Anzac Biscuits - A Culinary Memorial

Anzac biscuits form an integral part of commemoration of the Anzac tradition in Australia. Symons (1982) argues that Anzac biscuits may be regarded as only one of two distinctly Australian foods. Inglis (1998) does not mention them in his work on memorials, yet it is possible to argue that Anzac bis...

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Main Author: Supski, Sian
Format: Journal Article
Published: API Network 2006
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/30034
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author Supski, Sian
author_facet Supski, Sian
author_sort Supski, Sian
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Anzac biscuits form an integral part of commemoration of the Anzac tradition in Australia. Symons (1982) argues that Anzac biscuits may be regarded as only one of two distinctly Australian foods. Inglis (1998) does not mention them in his work on memorials, yet it is possible to argue that Anzac biscuits may be regarded as a culinary memorial (Hillier 2002).The story of Anzac biscuits has become mythologised in Australian cultural history and is an important signifier of Australian national identity. However, the origin of Anzac biscuits is contested, in particular the 'moment' of invention, including the naming and origin of the recipe. Moreover, Anzac biscuits have such a central place in the Australian public memory that it is not necessary to gain permission from the Minister of Defence to use the word 'Anzac' in relation to Anzac biscuits (Topperwien 1997).This paper seeks to propose that Anzac biscuits are a culinary memorial, that they represent a lasting commemoration of the Anzac spirit. Through an examination of a number of texts, including cookbooks and recipes, I will argue that Anzac biscuits represent a unique window into exploring Australian national identity and public memory.
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-300342017-01-30T13:16:54Z Anzac Biscuits - A Culinary Memorial Supski, Sian commemoration Australian cultural history Anzac biscuits Anzac biscuits form an integral part of commemoration of the Anzac tradition in Australia. Symons (1982) argues that Anzac biscuits may be regarded as only one of two distinctly Australian foods. Inglis (1998) does not mention them in his work on memorials, yet it is possible to argue that Anzac biscuits may be regarded as a culinary memorial (Hillier 2002).The story of Anzac biscuits has become mythologised in Australian cultural history and is an important signifier of Australian national identity. However, the origin of Anzac biscuits is contested, in particular the 'moment' of invention, including the naming and origin of the recipe. Moreover, Anzac biscuits have such a central place in the Australian public memory that it is not necessary to gain permission from the Minister of Defence to use the word 'Anzac' in relation to Anzac biscuits (Topperwien 1997).This paper seeks to propose that Anzac biscuits are a culinary memorial, that they represent a lasting commemoration of the Anzac spirit. Through an examination of a number of texts, including cookbooks and recipes, I will argue that Anzac biscuits represent a unique window into exploring Australian national identity and public memory. 2006 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/30034 API Network fulltext
spellingShingle commemoration
Australian cultural history
Anzac biscuits
Supski, Sian
Anzac Biscuits - A Culinary Memorial
title Anzac Biscuits - A Culinary Memorial
title_full Anzac Biscuits - A Culinary Memorial
title_fullStr Anzac Biscuits - A Culinary Memorial
title_full_unstemmed Anzac Biscuits - A Culinary Memorial
title_short Anzac Biscuits - A Culinary Memorial
title_sort anzac biscuits - a culinary memorial
topic commemoration
Australian cultural history
Anzac biscuits
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/30034