Charlie and the Chocolate Factory...
Chocolate
The cacao bean or chocolate is a product native to Latin America. Introduced to Europe by the Spanish and “remain[ing] an exclusively Spanish phenomenon for the next hundred years” during which chocolate was considered a “fashionable beverage” and “a kind of status symbol” (Wolfgang, 85-91). The historical origin of chocolate is important as it foreshadows the symbolism of chocolate in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
As a cash crop, the chocolate generated income for the Spanish colonizers. It is important to realize that chocolate still retains this function in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. This is seen from Wonka’s protectionist attitude towards his chocolate factory. Facing the problem of industrial espionage, Wonka takes drastic measures, retrenching all off his workers to eliminate the spies. This decision can be attributed to Wonka’s economic self-preservation. Being in the business of selling chocolate, the most direct consequence of competition is a loss of market shares, which translate to a decrease in profit. Chocolate production may be creatively rewarding to Wonka but his protective measure draws our attention to the importance of revenue generation in this process.
Extending the historical analogy, Willy Wonka as the trader of chocolate, assumes the role of the colonial master. His relationship with his colonized, the Oompa Loompas will be discussed later in this exposition. Fundamentally, the chocolate is a symbol of profit-motivated colonialism. As a successful chocolate manufacturer, Willy Wonka’s chocolate bars are sold “to all four corners of the earth” (22). Relating the historical and the metaphorical to the extra-narrative world, the international presence of Willy Wonka’s chocolate bars is comparable to financial and cultural colonialism. In this wave of colonialism, multinational corporations like MacDonald’s are likewise motivated by monetary gains. However, instead of claiming land, the current approach is to colonize retail space around the world. The resulting homogenizing or ‘MacDonaldization’ of native culture co-opts minds instead of lands.
Other layers and nuances of meanings of the chocolate as instrumental in cultural colonialism will surface in later discussions on slavery and the Oompa Loompas.
The cacao bean or chocolate is a product native to Latin America. Introduced to Europe by the Spanish and “remain[ing] an exclusively Spanish phenomenon for the next hundred years” during which chocolate was considered a “fashionable beverage” and “a kind of status symbol” (Wolfgang, 85-91). The historical origin of chocolate is important as it foreshadows the symbolism of chocolate in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
As a cash crop, the chocolate generated income for the Spanish colonizers. It is important to realize that chocolate still retains this function in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. This is seen from Wonka’s protectionist attitude towards his chocolate factory. Facing the problem of industrial espionage, Wonka takes drastic measures, retrenching all off his workers to eliminate the spies. This decision can be attributed to Wonka’s economic self-preservation. Being in the business of selling chocolate, the most direct consequence of competition is a loss of market shares, which translate to a decrease in profit. Chocolate production may be creatively rewarding to Wonka but his protective measure draws our attention to the importance of revenue generation in this process.
Extending the historical analogy, Willy Wonka as the trader of chocolate, assumes the role of the colonial master. His relationship with his colonized, the Oompa Loompas will be discussed later in this exposition. Fundamentally, the chocolate is a symbol of profit-motivated colonialism. As a successful chocolate manufacturer, Willy Wonka’s chocolate bars are sold “to all four corners of the earth” (22). Relating the historical and the metaphorical to the extra-narrative world, the international presence of Willy Wonka’s chocolate bars is comparable to financial and cultural colonialism. In this wave of colonialism, multinational corporations like MacDonald’s are likewise motivated by monetary gains. However, instead of claiming land, the current approach is to colonize retail space around the world. The resulting homogenizing or ‘MacDonaldization’ of native culture co-opts minds instead of lands.
Other layers and nuances of meanings of the chocolate as instrumental in cultural colonialism will surface in later discussions on slavery and the Oompa Loompas.
posted by cLoUd DriFteD bY at 9:39 AM
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