Abstract for Gender Symbolism in Food, by Deborah Dale Heisley, Ph.D.:

First, the dissertation investigates gender symbolism of milk, eggs, fruits, vegetables and meat. Milk and eggs are most feminine because they are products of females' reproductive abilities. Produce is feminine, relating to the mythology of the female gatherer, and symbolic of the reproductive nature of "Mother Earth." Fruits are more feminine than vegetables because they are ripened ovaries of plants. Meat is the most masculine. Meat is associated with male provisioning, hunting, and killing. Women are expected to eat produce and men are expected to eat milk, eggs, and meat. For women, nutrition means light and non-fattening. For men, nutrition means nutrient dense and strength-building.... This is consistent with a domination interpretation in which men symbolically dominate women and animals by the totemic oral incorporation of their reproductive capabilities and muscle, drawing strength from this act...

The second section concentrates on specific traits that are seen to be feminine in fruits and vegetables. Feminine traits are the presence of seeds, sweetness, roundness, juiciness, softness, smoothness, smallness and seasonality. Tubers are also masculine. Warm colors are feminine and cool colors are masculine in the produce context.

The third section examines usage of fruits and vegetables from a gender and social class perspective... Professional men eat a less feminine set of items than professional women... Working class women and men do not differ in stated usage, reflecting the working class female's deference to her husband in the area of food.

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