Chopsticks: Description, Uses and History

Chopsticks illustrate an ancient history that dates 5,000 years ago in China. One historian argues that their use developed because ancient Chinese cooked food in large pots and "hasty eaters broke twigs off trees to retrieve the food" (History 1). The pots were large and held heat for long periods of time, so two sticks would permit eaters to get close enough to the pot and retrieve food without burning themselves. Fuel shortages altered food preparation methods around 400 B.C., when the Chinese began cutting food into small pieces for more rapid cooking (History 1). Since the food pieces were small, knives became unnecessary, and chopsticks became "staple utensils" in Chinese society (History 1). Wood (1) maintains some influence for the widespread adoption of chopsticks in Chinese society may be due to Confucius who maintained that since knives were "weapons of death, only a barbarian would bring one to the table to eat." The spread of Buddhism and adoption of the concept of nonviolence in China also influenced the popularity of chopsticks. The mainly vegetarian diet of the Chinese also influenced the shape or design of chopsticks compared to the boney-fish diet and different design of Japanese chopsticks that emerged.

Chopsticks are prevalent in many cultures like China, Japan, Korea and Vietnam. A pair of sticks, chopsticks is maneuvered in one hand, between the thumb and fingers and, even for left-handed eaters; it is con

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They are also designed differently for men and women, with chopsticks for women being 7 inches long and those designed for men at 8 inches. The design of chopsticks in Japan was influenced by culture and diet, which is why they are shaped differently than Chinese chopsticks as well. Japanese chopsticks are not only shorter but they are tapered to a point at the end. As one anthropologist notes, "This may be attributed to the fact that the Japanese diet includes large amounts of whole bony fish" (Chopsticks 4). The Japanese were the first to begin creating elaborate coatings for chopsticks. During the 17th Century the Japanese began lacquering chopsticks that were primarily designed of wood. Japanese lacquering techniques and artistic expression influenced their design, as this popular form of art was prevalent in Japanese culture. The Japanese were also the first culture to invent "disposable wood chopsticks called wari-bashi" in 1878, though they are now popular in all cultures including the Unites States (History 1). Today, in China alone, more than 45 billion pairs of disposable wood chopsticks are used and discarded annually (Chopsticks 4). In Japan, chopsticks should not be left sitting in a crossed positio

Category: History - C