FEAST, FAMINE AND STRANGE APPETITES

Food in literature in Key West

Note: Double your pleasure by attending the 29th annual Key West Literary Seminar, January 13-16. The theme is The Hungry Muse…An Exploration in Food in Literature.

DESTINATION
Key West, Florida

DATES
January 16 - 21, 2011 (5 nights)

READINGS
“Hansel and Gretel,” “Demane and Demazana,” “Babette’s Feast” by Isak Dinesen,”Bliss” by Katherine Mansfield, and “Bluebeard’s Egg” by Margaret Atwood.

FILM
Like Water for Chocolate

Description/Itinerary
It’s no surprise that writers like Ernest Hemingway and Robert Frost found in Key West a place of inspiration. This small island draws people in with its quirky self-sufficiency and disarming openness, its unique traditions and its ability to absorb outside influences. Where else in North America can you find chickens and roosters roaming freely around the city streets?

In early January 2011, Key West is hosting The Hungry Muse, a conference devoted to food and food writing. Classical Pursuits will follow this conference with a series of seminars entitled Feasts, Famines and Strange Appetites, in which we will sample works focused on various facets food and eating. As we sometimes forget in our well-fed society, food has always expressed something beyond literal sustenance. Meals bring people together; food scarcity can tear communities apart. The gourmet is one who elevates eating to an art form, while the ascetic’s spiritual purity stems from abstinence. Part of our discussions in this seminar will be to tease out these complex and deliciously contradictory meanings.

In the process of reading and thinking about food, we’ll sample the diverse pleasures of Key West food and culture in the temperate January climate. We’ll eat conch fritters while taking in the local ritual of watching the sunset at Mallory Square. We’ll follow in Hemingway’s footsteps and have drinks at Sloppy Joe’s. We’ll enjoy the true fusion of cuisines in a city that is closer to Havana than it is to Miami.

Click here to view itinerary

QUOTE
“After violent emotion most people and all boys demand food.”
-Rudyard Kipling

LeadeRS
Samantha Webb is an Associate Professor of English, teaching classes in British Romantic literature, children’s literature and fairy tales at the University of Montevallo in Alabama. Her favourite things to do in life are reading, eating, and thinking about both. The opportunity to do all three in Key West is about the best thing she can imagine.

George Fontana is a long-time resident of Key West and fondly referred to by all as Uncle George. He sings; he sails; he is deeply involved in the arts and culture of the town. He will take us to places and introduce us to people we would not ordinarily meet – most with a food connection.

Accommodation
La Concha Hotel, a historic, luxury hotel in old Key West (5 nights)

Fees
$2195 US per person
Single supplement: $700 US

Fee includes readings, accommodation, two meals a day, discussions, walking tours, talks, excursions, and admissions.

This trip has been priced in US$. Once you’ve made a reservation, we will invoice you in US$ (which is the fixed cost). As a Canadian company, we will also accept CAD$ at our current exchange rate at the time of payment(s).