A Study Of Dietary Consumption Of Urban Residents In Fourteenth-century England

The 14th century has been witnessed a growing evolution of economy,politics and culture in England,which was fundamental for the social transformation of England in the next century.As the center of industry and commerce,the medieval city was responsible for both production and consumption,and have played a vital role when the England was stepped into the ear of modernity.Foods supply the basic nutrients that are critical for human lives.The change of diet reflects the change of social culture and the development of economy to some extent,which is also an epitome that reflects the evolution of social structure in the field of economy.This dissertation aims to explore the development of the society,economy and culture at that time by investigating the food consumption of the urban residents,and to restore an epitome of England society in the 14th century.The main body of this dissertation is divided into three chapters:First,the income and dietary consumption of urban residents in fourteenth-century England are introduced in the first chapter in detail.The income of urban residents mainly includes the composition,the income level and the income variation of urban residents.Dietary consumption is analyzed and discussed from the perspectives of staple food,non-staple food,drinks and condiments.Income is the basis of consumption.The income of urban residents is closely related to their dietary consumption which greatly varies between different urban residents with different incomes.Second,the changes and causes of dietary consumption in fourteenth-century England are investigated for urban residents in the second chapter.There are two main changes in the diet of urban resident during this period,one is the diet structure changed,the other is the association between diet consumption and urban market increased day by day.There are three factors that caused the changes of dietary consumption.First,climate change prompted dietary changes.Second,the Black Death resulted in population decline and income increase,which had a significant impact on the dietary consumption of urban residents;Third,the religious taboos also paid a vital role on the dietary changes of urban residents.Finally,the impact of that the dietary consumption of urban residents changed in fourteenth-century England is discussed in the third chapter.First,the agriculture and animal husbandry in England had changed due to the change of the dietary consumption,especially for agriculture crops and their planting pattern in England.Second,changes in dietary consumption promoted the development of both industry and commerce,such as the expansion of consumption,the growth of urban markets and the development of specialization in business.The last is the impact on the food culture in England,which mainly includes more reasonable nutrition of residents,more profession of cooking and more civilization of table manners.