Bricolage as an expression of self and of cultural and familial foodways among people living in prison—‘You make what you can with anything you can get’

Abstract

AbstractIn this article, we use Lévi‐Strauss’s (1962, The savage mind, University of Chicago Press) concept of ‘bricolage’ to explore informal food preparation among men in Scottish prisons. The art of ‘making do with whatever is at hand’, in innovative and creative ways, to give new functions to everyday items has recently been reimagined and applied to the field of food. It has been used to explore the practice of informal food networks in resource poor environments; investigate how small food businesses come up with new and innovative recipes ideas; and study the way Michelin‐starred chefs responded to the COVID‐19 pandemic through philanthropic activities. Our aim is to use bricolage as a lens through which to answer questions about whether more autonomy over food might contribute to overall health and wellbeing in prisons. Drawing on in‐depth empirical data from qualitative interviews with 20 men in Scottish prisons, we explore how bricolage is used to escape the monotony of prison‐issued meals and the tedium of the prison regime; counter threats to self and identity; create and maintain social relationships through joint enterprise and commensality; and create culinary experiences that afford a sense of control and normality in an environment synonymous with ‘spoiled identity’ (Goffman, 1961, Asylums: Essays on the social situation of mental patients and other inmates, Penguin.).