development of healthy babies throughout all stages of pregnancy. In a study by K. M. Godfrey and colleagues on maternal nutrition and offspring blood pressure (1994), researchers discovered a causal relationship between malnutrition during pregnancy and elevated blood pressure in children. His design studied children whose mothers had hemoglobin estimations during pregnancy. He took these children's blood pressures at 10-12 years of age and concluded that there is a high probability of a link between maternal malnutrition and blood pressure in offspring. He cited some other interesting research which stated that “fetal undernutrition leads to adaptive changes in the concentrations of fetal and placental hormones (Barker et al., 1993). . . [which may] initiate higher blood pressure by altering levels of growth factors trophic for key constituents of blood vessel walls (Lever & Harrap 1992)”. This explains why maternal malnutrition during the Vietnam War led to increased risks of high blood pressure and other adverse health outcomes in descendants. It also underscored the notion that prenatal nutritional stressors have long-term impacts on offspring health.
Furthering this perspective, M Carey Satterfield’s research on "Placental Adaptation to Maternal Malnutrition" (2021), shows that “maternal malnutrition gives rise to both short- and long-term consequences for the survival and health of the offspring” (Satterfield et al., 2021). The placenta “facilitates the crucial transfer of nutrients, wastes, and gasses between the maternal and fetal compartments” (Satterfield et al., 2021). Maternal nutrition influences the expression of nutrient transporters in the placenta which affects fetal access to essential substances like glucose and amino acids. Because of this, Satterfield and his team concluded that “maternal undernutrition is a common environmental stressor associated with increased risk for a myriad of postnatal health disorders such as cardiovascular disease and metabolic syndrome” (Satterfield et al., 2021). This research on placental adaptations shows that malnutrition during the Vietnam War likely led to placental changes that affected blood pressure regulation and health outcomes in subsequent generations, supporting the idea that maternal malnutrition during pregnancy can have lasting health effects on offspring.
In research led by Heng Zhang on the "Relationship between Maternal Vitamin D Levels and Adverse Outcomes," the impact of vitamin D deficiency on pregnancy outcomes is explored. Vitamin D is one of the most important vitamins for growing babies because of its role in “[regulating] cell differentiation and apoptosis, immune system development, and brain development” (Zhang et al., 2022). His research summarizes the main outcomes associated with insufficient Vitamin D, which are Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM), Pregnancy-Induced Hypertension (PIH), Spontaneous Abortion and Stillbirth, Preterm Birth (PTB), and Intrauterine Growth Restriction (IUGR). These outcomes impact “cytokine pathways, immune system processing, internal secretion, and placental function” (Zhang et al., 2021) which can affect blood pressure, immune system regulation, and increase the likelihood of gaining other adverse health outcomes. Given that Vitamin D insufficiency has continued to be a common occurrence amongst pregnant women, it’s safe to assume that wartime malnutrition likely contributed to an increase in vitamin D deficiencies experienced by mothers, thus having adverse impacts on generational offspring. Given vitamin D’s role in cell regulation, immune development, and brain growth, wartime malnutrition likely predisposed descendants to various health issues including high blood pressure.
Lastly, our research highlighted the intergenerational transmission of health conditions due to wartime stress and malnutrition. Zara Raza and her team investigated how trauma from war and conflict, particularly maternal PTSD, can lead to heritable epigenetic changes (2023). Similarly to Al Jowf, they found that “HPA axis dysfunction is one of the aetiological factors linked with PTSD” and that the “GR [glucocorticoid receptor gene], responding to cortisol, is a key player in this axis” (Raza et al., 2023). The article concludes that “immunological dysfunction is linked to the HPA axis and PTSD, so lowered cortisol levels in the progeny of those exposed to war could result in impacts on the immune system” (Raza et al., 2023). The findings underscore that maternal stress from the Vietnam War likely altered stress-response genes in descendants, heightening sensitivity to stress and increasing susceptibility to related health issues like PTSD and decreased cortisol levels. This supports the hypothesis that wartime maternal trauma has lasting, multigenerational health impacts.
The concept of innate immune memory following pregnancy complications is explored in research by Nakeisha A. Lodge-Tulloch and her team of researchers (2022). They define innate immune memory as a “functional epigenetic reprogramming of innate immune cells following an initial exposure to an inflammatory stimulus, ultimately resulting in an altered response following re-exposure to a similar inflammatory stimulus” (Lodge-Tulloch et al., 2022). The team's research focuses on the concepts of trained immunity (TI) versus tolerance--examples of adaptations of the innate immune system--which both occur due to epigenetic changes. They note that “given the evidence that TI and the effects of pregnancy complications persist across generations, it is possible that TI is causally linked to the increased risk of offspring disease following exposure to aberrant inflammation. . .thus, the consequences of aberrant maternal inflammation in pregnancy may cross generations and impact placental transporter expression, immune cell populations, and fetal growth” (Lodge-Tulloch et al., 2022). Since we know from previous research that malnutrition is directly related to altered immune and stress responses in descendants, this study supports the theory that stress-induced epigenetic changes have long-term, cross-generational health impacts.
Finally, Erin Kello’s research on “Facial Clefting and the Vietnam War” (2020) examines intergenerational impacts of war-related trauma, particularly focusing on epigenetic mechanisms like DNA methylation, and how it may affect stress and health responses in offspring. They collected data on four groups of children, two of which contained children whose mothers were exposed to the Vietnam War, then ran a global test using Cleft Lip and/or Palate (CL/P) status as a variable. The most notable genes associated with this as outlined by Kello are LOXL3-- “part of a family of extracellular amine oxidases, involved in the cross linking of fibrillar collagen types (Lee and Kim 2006)”--and SIN3A--this gene plays a role in “histone modifications [which] are part of the epigenetic regulatory complex” (Kello, 2020). Kello and her team were able to conclude that “these results demonstrate that there are significant methylation differences between children whose mothers were exposed to the war and those whose mothers were not exposed to war stress” enabling them to confirm that “there are differences in methylation patterns between the groups” (Kello, 2020). Because this source has a specific focus on how wartime stress affects offspring with such biologically specific genetic data, we are able to see how stress can manifest itself into epigenetic changes.
Conclusion
These studies underscore epigenetic changes observed in the offspring of mothers who endured stress and malnourishment during the Vietnam War. From psychological predispositions, to changes in cortisol levels, and susceptibility to immunological dysregulation, our research supports that the experiences of pregnant mothers during the Vietnam War not only affected them physiologically but also various phenotypic expressions of their offspring. Al Jowlf and colleagues discovered that trauma-exposed fetuses from mothers suffering from PTSD demonstrated a higher susceptibility of developing PTSD themselves and immunological dysregulations (Al Jowf et al., 2021). Ken O’Brien similarly supports this by identifying a causal relationship between intergenerational PTSD, which is especially intriguing when the knowledge that PTSD can not only be acquired by an individual but be epigenetically transferred based on HPA axis dysfunction is quite a recent discovery (O’brian et al., 2007). As increased levels of cortisol is a significant indicator of PTSD, O’Brien’s research further asserts how increased cortisol and irregular cortisol regulation appear in children and even grandchildren of mothers who endured PTSD while pregnant. In our research, we sought to emphasize how stress during the Vietnam War arose from a plethora of factors, such as the social stress through sexism that Vuic researched regarding the Nurse Corps, which further backed how stress originating in numerous situations during the war has been shown to increase cortisol levels in offspring (Vuic, 2007). Godfrey elucidates how malnutrition experienced by pregnant mothers has a link to elevated blood pressure in offspring, supporting that changes in placental hormones as a result of malnutrition catalyze this predisposition (K. M. Godfrey et al.,1994). High blood pressure as well as insufficient immunological function has also been associated with a deficiency in vitamins such as vitamin D which Zhang et al. discovered (Zhang et al., 2021). Furthermore, Lodge-Tulloch highlighted the emerging concept of immune memory and how it can epigenetically transfer inflammation to offspring (Lodge-Tulloch et al., 2022). Erin Kello’s study on clefting revealed significant methylation differences between the control and pregnant mothers during the Vietnam War, directly correlating clefting in offspring to war exposure in mothers (Kello, 2020). Le, T.N., and Johannson conducted a study on the effects of the United States’ use of chemical warfare in the form of Agent Orange, revealing that exposure to Agent Orange increased the likelihood of congenital malformations in offspring (Le, T.N., and Johannson, 2001).
Our collection of research indicates how the stress, trauma, and malnutrition that pregnant mothers experienced during the Vietnam War directly affected their fetuses, particularly based on how the placenta reacts to stress, and thus epigenetically changed their offspring’s phenotypic expressions. These expressions related to particular biological functions with many other functions that have yet to be studied as epigenetics is still an emerging field of study. The studies in our research all speak to the increased likelihood of offspring of these affected mothers developing PTSD, increased cortisol levels and imbalanced regulation of cortisol, immunological dysfunction, elevated blood pressure, as well as congenital malformations that have a lifetime impact as a result of the trauma their mothers endured when they were in the womb. Although the research is still new and there are many other factors for consideration, these studies illuminate the trend that stress and malnutrition experienced during war cause intergenerational epigenetic changes. It’s crucial to determine what this means moving forward in modern medicine and the social sciences as it further highlights the necessity to broaden study beyond examining biological evidence. Studies in epigenetics like the ones we have researched reveal just how intertwined environmental experiences from pregnant mothers affect the biology of their children. This reveals the need in medicine to value uncovering maternal histories, not just genetically, but historically, to better understand biological outcomes exhibited in their offspring.
Uncovering Emergent Multiplicities of Risk in Female Hormonal Devices
Dec 2025
Introduction
Recent research uncovers physiological and psychological risks associated with birth control usage that has caused emergent tension between long-standing acceptance of the pill in Western society. The safety and efficacy of the pill in preventing pregnancy has remained stable for decades, however, side effects as well as long-term effects post-usage destabilize the pill, a device that has become enmeshed in millions of daily lives. Findings elucidate how these risks surface based on factors such as pill composition, time of intervention, and health predispositions. Research indicates correlations between the birth control pill and depression, particularly when commencement of pill usage occurs during adolescence, linkages to altered stress responses and brain functions, as well as connections to cancer risk. Studies of satisfaction with the pill place these side effects and risks in a personal and social context, and interviews with those of various ages and their experiences on the pill expose the multifaceted experience of birth control. These findings bring in physiological, psychological, and experiential angles to examine how the pill manifests in the body and in life, providing multidimensional perceptions. The novelty and ambiguous nature of these institutional and anthropological findings creates new realities of the pill, complicating its primary purpose with its consequential potentials that continue to be scientifically unearthed.
This novel research does not denounce the efficacy of the pill nor its productive quality in preventing pregnancy and providing benefits for other reasons such as for dysmenorrhea or polycystic ovarian syndrome. Nor do these findings aim to suggest cessation of pill usage or removal of the pill from society, or serve as a threat to female reproductive freedom and autonomy. An expanding domain of risk fosters a balancing act of benefits and drawbacks that exists in flux with emerging knowledge in scientific literature and life. Medical and experiential research calls into question the ethical and moral duty of the pill, complicating its status as an agent of reproductive liberty by existing in multiple ways in a female’s life. A contemporary curiosity into contraceptives provides a window into the female body that has since been underresearched, reflexive of an institution of biomedicine in which the male body has been the default of study. This lack of study translates to lack of knowledge production and dissemination in the ways of life associated with the pill. Revealing risks ignites an impetus for further discovery of the factors that increase these risks for individuals to provide more knowledgeable unique care. Findings complicate the pill’s potentials on the female human and instigate medical, social, and personal reevaluations. Modern research of risk presents the opportunity to design a new “birth control culture” aimed at female beneficence through the collection of objective and subjective knowledge that produces an ongoing multiplicity of meanings that situate the pill in a state of entropic ambiguity.
Methodology
My research aims to elucidate new meanings that emerge from recent studies of side effects, long-term risks, and personal experiences to assess how these findings destabilize the perception and role of the pill in modernity. To formulate my research, I evaluated medical literature, psychological findings, ethnographic studies, and conducted interviews with several females who are currently taking or have taken oral contraceptives and one non-user to gain their experiential insights. I also brought in historical literature to situate the pill in society for reference particularly when examining the feminist impact of the pill. I aim to establish the pill medically and experientially for discussion of the realities that emerge when examining new and well-known risks, benefits, and subjective personal experiences. I seek to examine how the ambiguous nature of these findings necessitates the need for a new “birth control culture” that considers multidimensional potentials as they unfold and propels further research with a grander understanding and attunedness to the female human.
Findings & Analysis
Historical Background
Emerging in the 1960s in the U.S., birth control provided women unprecedented control over their fertility, offering reproductive liberation over their bodies which translated to freedom in education, family, and work. Debate over access became an issue with Supreme Court cases offering the pill solely to married women for seven years until 1972. Scrutiny emerged over commonly experienced mild-to-severe side effects that were not included in the packing label of initial versions of the pill, leading to trust issues with pharmaceutical companies. The feminist movement in the late 1960s spurred public concern, leading to the inclusion of a label warning of side effects in pill packaging as well as the reformulation of the pill by 1988 to contain a lower dosage of hormones. New versions of birth control such as the IUD and emergency contraceptives have become accessible in recent decades, while other methods like sterilization remain available.
This brief history unveils the environment of the birthplace of the pill situated in pharmaceutical distrust and feminist action, underscoring how the pill has never been merely a device that can control biology, but an agent of female liberation whose beneficence is simultaneously threatened by unethical actors, a lack of information, side effects, and with increasingly more research, new risks. In modernity, our lack of conclusive knowledge isn’t so distant from the conditions of birth control’s creation as hormonal contraceptives were developed far before scientists had a clear understanding of the role of hormones in the female body (Abrams 2025). Though unable to contribute a complete knowledge at this stage, examining medical, psychological, and ethnographic findings augments our understanding across the different zones the pill occupies in and outside the body. This offers new realities from which reworkings of the pill can be established, transforming the “culture” of the pill to advance health and wellbeing benefit while maintaining the pill’s powerful place in personal liberty.
Medical Reviews
Oral contraceptives operate by suppressing endogenous gonadotropins and ovarian hormones to avert pregnancy. The pill contains synthetic analogues of either solely progesterone or, more commonly, with oestrogen, and acts on reproductive organs and the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis. The implications of this synthetic hormonal interference on the body can manifest as heightened risk for diseases such as certain forms of cancer, while also decreasing likelihood for developing other types. The National Cancer Institute has collected studies that evidence how hormonal contraceptives contribute to increased bodily inflammation, however, the degree to which this is expressed and how so is understudied. Oral contraceptives have been found to increase the risk of cervical cancer through altering the susceptibility of cervical cells to HPV infection, the cause of cervical cancers. Prolonged usage significantly increases this risk as the National Cancer Institute cites “a 60% increased risk with 5-9 years of use” with “a doubling risk with 10 or more years of use” (Smith et al. 2003). These values are quite staggering, yet this risk declines once usage ceases, returning to normal levels after a decade. Hormones like oestrogen and progesterone also stimulate growth of some cancers that express receptors for them, like breast cancer, which is alarming for those with genetic susceptibilities. However, the pill can lower the risk of other cancers like endometrial cancer by slowing down the number of ovulations a woman has in her lifetime, reducing risk “by at least 30%” (Wentzensen, Poole and Trabert et al. 2016) which increases with duration, protecting long-term users. Findings also indicate a “30% to 50% lower risk of ovarian cancer” (Michels et al. 2018) in women who take oral contraceptives, increasing with duration and lasting for up to thirty years past cessation. Thus, the protective benefit against endometrial and ovarian cancer can be a huge factor in a woman’s choice to be on the pill for long durations of her life.
Rather than confirm that the pill “causes” cancer, this research presents a double-sided space with cancer risk that parallels the benefits and trade-offs of the pill on the body as a whole. These long-term risks are understudied and rely heavily on predispositions, but making the connection between prolonged synthetic hormone usage and higher or lower risk to severe diseases such as cancer creates new ramifications in the framing and understanding of the pill during present usage. While cancer is a severe outcome correlated to the pill, it presents a possibility for the pill in which the benefit of preventing pregnancy or addressing painful menstruation earlier in life can contribute to serious illness down the road, or likewise, significantly decrease this potential. This way of thinking of the pill in the long-term asks for reevaluation in the short-term in which the conversation of the pill in this spectrum of temporal risks becomes equally valuable to addressing present benefits and side-effects.
Psychological & Neurological Findings
Psychological and neurological consequences are commonly experienced by users, both as side-effects and long-term effects, particularly in regards to stress, depression, and brain function. Despite incomplete information about how the pill affects the brain, we are increasingly gaining insight. With pill formulas being initially tested on adults yet distributed to teenage girls, this intervention at a critical developmental stage prompts study of long-term effects.
We can examine the case of blunted stress response instigated by hormonal contraceptives. Frances Chen (PhD), professor of psychology at University of British Columbia, studies how hormones shape social and emotional health at adolescence. She notes how oral contraceptives are safe yet remarks how “ a subset of people may be more vulnerable to their negative side effects” (Abrams 2025). In research with her postdoc Christine Anderl, the two collected baseline data from teen girls prior to taking the pill (13-15 years old) and tracked them for multiple years. The two concluded a linkage between higher risk of developing major depressive disorder in adulthood when hormonal contraceptives are taken during adolescence. Theories that support this include altered stress responses exhibited in pill users with patients presenting a blunted cortisol response on the pill rather than a natural spike that signifies a healthy stress reaction. This theory is also supported by Sharma et al.’s research on the use of birth control, stress reactivity, and the brain, which links oral contraceptive use to “increased prefrontal brain activation during working memory processing for negatively arousing stimuli.” (Sharma et al.). This difference in inflammatory stress response and active memory processing of negative stimuli evidenced by a blunted cortisol spike provides a mechanism that increases risk of mood-related mental illnesses after contraceptive use. Studying mood in relation to the pill becomes complicated as the pill can both be prescribed to improve mood in cases of PMS and PMDD (premenstrual dysphoric disorder) while decreasing positive mood in other cases. Most studies imply women with PMS and PMDD on the pill experience better moods during the last week of their cycle, but this arrives with the cost of a decrease in positive affect earlier in their cycles. This nuance isn’t often studied and complicates the benefit of the pill in improving mood (Sharma et al. 2020). It’s also crucial to identify the role of sex bias in the pathogenesis of depression. Women are twice as likely as men to develop depression post-adolescence which can be precipitated by a multitude of factors, especially differences in social conditions. (Angold et al., 1998; Shors and Leuner, 2003). Social correlations between sex biases in society and higher rates of female depression complicates and can confound the study of depression risk and the pill at the neurological level.
Another study on hormonal contraception and mood disorders from the National Library of Medicine by Eveline Mu and Jayashri Kulkarni examines the factor of progesterone and risk of depression. Oral contraceptives containing progesterone alone or high doses have been linked to increased risk of depression, whereas oestrogen has the opposite effect. Oestrogen is neuroprotective, regulates emotional and cognitive processing, and modulates serotonin, dopamine and noradrenaline, thus protecting the brain from cognitive decline and disorders. Progesterone has the opposite effect and can worsen mood, lead to GABA-induced inhibition, and increase monoamine oxidase concentrations that results in decreased serotonin. This suggests that the negative impacts of progesterone on the brain might be responsible for mood changes and the development of depression in users, even catalyzing them to stop taking the pill. Progesterone-only contraceptives are often advised with caution for those with predisposed depression risk. Newer pills and combination pills offer options associated with less effect on mood, such as those containing estradiol instead. This introduces the nuance of what type of synthetic hormone constitutes the pill formula, how it acts on the brain (not just to prevent pregnancy at the utero level) and how predispositions to depression should be taken into account when assessing the depression risk of the pill. Studies that isolate variables, such as identifying that pills with high progesterone content present greater risk for depression in predisposed patients, help to cultivate a knowledge landscape where providers can be selective for their patients’ needs, histories, and susceptibilities. As Adriene Beltz (PhD) at University of Michigan for gendered cognition, states, “studying highly complex behaviors vary among people for different reasons” (Abrams 2025). This highlights the need to examine a plethora of variables, like pill formulation and patient predispositions, to address individual risk factors, personalizing an assessment of risk for patients based upon holistic knowledge of the pill and the person while keeping up with the evolution of risk discoveries.
Hormonal contraceptives have also been linked to changes in brain structure. Compared to non-users, “emerging evidence suggests that OC (oral contraceptive) use…elicits significant behavioural and neurophysiological changes” (Sharma et al. 2020). This is evidenced by brain scanning at University of California, Santa Barbara in a study by Caitlin Taylor (PhD) and Emily Jacobs (PhD). Across brain scans of a woman over 30 consecutive days during a natural menstrual cycle, the hippocampus experienced fluctuations in volume associated with changes in progesterone. However, the same scans of the woman on the pill witnessed no volume difference, indicating how the pill squashes natural brain fluctuations. This indicates how the pill can affect systems previously thought to be unaffected, and in short periods of time. (Abrams 2025). Another study at the Ottawa Brain and Mind Research Institute recruited 75 women (18-26 years old) who began taking oral contraceptives either during puberty or adulthood, and studied differences in brain structure, function, and behavior (Sharma et al. 2020). The findings indicated that pubertal-onset oral contraceptive users exhibited more regional white matter volume and higher brain activity during working memory compared to adult counterparts. All users on the pill demonstrated more brain activity during working memory for negative pictures, suggesting greater sensitivity to negative phenomena. While this is the first study on the age-dependent effect of oral contraceptives on the brain during working memory, the finding of more pronounced reactions to the pill during adolescence compared to adulthood calls for significantly greater study. Age as a factor in how the brain and body responds to the pill in the case of depression can lead to deeper research that associates age with risks in many more contexts regarding the pill. This prompts study of understanding not just the female body, but female biology and hormones at puberty and adolescence compared to the adult female. These findings situate how the pill not only alters reproductive organ functioning, but alters the brain itself which supports psychological and neurological risk theories and opens possibilities for how deeply the pill can affect human biology in ways we are only recently uncovering.
Ethnographic Study & Interviews
With medical and psychological studies in mind, ethnographic research about the personal experience of using the pill for women and their satisfaction helps paint a fuller picture of the multidimensional role of birth control in life. A 1999 study conducted to assess physical and psychological satisfaction of contraceptives gathered 1466 West German women between the ages of 20 and 49. Of these women, 1303 were current or past oral contraceptive users while others used methods including condoms, IUDs, natural family planning, and sterilization. Women with sterilization reported the greatest satisfaction (92%) followed by oral contraceptives (68%) then IUDs (59%), family planning (43%), and condoms (30%) (Oddens 1999). Sixteen percent of oral contraceptive users reported negative mood changes, while the rate was slightly higher for condoms and natural family planning. These percentages reflect how the subjective side effects of each agent on mood reflects the user’s sense of confidence in the method used, factoring in efficacy and safety. With this variable of confidence, condoms for example were not viewed as risky for health, but risky for use and reliability. Oral contraceptives were also attributed to less severe menstrual symptoms at 56% compared to 65% of IUD users who reported more painful periods. Despite side effects of oral contraceptives such as weight gain and nausea and the perception of sterilization being major and risky, oral contraceptives and sterilization had a “less negative impact on physical and psychological functioning than other methods studied - compared to what the public believes” (Odden 1999). Both improved menstrual cycle control and efficacy rate were attributed to greater satisfaction. These subjective perceptions elucidate the collaboration of factors attributed to a woman’s satisfaction on the pill, from menstrual cycle impacts and mood concerns, to health and efficacy risks. These findings, with the pill being the most popular among the subjects, bring in the personal experiences of users as a valid area of interest in research when personal perception and experience is often omitted from medical literature. Despite this study being published roughly twenty-five years ago, the methods discussed remain commonly in place and while cultural perceptions might have changed, the factors fueling them like pain and safety pertain to modernity as well. These insights correlate to physiological and psychological risks while including the factor of feeling about the pill, making the pill personal, social, and moral. This provides both positive and negative reactions and addresses the immediate role of the pill in a woman’s life, rather than reducing the pill as a medical device with a solely biological purpose. This unleashes new outlooks of the pill and new risk assessments in the form of the risks users evoke which remakes birth control as personal, social, and moral.
Interviews
I sought to continue this type of gathering of experiential information by conducting interviews related to the personal experiences of those who take or have taken the pill as well as a subject who never has. My subjects included five women from the ages of 19, 21 (2 subjects), 22, and 58.
In my interviews, I asked the following questions:
What kind of relationship do you have to the pill?
In your understanding, what does the pill do to the body? What about outside the body?
What consequences come to mind when you consider the pill?
My responses indicated a mix of side effects, benefits, and social and ethical ideas related to the pill. My subjects with pill experience all reported at least subtle or mild side effects in their experiences, such as mood changes. A couple discussed the benefit of being able to control their cycle and how that gave them lifestyle freedom at times when it wasn’t convenient to undergo monthly menstruation. Subjects also reported switching the type of pill they took multiple times during their use and expressed frustration with their providers in determining which pill would be best, with one user stating satisfaction with their current option while others were on the fence and one recently opted for an IUD instead.
The 58 year-old subject expressed the importance of the radical freedom birth control provided women, stating, “a woman could secretly take the pill without her husband ever knowing even if he was against it.” This was my only subject who expressed this idea of unprecedented marital liberty, whereas the younger subjects expressed their purpose for the pill as more geared towards menstruation control, while hinting at the assurance it provides to women. My 21 year-old subject who has never taken the pill expressed this idea of assurance as well, stating, “it’s responsible to take for that purpose and a great option” “but I don’t want to take anything that interferes with the nature of my body like that.” This language about assurance, freedom, control, responsibility, bodily autonomy, interference, and a sense of keeping the pill’s primary purpose or even alternative reasons “hush-hush,” all exist for the same topic of the pill yet can easily juxtapose one another, such as the concepts of freedom and interference. These ideas, which symbolize values and lifestyle choices for these participants, only multiply in larger groups to constitute an enormous symphony of logic, and even that of feeling, that drives users to take or not take the pill and their experiences and perceptions of this device which is nowhere near merely biological in impact. Feelings of frustration, settling for an option and accepting the sacrifice of side effects, social pressure, and mixed emotions make up this quilt of reasons that are nowhere near one-dimensional nor straight-forward.
Reflexivity
As we gain more information about the effects and risks of the pill, we create new assemblages of knowledge across different spheres that constitute the multi-meanings of the pill. This state of multiplicity reveals modern realities of the pill, bringing new discoveries to our knowledge and literature as well as exposing long-standing realities in side effects and personal experiences. This brings in epistemic pluralism as knowledge production about the pill reveals multiple ways of knowing. Knowledge creation about the pill exists not only in laboratory spaces, but socially and in personal life, contributing to a pill that holds a kaleidoscope of reasons, meanings, and potentials. These ambiguous realities of benefits, risks, bodily effects, and emotional impacts all call for a diverse knowing of the pill across different areas to improve patient experience. Allison B. Beutch, MD, a reproductive psychiatrist at NYU Langone School of Medicine and NYU medical student Sarah Martell, revealed in a survey of 188 participants that “83% reported that their doctor did not mention potential psychological side effects during contraception counseling” (Abrams 2025). This emphasizes a huge disconnect between patients and providers, which further reflects stereotypes about women in medical settings and how the female demand for more information is often deemed as an annoying women’s issue, especially regarding mental health. This study also uncovers how many women report being dismissed by their providers, discouraged to switch their type of contraception, and feeling it all culminated in a “guessing game” by the provider to figure out the type with the fewest side effects. This can in part be attributed to the rushed nature of provider visits which occurs across medical subdomains. Yet this lack of conveyed information and counseling to patients evidences a need to display a greater understanding of the multiplicity of factors that influence patient-unique experiences. Rather than a “guessing game,” a deeper knowledge of birth control both medically and in response to psychological and personal life conditions must emerge to meet female beneficence.
Conclusion
Modern research reshapes the pill as not merely an agent of pregnancy prevention or aid for menstrual pain or other conditions, nor does it denounce the benefits or de-emphasize its efficacy. Findings of risk shine light on birth control’s complications that reflect a biomedical and social landscape and literature that has historically untouched consideration of these inherent complications of synthetic hormones on the female human. The intervention of the pill doesn’t solely target reproductive organs, but alters brain function, stress response, mood disorders, and life experiences, with risk levels dependent upon unique factors. From medical research with empirical findings, to ethnographic surveys, and individual subjective perception, the pill is remade as in flux and existing in multiplicity. Risk assessments and experiences between pill and patient call for further research of the pill and its role in modern institutions, life, and the body. Ambiguous conclusions emphasize how scientific discovery is constantly on a treadmill, trying to keep up with new findings that shift old perceptions and shape new ones. Reassembling conceptualizations of the pill challenges objective notions of biomedicine by inviting potentials that involve a subjective and social multiplicity of realities in tandem with biological understandings. In this case, producing emergent forms, contexts, and conversations of the pill in a new “culture” of birth control in which the consideration and communication of risks as they become increasingly known becomes a greater part of the consultation, prescription, and experience of the pill for female beneficence. This culture seeks to acquire medical and personal knowledge in reaction to the pill as a medical and personal device, maintaining reproductive liberty and autonomy while addressing risks as they unravel in modern research. This culture leads with a mindset of the pill as not just objective, but subjective, and in a state of multiplicity, considering future risks and their causes and potentials that are contemporarily ambiguous and increasingly emergent.
Cartesian Dualism in Modern Medicine: Atul Gwande’s Complications
Nov 2023
In Atul Gawande’s Complications, he emphasizes how the legacy of Cartesian Dualism remains palpable in medical institutions today. However, he reveals how new theories of pain suggest a far greater emphasis on the connection between the brain and the body, especially in terms of the brain’s responsibility for the experience of pain. He also illuminates how social influences affect pain responses, which conveys how factors that impact the mind are highly responsible for impacting matters of pain experienced in the body. This new evidence reveals a shift away from Cartesian Dualism in modern medicine in favor of a more holistic approach, even if researchers are yet to completely understand causes of pain that are unrelated to physical injury or pathology and are instead connected to factors such as social influences.
In his chapter “The Pain Perplex,” Gawande states how during the twentieth-century, the research of pain focused on discovering pain-specific nerve fibers and pathways. Even now in the twenty-first century, Cartesian Dualism lives on in how doctors are trained to see pain as a physical matter and search for what’s physically wrong with a patient. Yet despite how searching for a physical sign of pain is a doctor’s primary mission when a patient describes their suffering, new ideas about the origin of pain and what influences the experience of pain reveal a deviation from solely Cartesian ways of thinking in medicine.
Gawande describes the new theory of pain, stating how “...pain and other sensations are conceived as “neuromodules” in the brain…When you feel pain, it’s your brain running a neuromodule that produces the pain experience…” (Gawande 2002, 125). This counters how Cartesian Dualism would find that pain experienced in the body is unrelated to the brain by stating how pain originates in the brain. This new theory also allows for greater explanation of instances of pain where no physical injury is found to justify it. In this chapter, Gawande discusses the epidemic of chronic back pain that can’t be traced to any physical injury that would cause such pain. However, the new theory of pain reveals how the explanation for chronic back pain lies in the brain and that the sensations of pain are 1produced by neuromodules. These neuromodules are affected by social factors, such as how Gawande points out the chronic back pain is prevalent among doctors, not because of heavy lifting or bending down often, but due to factors such as a decrease in job satisfaction. This example highlights the connection between the mind and body, as well as the mind and social influences which reveal how the body, and specifically the experience of pain in the body, are highly related to the brain and what affects it. The idea in Cartesian Dualism of pain only being caused by injury to the body no longer lives up to modern medical research and approaches.
Gawande further dives into the social influences of the experiences of pain which further reveal modern medicine straying away from the black-and-white blueprint of Cartesian Dualism. He explores a study in Australia during the early 1980s in which RSI (“repetition strain injury”) caused severe pain in many workers, particularly keyboard operators. The intensity of the pain of RSI couldn’t be linked to the physical demands of the jobs for the workers who experienced it. Yet Gawande uncovers how researchers discovered the two main factors that catalyzed the epidemic, which were not related to physical circumstances at all. They were “the coining of RSI as a diagnostic label and early action by the government to insure compensation for the syndrome as a work-related disability.” Furthermore Gawande states, “When the diagnosis fell out of favor with the physicians, and disability coverage became harder to get, the incidence of the symptoms associated with the disorder plummeted.” (Gawande 2002, 128-129). This example demonstrates the power of social influences over physical pain experienced in the body, a pain that, similar to chronic back pain, had reached a severity in which workers had to miss work. The social construction of RSI in Australia in terms of it being given a diagnostic label and insured compensation for it as a work-related disability sparked the creation of widespread cases of RSI. Although the details of how this worked and the understanding of social influences on pain in general have yet to be completely explained, this example emphasizes how Cartesian Dualism is no longer the source for explaining pain because it had failed to provide answers in yet another situation that caused very real pain in sufferers. Researchers have had to look not just for causes in the brain, but causes in the environment that affect the body. Gawande states at the end of this chapter how solutions for pain may reside more in our environments rather than inside of us, therefore making “pain political.” (Gawande 2002, 129). This deviates far from Cartesian Dualism which doesn’t even consider the influences of society on pain and only deals with the mind and body which modern medicine now knows are all related and responsible for physical experiences in the body. Numerous cases of chronic pain and modern research have exposed how the mind and body can no longer be thought of as separate entities in modern medicine. Furthermore, social influences in the environment are just as significant to consider in terms of experiences of the body, notably pain. The door for looking into factors in the environment that relate to physical experiences in the body, especially pain, have now become wide open as Cartesian Dualism is no longer the primary approach to understanding the human body in modern medicine.
Environments Shape Biology: Lock & Nguyen and Marya & Patel in Inflamed
Dec 2023
Lock and Nguyen make the claim that “[b]iology is not a human universal, but simply a piece of the puzzle situated in time, space, history, politics, society, and economics.” (Lock & Nguyen 2010, 108). In Inflamed, Marya and Patel support this idea in several sections in which they emphasize how elements of society adapt to our biology, therefore making biology not a human universal but rather a piece of other environmental elements that shapes our health. In the first chapter of Inflamed, Marya and Petal detail how our immune systems change based on environmental factors. In the section entitled “The ‘Broken Windows’ of Immunology,” the authors discuss Matzinger’s Danger Model which proposes how viruses change our biology and is thus one way in which our biology isn’t universal due to viral causes that vary in our environments to whom our biological responses differ vastly. The authors state, “...viruses can bring about adaptive biological change. They are estimated to cause almost 30 percent of the adaptations in proteins that humans have in common with other mammals.” (Marya and Patel 2021, 49). These findings are in direct conversation with Lock and Nguyen’s claim because they reveal how biology adapts and changes drastically based on exposures to viruses that come from our environments which aren’t universal for us in any way. Not only do viruses biologically adapt proteins in humans but acquiring the virus itself and the way an individual’s body responds to the virus all reveal just a few of the many layered ways in which biology is not a universal state. Instead, biology is mixed in with other factors of our environment because it has the ability to change and be changed by other elements, all of which result in our states of being and health which are by no means universal. Marya and Patel further support Lock and Nguyen’s idea in their section entitled “Fighting Fire with Fire'' in which they describe a more particular example of how viruses change us biologically. The authors write about how interestingly, there is research that some acute infections lower the risk of cancer and improve the chance of cancer regression. An example of this finding appears in the following in which the authors state how it may “explain why Helicobacter pylori infection rates are high but gastric cancer rates are low in Black Africans, while both infection and gastric cancer rates are high in Black Africans. The environment that most Africans encounter is on average microbially richer than that of the Global North. It appears that bacteria, viruses, and parasites tone immunity in a way that protects against cancer, even in the face of a bacterium known to cause it.” (Marya and Patel 2021, 57). This example highlights how living in an environment that causes Black Africans to acquire Helicobacter pylori infection, the immunology of a group of people has changed so much that now they have a lower risk of gastric cancer. This research illuminates an event in which one factor that changed biology now changes the biological susceptibility to another, which quite drastically outlines how past experiences that affect the immune system can have lasting biological effects that are only shared by those who have experienced it. It’s interesting that in this case the lasting effect is great enough to reduce the risk of cancer which on quite a remarkable level demonstrates how our immunology adapts for our benefit due to exposures to previous infections. This adaptation further reveals how biology is not universal because it is so deeply subject to change from experiences that permanently alter our immunology in particular as Marya and Patel emphasis in Inflamed.
A Manifesto for a Sustainable Food Culture
A Proposal to Promote Environmental, Educational, & Community Welfare in the Food System
Apr 2024
Manifesto Introduction
For my manifesto, I wanted to focus on making changes that would benefit the environment, animal welfare, and human health. This relates to the book we read, The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan, and his study of the industrial food chain in the U.S., food commodification and commercialization, and organic food options. As a vegetarian motivated by the ethics against CAFOs for their damage to animal welfare and the environment, I wanted to capture the idea of relying less on meat products in my manifesto. Along with this, I wanted to promote less industrial agricultural practices involving heavy usage of fertilizers and pesticides which are harmful to the health of farmers and ecology they run through, such as waterways throughout the nation. Instead of relying so heavily on industrial agriculture, I promoted the idea of more community gardens for food sources to create accessible supplies of organic produce and foster a culture where urban groups can feel connected culturally to their food. I also mention creating stricter laws governing products like hydrogenated corn syrup relating to Pollan’s focus on corn and the film King Corn we discussed in class. Furthermore on the nutrition front, I propose editing food labels to be more consumer friendly as well as enforcing stricter regulations on green-washing and health-washing labels. My manifesto follows a ground-up approach, starting with the way we treat the soil, to the types of products we grow, only allowing animals to be bred under more ethical and environmentally-sound conditions, cultivating food education and community connections, as well as imbuing supermarkets with less confusion and focusing directly on informing buyers of where their food is from and the nutritional value of these products, thus creating a food world centered on ethics, the environment, health, and transparency.
Manifesto For a Sustainable Food Culture
The Soil: Soil health must be prioritized at all times, by farmers and the local home gardener. No excess tilling. Crop rotations are necessary and sustainable practices to improve nutrient levels, such as growing beans for nitrates, rather than adding fertilizers. Periods of inactivity for natural regeneration are also enforced. No prolonged monocultural use, especially for large-scale operations for commodities like corn.
Animals: No animal shall be bred, grow, and die in a Concentration Animal Feeding Operation. No such facility shall exist. Meat, pork, and poultry products are only to be sourced from small-scale operations that provide a minimum area for roaming, naturally-sourced food, no separation of mother from calf, and strict health and environmental guidelines. However, this shall only be the case before a switch to relying far more heavily on plant-based proteins. Eggs shall be sourced from free-range chickens, primarily from local and small-scale operations that provide for local grocers and farmers markets, and milk shall arrive via the same guidelines. Honey must also be ethically sourced. Bees shall be protected at all costs. In certain areas, fishing permits for fish species that are to be consumed will be given while keeping in check the fish populations. Large-scale commercial fishing operations shall cease and fish shall be consumed primarily in coastal areas from local fishing businesses or be brought inland from them, or frozen for further transport.
Farms: Farms must comply with strict environmental standards. No excessive tilling or excessive use of chemical fertilizers or pesticides. A monoculture cannot span past a certain land area and crop rotations must be in place. Energy used on farms must be renewable, such as solar and wind. Sustainable farming practices must be utilized at all costs prior to applying for a form to be allowed to use chemical fertilizers and pesticides. No flood irrigation to preserve water, drip-irrigation is encouraged instead. Large-scale farm operations must employ a certain number of workers with a base-line salary to avoid monopolization of farms. Funding for more research into organic fertilizers will be in place as well as further research and government action against chemical fertilizer companies found to make fertilizers that cause diseases like cancer. Farmers and anyone previously exposed to these chemicals will be provided compensation.
Imported Food Products: Let us enact restrictions on imported products in order to increase self-sufficiency for diverse agricultural products, decrease monopolies of commodity farms, and promote local farmers to grow various produce. Let us also do this to decrease environmental harm from shipments across the world. Let us decrease our importation of produce out of season from other nations and instead focus on markets that support in-season produce, while other options like frozen produce from previous months can serve as an alternative supply.
Food Restrictions: Absolutely no hydrogenated oils, high-fructose corn syrup, or chemical agents such as Red 40 among other “colors” are allowed in any foods as they are linked to poor health outcomes, even cancer. Products found to contain these substances will be discontinued and the company and factory sued.
Organic Food: The idea of organic food shall cease as all food shall be naturally sourced and we shall arrive at a time where we cease the necessity to use chemical inputs in agriculture. All produce shall be as healthfully grown as possible and there shall be no insane price differences between organic and non-organic versions as they shall all be equally healthy for the human and environment in which they were grown.
Food Packaging: Plastic packaging for all food products is strictly prohibited. All food packaging must either be compostable or recyclable. No plastic bagging for produce. Paper bags and other alternatives must be provided by the store.
Bagging: Let us eliminate the use of plastic grocery bags at markets and all other convenience and retail stores. Let’s utilize California’s framework of stores providing recycled paper bags for a fee of 10 cents. In addition, let us provide the option to donate old cloth or recycled bags to grocers for those in need of a grocery bag, whether they don’t own one or forgot at time of purchase, which eventually will cease to be the case as bringing one’s own reusable bag will become ubiquitous common practice.
Labels: Rather than attach empty terms like “all natural” and “healthy” to the front of food packages, let’s adopt a schematic label that uses a word and color system for basic understanding of the healthiness of foods, such as a red, yellow, green scheme, with red being least healthy, and green the most. Nutrition labels will be reformatted to be easier to read, focusing less on making the calories the largest text and instead informing consumers of nutritional amounts in a clearer manner. Labels must also include where the product was sourced from and earn a particular star stamp that ensures they are credible in this statement.
Prices: All food shall be made affordable, no matter the fate of an economic crisis. During such times, the rich in the highest tax bracket will pay a tax to ensure all members of society can afford healthy food. This tax will be very minor in proportion to their income. An ethical mandate will also be enforced by food companies to drop their pricing if inflated pricing is identified. If they don’t abide by this, grocers aren’t allowed to sell their products. Local food banks should always be full. Unused and excess food from businesses and farmers must be provided directly to these food banks for free.
Excess Unsold Food: All food products, especially produce, that are to be thrown out, or perhaps not sold in the first place due to appearance, must be given to a local food bank. No food is allowed to be discarded unless it is proven inedible.
Broader Food Culture and Education: Let us ensure every child in elementary school is provided a holistic food education. Let us make sure schools create and maintain their own gardens to be used by the school cafeteria and the students’ and staff’s families. Let us raise teacher and staff pay as well as channel more funding to public schools. Let us make sure cafeteria menus provide healthful and diverse meals to children with no highly-processed products allowed. Requirements will be established for this. All students will learn how to garden, prepare food, understand nutrition, go grocery shopping, and cook throughout their public schooling. They will learn about a diverse array of foods from all different cuisines and discover how to build a healthy relationship with food, focusing on nutrition and enjoyment, rather than unhealthfulness. All public schools must also provide a minimum hour and fifteen minutes for lunchtime periods for all students, teachers, and staff.
Local Businesses & Community Building: Towns must not exceed a certain number of fast food franchise restaurants per land area limit. Local restaurants will be supported by the government to thrive and stay resilient during economic hardships. Farmers markets shall be held weekly by local farmers in a communal space that the local government and community maintains. These will also be public spaces that promote art and culture to increase excitement for local produce and foster community connections.
The Globalization of Matcha
Oct 2024
Since starting college, I’ve experimented with various caffeinated beverages to get through the demands of a rigorous course schedule, extracurriculars, social events, and lack of sleep.
Although I love espresso, my preference has undoubtedly become a matcha latte. The first time I tried matcha was in Wisconsin on a trip in the summer of 2023 to visit my grandparents which was the last time I spent with my late grandfather. My family ordered a round of matcha tea to start dinner at a Japanese restaurant and we drank it hot out of traditional ceramic Japanese tea cups. The taste was earthy and bitter but I instantly loved it and sought to learn how to prepare my own. I soon purchased matcha powder from Trader Joe’s and a wooden whisk to prepare it after learning that a metal whisk would interfere with the chemical composition and alter the taste. I frequently made myself matcha lattes by whisking the matcha into water, adding ice, creamer, and milk. Much of my matcha latte inspiration came from seeing people on campus with matcha lattes and instantly falling gullible to wanting a beautiful pastel green drink for myself. When I’d go out to cafes with my friends, a matcha latte became my staple order. I didn’t start drinking matcha for the health benefits, but my mother, a chronic health blog reader, excitedly told me about its incredible health benefits. I started noticing how matcha gained a reputation as a “superfood” on labels of matcha powders, and that other than how to make a matcha latte, I didn’t know much about matcha’s origins. In my research, I’ve reviewed the history of matcha in Japan, influences from China, and its popularity in modern-day Hong Kong. I've traced how the globalization of matcha to the United States has erased its centuries of significance in Japanese culture as Western marketing prefers to boast its healing properties. I’ve compared and contrasted matcha’s reception in Japan, Hong Kong, and the United States where nationalism, social status, and health trends are of uniquely different importance. A green tea I fell in love with I’ve now discovered holds a deeply rich Japanese history and complex entanglement of lost and shifting meanings in other nations as a result of globalization.
Matcha, an earthy green tea powder, is a symbolic beverage of Japan that has recently undergone a meteoric rise in global popularity. According to Nick Dreher historically matcha had been exclusive to the elite in feudal Japan who drank it in tea ceremonies known as chanoyu. Tea houses served as sites of creative innovation, military celebrations, and social networking for the ruling class. During the twelfth century, matcha witnessed Chinese influence as Zen Buddhist monks who returned from China introduced whipped teas to Japan, a method that remains the staple preparation for incorporating the green tea powder into hot water. The collapse of the strict class system catalyzed by the Meiji Restoration paved the way for hundreds of years of matcha consumption for the whole of Japan. As HO Hei Tung elucidates, following the restoration, “matcha was then turned into a nation-building tool…remade into a representation of Japanese-ness in order to eliminate regional differences within the nation and to construct one-ness against foreign powers.” Whereas matcha became a unifying symbol of Japanese nationalism, this sentiment did not follow matcha’s journey to other markets. By tracing the cultural significance of matcha in Japan, it’s possible to see the erasure of its history in lieu of viral global enthusiasm for its health wonders and association to social status worldwide.
A study conducted by Likun, Kohya, and Koshi from Kyushu University identified the economic demands and dramatic statistical evidence for matcha’s growing popularity in the United States. The research discovered that matcha’s export value has increased “from 1.2 billion to 14.4 billion yen in 2017” and that “the top destination for Japanese green tea exports is the United States…about 40% of total exports.” I was surprised to learn just how popular matcha has become, unaware that matcha wielded so much global economic power outside of its popularity in cafes in my college town. I sought to dive deeper into what factors account for matcha’s global economic boom and uncover how it has earned a “superfood” status in the United States while losing its history via importation.
In “Food From Nowhere: Complicating Cultural Food Colonialism to Understand Matcha as Superfood,” Nick Dreher applies Lisa Heldke’s framework of “cultural food colonialism” to uncover matcha’s simultaneous rise in popularity as a superfood with the erasure of its significance in Japanese culture. A combination of social media and marketing tactics has propelled matcha to its recent popularity as a trendy superfood in the United States. Social media users enthusiastically post about their matcha consumption just as is the case for other superfood crazes. Yet what makes something a superfood? Dreher credits Ian Marber, a nutrition consultant and columnist, who “identifies a superfood as ‘any food with a publicist,’ pointing out that “superfoods are easier to publicize if they have an exotic origin.” Dreher notes how the lore surrounding exoticism creates marketing gold such as by boasting about the product’s benefits in energizing warriors for thousands of years in battle. However, the anthropological repercussions of such marketing in the case of matcha is the othering of Japan by solely using the exotic narrative of a product to market its nutritional power with enticing storytelling while neglecting its cultural meaning. The U.S.’s prominent health-focused consumer culture fed by markets and health-food writers who triumph over healthy food crazes has stripped superfoods like matcha. Dreher echoes professor and researcher Gyorgy Scrinis’ term “nutritionism,” referring to “a nutritionally reductive approach to food in which the focus on nutrients ‘has come…to replace other ways of engaging with food.’” These other ways include neglecting a food’s cultural origin and historical significance. Dreher dives deeper into the question of authenticity in matcha consumption outside of Japan. Despite how matcha is often consumed outside of the context of Japanese tea ceremonies, Dreher reveals that “by facilitating the popularity of matcha in the United States without similarly carrying over knowledge of chanoyu, health-conscious eaters and the marketers of health foods are serving to erase matcha’s cultural significance.” In economically incentivized marketing to highlight matcha’s superfood status, the U.S. has dissociated matcha from its original meaning to fit the popular health-conscious ecosystem.
In my research, I discovered how matcha has not only made cultural waves in the U.S. but has gained huge recognition in Hong Kong. HO Hei Tung elucidates the recent rise in matcha’s popularity in Hong Kong and compares it to its reception in the United States. Whereas U.S. matcha connoisseurs boast matcha for its health benefits, in Hong Kong, matcha and matcha desserts have skyrocketed as well as their role in symbolizing cosmopolitan sophistication that Hong Kongers frequently flaunt on social media. Whereas in Japan matcha is famous as a tea, Hei Tung conveys that matcha and matcha desserts have become trendy as they “convey a sense of cosmopolitan sophistication.” Matcha owes its luxurious status in Hong Kong, and around the world, particularly to the development of high-end supermarkets selling pricey matcha products as well as social media upping its social value. Hei Tung notes the popularity in Hong Kong of uploading photos of trendy foods like matcha to social media to “show off” among friends. In Hong Kong, matcha further enables for a national sense of identity apart from China as a product originating in Japan. Thus, “the consumption of matcha in Hong Kong can also be defined as a subtle manifestation of the city’s local identity.” In contrasting reasons for matcha consumption in Japan, the United States, and Hong Kong, I’ve realized how the motivation behind consuming matcha differs greatly in different nations. Whereas Japan embraces matcha as symbolic of national identity and a history of chanoyu, the United States worships matcha as a health food craze, while Hong Kong has given it a trendy and high-status reputation.
After evaluating the differences in the reception of matcha in these three places, I wanted to return to my personal experience with matcha and reflect on my research. In discussing how matcha has entered the American mainstream, Hei Tung elucidates how matcha appeals to Americans, stating, “the fact that matcha contains caffeine, antioxidant and detox substances gives a reason for its popularity in Euro-American cities as these characteristics fulfill the daily needs of urban dwellers – the quest for refreshment and concentration.” This idea resonated with me and my fast-paced college life in which a refreshing caffeinated beverage is just the thing I need to get through the day, just as it is for so many of my peers. What fascinated me was the idea of how a particular beverage becomes popular not just based on marketing, nutrition, and status, but upon the influence of everyday environments; how a beverage fits into a particular lifestyle as well as how the way it fits evolves to fit others. My experience of enjoying a matcha latte differs greatly from how matcha historically was prepared and tasted in chanoyu and even the way I like my matcha latte differs from the preference of other Americans. My initial purpose for drinking matcha originated in enjoying the taste and caffeine boost, however, as I rethink this product, I can’t help but be aware of its changing meanings while acknowledging its history. By becoming far more informed about matcha and its history I am not just a matcha latte consumer, but a culturally and historically conscious one too.
Willson and Goffman: Disciplined Indulgence in Cultivated Tastes Reinforces Enduring Status
Apr 2026
Emerging over half a century apart, Erving Goffman and Margaret Willson offer distinct observations and analyses regarding consumption and identity. In “Symbols of Class Status” (1951) Goffman assesses status as distinguished by symbolic meanings attached to cultivated tastes. Fast forward to the early 2000s, Willson observes customers of a Seattle coffee shop and discovers the collective psychological games people play with indulgence - avoiding cream in their coffee to “earn” the calories of a scone, or finishing work to “earn” the reward of a treat. Rather than focus on the indulgence of cream in coffee, in analyzing two interviews from our class archive, I have attributed “indulgences” to pleasures and leisurely interests that signify status, such as through monetary value, experience and education. I’ve illustrated how disciplined restraint in the engagement with these “indulgences” permits a long-term demonstration of cultivated tastes, which are uniquely fed by the features of nostalgia and anticipatory pleasure. Two interviews from our class archive of personal brand interviews communicate the temporal-based discipline associated with cultivated consumption. Subject OB2’s purchase of colognes bring him future moments of indulging in the nostalgia of past travels while signifying status through cost and worldliness. Subject ACCI’s collection of books sprawled around her room express her status as an English scholar and embody anticipatory indulgence that can be realized when she completes other tasks. Both interviewees exhibit a cultivation of tastes as described by Goffman for the status symbolically associated with their cultivated “indulgences.” ACC1 and OB2 also follow the shared rules of discipline dependent upon time, restriction, and “earning” reward that Willson witnesses. These acts of consumption signify cultivated taste and status in themselves which is temporally reinforced through a manner of disciplined indulgence that allows the statuses they construct to endure.
To understand the status aspect of the objects subjects OB2 and ACCI define as their personal brands we can refer to Goffman’s concept of status, created not necessarily by pure riches, but by everyday symbols that divide people into categories. He states, “in many societies, avocational pursuits involving the cultivation of arts, ‘tastes,’ sports, and handicrafts have been used as symbols of class status with ‘prestige’ awarded to the experts (Goffman, 301). Both OB2 and ACC1 embody expertise in their avocational pursuits of fragrance collection and literature which are made visible by their purchases of colognes and novels. Furthermore, these “status symbols” can be ranked on a scale of prestige and esteem dependent upon their social value, informing that it’s not just the possession of these objects that deliver status, but the authentic fulfillment of the positions the symbols evoke. Both interview subjects possess this authenticity in ACC1’s academic credibility, and OB2’s travel experience and cologne knowledge. Their ranks compared to other travel enthusiasts, luxury cologne collectors, and high-level literary academics at a national or global scale are difficult to determine, but for the demographics of these interviews being UNC-Chapel Hill students, these interviewee statuses hold social value, distinguishing them from other students, as well as potentially including them in categories of students who engage in the same cultivation sites.
Cologne differentiates OB2 from his friends as he understands scent profiles, researches new colognes he desires to purchase, and remarks how his friends wonder what scent he’s wearing. He states, “most of the colognes I have are very high end and I feel like that sets me apart. I will sometimes get compliments like ‘man you smell so good what is this?’ These kinds of things make me laugh because I know the scent profiles on a lot of my colognes are very unique.” (OB2). Not only does OB2’s cologne communicate status through the luxury quality of his fragrances, but the exclusivity of his niche knowledge of them contrasts with his friends’, thus distinguishing him socially. Towards the end of his interview he reveals that his last purchase that he identified with was an expensive cologne, stating, “Creed Aventus, one of my new colognes. This cologne has been on my dream fragrance list for a long time and I love to wear it” (OB2). By providing details that Creed Aventus was his “dream” cologne, OB2 unearths how the cultivation of his tastes for cologne emerges before he’s able to realize the status of ownership and wear the colognes to show the world. He researches and financially prepares for expensive purchases of fragrances and this anticipatory work enriches the ownership of the scent, not just physically in the bottle, but owning it as a member of Creed Aventus wearers - a select group able to pay the price and authentically wear the scent, embodying the scent notes it communicates in identity and thus belonging to a distinct category of consumers. Most other 21 year old male college students at UNC- Chapel Hill likely don’t own a collection of luxury colognes, especially from various travels, nor do they possess the knowledge to understand the nuances of scents in fragrances. While cologne itself is popularly worn by college-aged men, wearing high-end and exotic colognes distinguishes OB2’s status as a cologne connoisseur belonging to an exclusive group defined by cologne knowledge, appreciation, and worldliness.
Similarly, ACC1’s purchase of books for future leisure and the anticipatory joy they bring her as they decorate her room connects to her status of being an English scholar with academic prestige. ACCI has cultivated a taste for literature and holds academic credibility as an English major and a literature enthusiast. Both her places as a UNC-Chapel Hill English student and an avid reader for leisure mold her unique status, with her scholarly background making her reading pastime informed and legitimate rather than someone who enjoys reading without a collegiate-level English background. There is prestige in her status through her academics which provides her an educated disposition in her book purchasing choices. While she doesn’t dive into exactly which books she has laying around her room, her English major evidences that these novels would hold significance in the academic world of literature rather than be random book purchases by the average consumer. Her education provides her a refined and cultivated taste for novels which distinguishes her status. Ironically, if she were to buy books for the joy they bring her rather than their connection to literary esteem, it would further reinforce her ability to turn her academic area into leisure which is evocative of status by symbolizing that her passion and joy can also be her career. She doesn’t have to pursue work separate from her leisurely interest, she has the means to merge her career and hobby, allowing her identity in literature to endure in work and pleasure. ACC1 has curated the persona of a literary enthusiast, scholar, and future professional backed by academic effort and leisurely reading. The endurance of this status, as well as that of OB2, arrives due to the disciplined manner in which both subjects engage in their cultivated tastes in literature and cologne.
Goffman elucidates how a crucial aspect of cultivation is “found in the quality of ‘restraint’ upon which classes in many different societies have placed high value” and remarks that cultivation “requires discipline and perseverance” (Goffman, 301). He articulates how being able to engage in cultivated tastes requires an exclusion of distractions and competing interests as well as an extension of time, relating to "perseverance" in their pursuit. When discussing the quality of restraint, he refers to the ability to hold back from daily distractions and pour attention into the focus of cultivation. This enduring routine of abstaining from other areas of life reveals class status. Goffman states, “evidence concerning previous activity is crucial because class status is based not only on social qualifications but also on the length of time a person has possessed them” (Goffman, 301). The pattern of cultivation and developing the symbolic identity it provides for the engager allows for legitimacy and persistence of status. While Goffman discusses this restraint in almost a negative sense, stating “restraint is a form of negative cultivation” (Goffman, 301) because it requires setting aside time withdrawn from other experiences, we can expand upon the possibility of what this focused cultivation means if we were to attribute Willson’s concept of discipline in indulgences. While regarding OB2’s cologne and ACC1’s novels as cultivated tastes that express distinct status, we can attribute the quality of indulgence to these tastes and the discipline that socially governs their engagement in them, such as restraint for the purpose of reward, and how that too enables perseverance of status.
The same rules of restraint and reward that Willson witnesses, while not effective in creating a caloric deficit at the cafe, are socially significant and visible in how OB2 and ACC1 discuss their habits of consuming their purchases. On the books ACC1 has around her room, she states, “I like to keep them around for enjoyment - or rather the possibility of future enjoyment, since I don’t make as much time for them as I’d like” (ACC1). This desire of keeping the books around for future pleasure, and importantly, the joy they provide ACC1 simply by signifying the reminder of this anticipatory pleasure, evidences the practice of delayed discipline. This logic justifies the pleasure of reading in the future which is earned, aligning with Willson’s claim that “indulgence is rarely innocent; it must be justified” (Willson, 164). This adds a moral dimension to indulgence, such as eating healthy all day to earn a fatty dessert, or deserving the free time to read a particular novel in ACC1’s case. This morality holds social value and status importance as those with high status possess the moral character to appear authentic, as emphasized by Goffman. ACC1 reveals restraint from the site of cultivation as though it were an indulgence that requires her to complete other tasks to morally earn engagement with them. Her discipline of attending to responsibilities enables her to leisurely “indulge” in reading. It’s not just the books themselves, but the anticipatory pleasure they stand for in the meantime that drives ACC1’s purchasing of them, revealing the nuance of time that provides the endurance of purchases, further facilitating the endurance of the status of the purchaser that they communicate. OB2’s purchases of colognes from the places he travels similarly reveals purchase for future pleasure as well as nostalgia. He buys colognes for the future experience of the nostalgia the colognes elicit for him. The colognes not only take him back to the travels they came from, but remind him of earlier iterations of his own identity and allow him to reflect on his personal evolution. He states, “seeing what colognes I was wearing at different points of my life. Like I always buy a new cologne when I go somewhere new. So sometimes to remember that specific trip I will just wear the cologne I bought while I was there. It takes me back” (OB2). Not only is OB2’s cologne collection evidence of status through price, the social value of the travels they emerge from, and his unique cologne knowledge, but they serve as time capsules that take him back to his trips and past self, offering OB2 the future experiences of nostalgia that are completely unique to his relationship to each cologne and the personal stories and reflections they connote. This practice requires the discipline of maintaining the colognes and using them intentionally in order to prolong the ability to revisit nostalgia and thus persist the status they symbolize. While wearing them appears to be a daily engagement for OB2 rather than an earned reward, his manner of intentionality in purchasing, appreciation for the stories they bring him, and maintenance of his collection over time all evidence a style of disciplined indulgence. The value of the purchase for OB2 is the future nostalgia each cologne provides him, rather than the purpose of immediate use of a scent until it’s empty. He carefully indulges in colognes, making the indulgences in them last through restraint and intentionality, similar to ACC1’s discipline in leisurely reading, thereby enabling prolongment of the status that these symbols connote.
Goffman offers a framework for attributing status based on a plethora of factors, notably the cultivation of tastes and the disciplined and persistent pursuit of these tastes to earn their social value and allow the status they bring to last. Willson remarks on the oddity of indulgent eating habits that are socially-shared, citing how people refrain or delay consumption on the basis of a type of justified and “moral” discipline in order to “earn” a future reward. We can shift the idea of an “indulgence” from calories to an avocational pursuit, or rather, a cultivated taste which communicates status, and utilize Goffman and Willson’s findings to determine how discipline enables these symbolic statuses to endure. While Goffman illustrates restraint in terms of abstaining from distractions from cultivation, Willson evidences restraint from indulgence, or rather the site of cultivation itself. However, both of these acts of restraint contribute to the perseverance of a cultivated identity. OB2 and ACC1 restrain from “indulging” in colognes and books on the basis of other responsibilities and the desire to prolong future enjoyment, as well as restrain from distractions when they engage in using cologne and reading books with intentionality. Restraint in these two areas enable OB2’s status as a traveler and cologne connoisseur, and ACC1’s status as an English scholar and literary enthusiast to withstand over time. This applies to the future after their purchases when they partake in their sites of cultivation, and in the present with the anticipatory quality of indulgence regarding wearing nostalgic colognes and leisurely reading novels. This disciplined manner of engagement with cultivated symbols evoke OB2 and ACC1’s distinct statuses to society and enable the endurance of these statuses.
The Role of Rivalry in Reinforcing Collective Fan Identity
Mar 2026
Watching the UNC vs Duke Men's Basketball Game at Carolina Brewery
The date was March 7, 2026. It was 6:00pm and Franklin Street continued to buzz with excitement from the daytime tailgates as fans rushed to their watch party venues. Carolina Brewery was a packed house without a single seat left unreserved. College students, older men, and children alike donning UNC apparel filled the space. The plethora of TVs aired recaps of the historic rivalry that ushered in this pandemonium in Chapel Hill: the UNC vs Duke basketball game. Too many beers to count and plates of greasy American food coated the tables while voices flooded the room, proposing ideas about UNC’s standing in the game, and fears over Duke taking the win. Anxious anticipation overtook the mood. The game commenced. Passionate reactions followed every move of the basketball. Each UNC shot earned satisfactory claps or a “Go Seth!” and every Duke point elicited visceral disappointment. A sports bar had suddenly become the amphitheater for a community of Tar Heel fans to worship their basketball team during this high-stakes game against their ultimate rival.
I was one of the Tar Heel fans watching the UNC vs Duke game at Carolina Brewery. I sat at the long end of a table my friend’s soccer team had reserved. While unable to win the lottery for tickets at the Dean Dome, my friends and I were determined to make Duke Day special. At our table, we ordered a couple appetizers and conversed with my friend’s soccer team with the main topic of discussion being the big game. Before and during the game, I focused my attention on the audience behavior of the spectators at Carolina Brewery. I took note of their reactions, including their chants and claps for UNC scoring, and their heated booing every time Boozer made a three. While Tar Heels ritualistically cheer for the men’s basketball team during any game, this rivalry event was exceptional in illustrating Tar Heel fan identity as UNC’s rivalry with Duke dramatically reinforced collective fan identity exhibited by watch party members.
Spectators of the game at Carolina Brewery engaged in UNC chants, such as the call-and-response “Tar” and “Heel” between the lower and upper levels of the restaurant. Dissatisfied remarks of “F**k Duke!” and “Boozer sucks!” were almost always in earshot when Duke took possession or made a shot. Collective and synchronized cheering accompanied every UNC score, no matter if it was one or three points. What distinguishes this cheering and booing was the intensity of these reactions and the evidence of anticipation for this game. The reservations made far in advance, the coordinated outfits to support UNC, and the knowledge these spectators possessed of UNC and Duke’s standing this season and historic trends all communicated deep devotion to the Tar Heel fandom and concern fed by the rivalry. When UNC played any other team previously this season, Franklin Street businesses weren’t at capacity with reservations, students didn’t collectively tailgate for hours, and most expressively at this Carolina Brewery watch party, fans didn’t elicit such emotionally-charged reactions to the game.
David Tyler and Joe B. Cobbs elucidate the nature of rivalry on fan identity in sports in “Rival Conceptions of Rivalry: Why Some Competitions Mean More Than Others” (2015). They distinguish how rivalry requires traits of parity and proximity, both apparent in the case of UNC vs Duke. Furthermore, they dive into the stakes that rivalry holds over identity, not merely as an engine for competition, but a force that “poses an acute threat to the identity of the in-group” (Tyler and Cobbs, 2015). In UNC and Duke’s rivalry, this directly translates to the question of “who is the better blue?” and each program’s desire to hold this title, with a basketball win significantly determining this distinction. This threat of potentially not being “the better blue” generates intense passion in both leagues of fans whose identities rest upon being on the winning side of this debate. The threat of loss doesn’t solely carry the weight of a lower ranking, but challenges Tar Heel fan identity, a visceral proposition that drives fans to unite in social gatherings, like Duke game watch parties, to signify that they are the “better blue.”
Joe Harasta’s “The Development of Sports Fan: From Self-Identification to ‘Diehard’” (2021) examines the mania of sports fan culture and the effect of rivalry on distinguishing fandoms. He argues that the goal of fervent fans is to become “diehard fans who are respected for their knowledge, loyalty, and longevity.” (Harasta, 2021, 10). Carolina Brewery watch party attendees exhibited this goal by constantly sharing their knowledge of UNC and Duke basketball history and reliving it as the TVs replayed old iconic clips before the game and during commercial breaks. Older fans embodied the notion of longevity in fandom, and those of all ages signified intergenerational fan culture and the notion of an enculturated fandom that starts during childhood and lasts a lifetime. This sense of lifetime devotion parallels the deep history and legacy of UNC men's basketball fandom. Not only the knowledge of UNC basketball and longevity, but the previous actions required in anticipation for the day of this rivalry game showcased fan commitment. Harasta remarks how “Gantz et al. (2012) found that sports fans prepare for games and events through rituals and emotional exercises to psyche themselves up long before games.” (Harasta, 2021, 25). Making reservations at Carolina Brewery with friends and family, wearing UNC attire, and researching UNC and Duke men’s basketball trends that fuel feelings about the game prior to tipoff all point to a deep desire to physically show up as a Tar Heel for this rivalry match.
Despite not physically being at the game, this shared social experience of the watch party matters immensely to Tar Heels whose fandom is inherently social and fed by being around other fans. At events such as this UNC vs Duke watch party, Harasta draws upon Serazio (2008), who argues that these events “can become quasi-religious experience where those involved become inextricably linked to one another, even for just a moment” (Harasta, 2021, 26). The cultural ritual of UNC vs Duke game watch parties, like at Carolina Brewery, harnesses the features of a quasi-religious experience in which temporarily, during the most heated game of the season, fans are indelibly united and passionately fueled, almost spiritually, by their intense love for UNC basketball which is spiked due to their hatred for Duke. At Carolina Brewery, every move of the game elicited dramatic reactions. Apathy was absent and when UNC lost, the faces at the restaurant were all disheartened and livid. This one event had the power to induce shared disappointment due to the threat of the Duke rivalry on UNC identity, fan ego, legacy, and fans’ diehard support for UNC men’s basketball. UNC’s loss to Duke felt like grief for UNC fans, a united mourning that symbolizes the emotional intensity of this rivalry on UNC fans which reflects Tar Heel collective fan identity greater than any other game could elicit.
This rivalry game between UNC and Duke reinforces Tar Heel fandom as Duke challenges the identity salience of UNC in the historic question of “who is the better blue?” UNC’s ultimate competitor brings to light UNC’s diehard devotion, even to those not present at the Dean Dome. At this Carolina Brewery watch party, fans revealed support through anticipatory actions like reservations, demonstrated the desire to share the experience of the game with other fans, displayed passionate reactionary behaviors to the game, and collectively grieved UNC’s loss. This social gathering where strangers from different tables united in their applause and booing of the game demonstrated a shared Tar Heel fan culture. For the duration of this game, all of these observers were active members in a Tar Heel fan community, echoing each other’s claps and sighs, and sharing their knowledge of the game and their hatred for Duke. This watch party stood as a culturally significant event that defined Tar Heel identity in contrast to our greatest opponent, Duke, fueled by our historic desire to hold the identity of the better blue as us fans are the owners of the Tar Heel fan identity.
Ancient Anthropology
While most of my work in anthropological research and writing is situated in modernity or recent history, I’ve completed research on historical topics as well, particularly focusing on the Ancient Maya from a research seminar in 2025. Scroll to explore!
The Popol Vuh & The Ancient Maya
Jan 2025
Victor Montejo’s translation of the Popol Vuh traces numerous themes that have remained sacred to Maya life over the centuries. This text conveys Mayan ideologies about creation and death, paralleling mythologies in other holy texts from around the world despite pre-European contact while illustrating uniquely Maya ideas. While reading the Popol Vuh for the first time, multiple themes caught my attention such as the theme of cycles of transformation rather than permanent death. This mirrors the Maya concept of time as not linear, but cyclical, and cycles in nature such as in agriculture. I find this fascinating and it led me to wonder how this could be a powerful perspective in everyday Maya life. Another theme that was eye-opening to me was the motif of imperfection. The Gods constantly experimented and tweaked their creation of humans, never quite satisfied, yet interestingly not wanting humans to be perfect. This intentional imperfection and awareness of imperfection in humanity stuck out to me in comparison to how other creation narratives often assert complete confidence in the perfection of creation. In contrast, the Popol Vuh acknowledges the imperfection of human nature and applies it to the story of human creation, including imperfection as an innate feature of humanity.
The Popol Vuh often addresses the motif of cycles of transformation and applies this concept across life and death. In the story of the Hero Twins, Junajpu and Ixb’alanke overcome death through resurrection. After throwing themselves into the fire built by the Lords of Xib’alb’a who sought to kill them and calling the wise men to sprinkle their bone dust over the river, the twins came back to life and in possession of even greater powers. The twins are reincarnated as beggars capable of reversing destruction and death, able to kill and then bring back to life. The Lords find the twins’ powers entertaining, demanding that the twins kill them and then bring them back to life. However, the twins soon reveal their true identities as Junajpu and Ixb’alanke by refusing to revive the first Lords they kill, leading the people to beg for forgiveness and enabling the twins to amass power over Xib’alb’a and declaring it a corrupt domain. Through the Hero Twins, the Popol Vuh reveals that there is more to finite death with the option of reincarnation. The twins represent a “come back” story by literally coming “back to life” and gaining even greater power by becoming agents of destruction and resurrection. They undergo a further transformation by ascending to the sky where Junajpu becomes the sun and Ixb’alanke becomes the moon. The transformation and transcendence between human forms, godlike agents, and astronomical entities in the story of the Hero Twins applies to Maya life even in less mythologically magical ways. The transformations of the Hero Twins mirror the transformations in natural cycles such as in the seasons, astronomical events, and agriculture of which the Maya people would’ve been greatly aware. Just as Junajpu and Ixb’alanke die and experience rebirth, the Maya staple of corn is a crop that undergoes cycles of growth and death. This aspect of the Popol Vuh led me to wonder how a view of transformation and rebirth applies to views of death and how perhaps it broadens the acceptance of mortality through a belief in transcendence which thereby rejects the concept of permanent death.
Another theme from the Popol Vuh that grasped my attention was the motif of imperfection. Despite the emphasis on the Gods’ constant experimentation to ‘perfect’ humanity and their continuous dissatisfaction, in the end, they don’t desire humans to be perfectly made. Their repetitive tweaking further implies that the creation process itself is imperfect even when operated by the Gods who possess all-powerful capabilities. After the Gods created humans, they felt concerned about the perfection of human sight, believing it was bad for humans to “see the big and little things in the sky and on the earth” because “They are not gods like us to see everything clearly.” (Montejo, 63). The Gods then limited human vision only to what is near, casting a fog over their eyes and stating, “This is how the wisdom and knowledge of the four created men and all their descendants were destroyed” (Montejo, 63). While I grasped the hierarchical idea of maintaining godlike sight and limiting the human sense of sight, it’s fascinating how the Popol Vuh attributes this as the destroyer of human wisdom and knowledge from the four original men and the following generations. This implies that humans are innately not meant to be wise which suggests a sense of keeping humanity in check by limiting their power to know everything like the Gods. There is even an anticipation of imperfection when further in the story, a king refuses to wear his cape and to have children, thus becoming a descenter. Despite the king not living up to the socially expected outcome, the Popol Vuh has grace for human imperfection by including it in its stories and not only focusing on imperfection in human design but also in actions of free will.
The Popol Vuh suggests an awareness and celebration of human potential to transform and a sense of realism by including imperfections in human design and actions. Thus, the Popol Vuh not only guides Maya life by paralleling natural transformations in cycles of growth and death but mirrors features that have always existed in humanity like imperfect sight and knowledge and social differences. The Popol Vuh’s stories of the transformations of transgressive and powerful entities guide the Maya to accept loss and seek renewal with a self-aware humility that focuses on transcending rather than attaining perfection.
Ocarinas and Ancient Maya Music: Purpose, Status & Significance
Apr 2025
Ocarinas, believed to have originated roughly 12,000 years ago in Mesoamerica and South America, are globular ceramic instruments typically with four or five holes to produce notes. While similar in register to a flute, they offer a smaller range with fewer notes. While ocarinas are still made today around the world, ancient ocarinas that archeologists have uncovered in the Maya region offer evidence of the mysterious musical Maya past. Where these instruments have been excavated and their unique array of designs indicates they were not merely toys but popular instruments that represented Maya iconography. From K’axob, to other Maya regions such as Cuello, Chahl, Pech, and Jaina, the ocarina is an artifact with symbolism that has yet to be fully understood, similar to the unknown of ancient Maya music. However, these ancient ocarinas in conjunction with evidence in murals and other artifacts reveal a world of Maya music that although we cannot hear, we can piece together to understand their significance. Ocarinas appear in a diversity of forms, resembling zoomorphic creatures and humanlike entities. These ancient instruments spark an exploration of their uses, symbolism, and status as well as where they fit in the landscape of ancient Maya music.
Excavations of Ancient Maya Ocarinas
Ocarinas have primarily been excavated from burials, often alongside flutes, ranging all over the Maya region. An excavation by Paul Healy in 1988 of an aristocratic grave at Pacbitun, Belize revealed several ocarinas, flutes, and hybrid acoustic clay instruments (Bourg, 2005, p.12.) This discovery indicates that flutes and ocarinas might have been played at funerals and then left as tribute. Interestingly, most often ocarinas are not discovered in elite contexts like this aristocratic burial whereas flutes are more commonly found in this setting. Another burial from Cuello, Belize dated much earlier to the Middle Preclassic period revealed the skeletal remains of a child alongside a bird-effigy ocarina (Bourg, 2005, p.13). In fact, the discovery of ocarinas at childrens’ burials in particular has been a widespread occurrence which supports that musical training and education commenced at a young age. Despite how archeologists have determined that ocarinas were an instrument of a lower class, the findings of ocarinas at burials suggests they held significance in both life and death for a broader common class of ancient Maya people.
It’s unknown how many ancient ocarinas have been excavated from the Maya region, partially due to how some instruments have not been explicitly labeled as ocarinas despite fitting the characteristics. Large quantities of ocarinas have been uncovered from Pacbitun, Belize and Jaina Island, Mexico, offering insight as to the potential use of multiple ocarinas in ritual contexts. Excavations of moulds indicate the production of figurine ocarinas but not all ceramic aerophones underwent mass production with others being individually hand-made. Archaeologists discovered the spread of ocarina production in an ancient kiln preserved in the Sula Ulua delta in northern Honduras (Bourg, 2005, p. 49). The kiln preserved ancient ocarinas, tripod dishes, non-musical figurines, moulds, and other pottery dated to the Late Postclassic period. The frequency of discovering these sites that preserved multiple ocarinas suggests that multiple ocarinas were typically played together for ritual purposes rather than only one being played. There is also potential that these groupings indicate ocarinas being played in small bands but these would not have been elite ensembles due to how they are not located in elite precincts. These bands would have consisted of a common class of Maya people. However, as evidenced at K’axob, individual, isolated ocarinas have been excavated suggesting individual use. The several ways and locations at which ocarinas have been preserved indicates the popularity of the instrument with lack of strict rigidity regarding where they are found and how many are found at one location compared to more elite and less abundant artifacts.
Ocarinas Found at K’axob
Two ocarinas have been excavated from K’axob, Belize and their uniqueness in design offers great curiosity. The first, a zoomorphic ocarina dating to the Postclassic period and resembling a bat or stingray was recovered from the surface of operation 1 (Bartlett, 2004, p. 264). It features wings on both sides, two horns on the underside, a hollow center, a broken tail, and two holes, one for blowing and one for producing a beat on the top. The surface is unsmoothed, finished with what would have been an orange wash. Spanning only a few centimeters wide, typical of most ancient ocarinas, this instrument is just one of many ancient Mayan ocarinas that resembles an animal. Perhaps there is a link between the instrument’s design and it producing music that sounds similar to animalistic sounds. Animals are also present in numerous Maya artifacts with creatures of the natural world being a common phenomena in Maya iconography. K’axob is home to both bats and stingrays with its proximity to the sea and caves that host a rich diversity of bats. While it can’t be explicitly confirmed whether this ocarina is a bat or stingray, this ocarina reflecting local animals evidences that this ocarina was likely made at or near K’axob and remained there.
The second ocarina from K’axob was excavated from a Late K’atabche’k’ax living surface in operation 12 (Bartlett, 2004, p. 265). It features a human face with wide indent indices across the face, large protruding lips, and ear flares. The face is stylized, resembling a mask and the figure appears to wear a headdress or helmet with the right side smooth and the left side featuring a pattern of round punctates. Both sides of the helmet have two air holes, likely used as stops, and due to their placement they resemble lizard eyes. When holding this artifact, from one side the figure appears to have a benevolent expression while from another perspective it resembles a fierce warrior. While anthropomorphism and transformation are common themes in Maya iconography, the exact symbolism of this particular ocarina remains unknown. However, the long nose and protruding lips align with Maya representations of beauty and high status. This ocarina might represent a stylized portrait or a masked figure, potentially based on a real life warrior or warrior deity. The stylization of this ocarina and similarly detailed, humanlike ocarinas across the Maya region indicate symbolic significance in the designs of these instruments that allude to phenomena beyond animal representations. It’s possible that this ocarina and others like it could signify meaning associated with the identity of those who played them which could in turn indicate their role in ancient Maya society. The transformation aspect of this particular ocarina could be a representation of the duality of the life of a warrior or warrior-like figure. Transformation is also a common theme in Maya iconography and could tie to the believed potential transformative use of the instrument when performed in a ritual setting. Identifying these two very different ocarinas from K’axob reveals that even within the same region, ancient Maya ocarinas exhibited numerous forms, animals, humans, and entities, and thus communicated a variety of symbolic meanings beyond their use of musical communication.
Ocarina Symbolism and Purposes
Definite information regarding the symbolisms of individual ocarinas is difficult to establish. The diversity of ocarina forms, uses, and comparisons to other instruments like the flute have revealed a broad range of purposes and potential meanings for the instrument. While ocarinas were used for rituals, they have been considered more secular compared to other instruments like flutes that were deemed more elite and thereby more sacred. However, ocarinas that featured more elaborate designs especially as deity forms compared to more simplistically designed and animalistic ocarinas likely held more symbolic ritual significance. Of the ocarinas designed like animals, they typically resembled animals from the regions in which they’ve been found. This connects their potential use to mimic animal sounds in nature while more complexly designed ocarinas were likely used for communicating with esoteric beings like the gods. Ocarinas were also used in rituals such as fertility rights and funerals. There is more evidence to suggest that flutes are more often associated with elite divine ceremonies. There is also evidence that ocarinas were used to induce healing which remains a purpose of modern ocarinas today in some Mesoamerican and South American indigenous communities (Rodriguez, 2016.) Ocarinas have overwhelmingly been discovered in burial contexts which strongly suggests a funerary ritual use for ocarinas above other purposes.
The Status of the Ocarina
Due to a general lack of ocarinas featured in murals, vessels, and carvings compared to that of flutes, flutes were the more elite out of the two aerophone instruments. The greater prestige of flutes parallels their greater complexity in construction contrasted to the more simple ocarina. While flutes developed complexity from the Late Classic and Postclassic Periods, ocarinas appear to have resisted innovation. This resistance could have been inspired by class limitations and thus the ocarina satisfied the need of music for a more common class who needed to maintain an accessible instrument (Bourg, 2005, p. 50). The appeal of the ocarina for the common class aligns with its abundance for a greater portion of the population, although flutes haven’t been sparse in comparison. The abundance of ancient ocarinas also supports the need for a more exclusive instrument for the elite class. While ocarinas were likely used in rituals, Samuel Marti (1968) suggested that the less complex an aerophone was, the more secular its relevance was (Bourg, 2005, p. 12) which aligns with the notion that more complex instruments such as block flutes and triple flutes were used for more religiously sacred elite ceremonies. Additionally, ceramic vessels of the Classic Period do not portray ocarinas in elite contexts (Kerr, 1998). While orchestras that played for the elite included ocarinas, flutes and other instruments were more often played for these more prestigious events whereas ocarinas were likely played in small bands or individually by members of the common class.
Ancient Maya Music & Musicianship
With no written record of Maya music or known ancient Maya musical compositions, knowing precisely what ancient Maya music sounded like is nearly impossible. However, evidence of ancient Maya music appears in places such as the Bonampak murals, The Popol Vuh, and the instruments excavated at nearly every Maya site. The Popol Vuh supports the presence of music with passages that suggest that sound could either please or offend the Lords of the Underworld which presents the concept of pleasing or disorganized sound. The types of instruments discovered at Maya sites include aerophones (wind instruments) like the ocarina and flute, as well as membranophones and idiophones. Murals and other artifacts indicate that everyone in Maya society including children, adults, commoners, and the elite participated in music but class divisions limited particular instruments and orchestras for the elite. The presence of elite limitations in music is evidenced in what instruments were buried with the elite, such as the flute rather than the ocarina. The Bonampak murals also feature an organized ensemble performing for an elite ceremony. Located in Chiapas, Mexico, frescoes at this site discovered by Giles Healy (1946) depict scenes of musicians. There are also scenes with dancers, thus implying musical accompaniment and a need for rehearsal. In the context of an elite ceremony as in these scenes, these performances demonstrated high levels of professionalism to appeal to the royal elites and to appeal to the gods. This indicates intense dedication by Maya musicians to reach this level professionally. In a scene on a fresco from Room 1 dated to the Late Classic Period, an ensemble of percussionists perform in a line-up. As Cameron Bourg describes, the scene is “intermixed with the elite class, their families and dieties are Maya musicians working to contribute to the art of music to this prestigious ceremony recorded in frescoes.” (Bourg, 2005, p.31). Furthermore, he states, “this scene by far is the most complex musical performance recorded in such a prestigious fashion: over twelve musicians are depicted playing at this ceremony being attended by dozens of dignitaries (Bourg, 2005, p. 31-32). His descriptions highlight the prestige of the elite musical ceremony captured in this frescoe Elite status is portrayed in the musicians wearing vibrant and elaborate clothing, featuring headdresses and patterned garments, and in their embodiment of Maya standards of beauty in the slant of their facial profiles. He also reveals how the elaborate design of the fresco further instills a sense of sacredness and specialness of the event. The nature of painting a fresco to commemorate this event confirms its great importance to ancient Maya royal society, thus preserving this elite musical ceremony as a high achievement for ancient Maya music and history.
With lack of written musical notation, ancient Maya musicianship required intense rehearsal and oral preservation. A holhop, or conductor (Bourg, 2005, p. 34) was needed to organize and pass down the repertoire. A lifetime of training was likely necessary to learn repertoire that had to be committed to memory (Bourg, 2005, p. 33.) The frequency of ocarinas being found at children’s burials aligns with how musical practice had to start at a young age in order to reach mastery of the instrument. The enormous dedication needed to become a respected musician in the ancient Maya world drove how it would be the highest honor to play at elite ceremonies. A musician’s status depended on their experience and reputation of performances. Most of these musicians playing at elite ceremonies would likely not be playing ocarinas as flutes were more prestigious out of the two. However, ocarinas are still featured in the Bonampak murals which further supports the notion that they were abundant in ancient Maya society.
Conclusion
While it’s unknown the exact meanings of the designs of ocarinas, archaeological evidence of ocarinas and evidence of ancient Maya music help us piece together the story of this unique ceramic instrument. Ocarinas being found at burials indicates their importance in life and death. Their presence at children’s burials indicates that musical training began at a young age. Ocarinas being found in multiples in sites like Sula Ulua and Jaina Island support the idea of multiple ocarinas being played at once for rituals. Ocarinas aren’t exclusively discovered as multiples as evidenced by the two individually isolated ocarinas excavated at K’axob. Although ancient Maya music can never be heard, evidence of Maya music in other artifacts and the depictions in the Bonampak murals reveal intense practice, dedication, and organization for elite performances of the ancient repertoire. Archaeological discoveries of ocarinas and other ancient Maya instruments connect us to a rich musical past for both life of the common class and elite ceremonies. The ocarina remained significant for the common people of the ancient Maya world across centuries with its simplistic form enabling them to participate in the range of meanings this instrument communicated for purposes tied to both secular and sacred parts of Maya life.