Roi Aldric Trawon

Critique of Yans Consuming Mcdonalds in Beijing

In the article Of Hamburger and Social Space Yunxian Yan (2008) deconstructs

the fast food phenomenon as a social space that McDonalds introduces. It gives an in-

depth and firsthand experience to the social and cultural implications that McDonalds

and other Western Fast food competitors brought to Beijing. The article had a well-

constructed logical structure and the flow and transitions between sections. It used

informal surveys that are not authentically random as basis and evidence of some of its

claims which could be inaccurate and biased without using statistical sampling

techniques. There were some redundancy and inefficiency in discussing the main ideas

as there were overlaps among sections. The article could have been more efficient in

delivering its argument and relevant evidences.

Yan tackles the Anthropological Perspective of food consumption. As Yan quotes

Gustfield The context of food consumption (the participants and the social settings of

eating) is as important as the text (the foods that are to be consumed). Yan details the

whole history from 1970s to 1996 the Fast food phenomenon in Beijing. The

introduction of Western Fast food and the reaction of the local scene. It details how the

modernization of western fast food became a distinct advantage to winning over the

market of Beijing.

The cultural symbolism of American fast food was surveyed. What the objects

and the space denotes, the consumers, and the use of the public space as both an

eating and social space. American Fast food was not used as a means to satisfy hunger
in a fast and inexpensive way, on the contrary American fast food was more expensive

and not as satisfying, and they stayed longer than in Chinese fast food restaurants.

People went to western fast food restaurants because of its cultural representation. It

represents inclusiveness, comfort, modernity, sophistication and equality between

sexes.

Creation of a new social space in fast-food restaurants was heavily utilized by

western fast food restaurants. It became multifunctional and multidimensional. It

became a place to socialize, to read a newspaper, to hold meetings, as public arenas

for personal and family ritual events such as a childs birthday party. Thus the fast-food

had exceeded its fundamental intended purpose and became much more than a place

of nourishment to a distinctive social space.

Yans firsthand fieldwork in Beijing provided valuable insight to social interactions

and attitudes that change once the consumers stepped inside the restaurant. It provided

necessary depth that would otherwise be much less when deriving observations from

secondary information. For instance, the narrative of the woman that was interviewed

having lunch alone in a famous Chinese restaurant being gazed upon by men proved to

be a valuable evidence of gender inequality and sexism in Chinese restaurants.

The article had a concrete structure and flow that was well thought out and

organized. From discussing first the background and history of fast foods to discussing

the cultural and social phenomena of the invasion of Western fast foods.

I had some qualms about the informal surveys conducted and reference in this

article. What sampling technique was used? Did they devise a strategy for sampling in
qualitative research to assure that the sample is without bias? i.e. representative of the

whole population. Case in point, 32% of my informants in a survey among college

students N=97 regarded McDonalds as a symbol of leisure. How were the 97

participants selected? Were they all from the same university? Such unanswered

questions could possibly introduce bias in the statistics and infer spurious correlations.

And lastly, the article was simply too long and tedious to read. It could have been

more concise without sacrificing the depth and detail. The idea of modernity in western

fast foods was over emphasized. The overlap between sections of the article could have

been trimmed down making it as efficient and comprehensive as possible. But overall it

is a worthy and fascinating insight into the changing landscape of Chinese food culture.