Seeing 2 (page 42)

Menzel's photographs of two families from Guatemala and Japan show their food for one week. When observing the two different pictures the first thing I notice is that they both seem to have the same amount of food. Guatemala's food is more colorful and fresh looking compared to Japan's which is mostly packaged and meats. The Guatemala's family is a family of six, a larger sized family. The table they place their food on is outside their house and wooden. It is covered in grains, vegetables, fruits spices, chicken, eggs and water. Every food group is represented and the family looks healthy. In the Japan household their food is laid out in their living room with their television in the background showing a Japanese commercial. All the fruits, vegetables and meats are wrapped in plastic packaging and their are pre made desserts also in plastic packaging. Their are fruits, vegetables, lots of fish, some different meats and many different types of grain (bread, cakes, rice, etc.) While Japan's expenditure for one week is around $320, Guatemala's expenditure for one week is $75. None of Guatemala's food is prepackaged or already made. In Japan the food industry is bigger and is growing faster causing the pre made food to be available and accessible to families. In Guatemala families make their own dishes and recipes. Both families have a very large amount of food but the price tells one that Guatemala gets more for their money. Food isn't worth much in Guatemala but is worth a lot in Japan. The country they live in depends on the food they get and how much its worth. The economy is different in each country resulting in different prices for food. D'Aluisio's text was more informative and insightful than the picture when looking at prices. You could see how much every food item was worth and what their family using when making food. One could understand their economic status more this way.