Thinking Stomach

Description

This dataset was generated to test the hypothesis that eating in narrative fiction functions as a multi-dimensional human practice rather than a single-variable phenomenon (e.g., hedonic pleasure, symbolic representation, or individual rational choice). The study hypothesizes that food scenes co-activate six registers of practice—Essendi (being), Cognoscendi (knowing), Agendi (acting), Vivendi (living), Faciendi (making), and Operandi (operating)—and that stable coupling patterns between these registers recur across texts. Data were collected from a purposive corpus of 27 novels selected for variation in period, genre, setting, and narrative style. The unit of analysis is the Food Narrative Unit (FNU): a bounded segment in which eating, cooking, provisioning, or bodily response to food is narratively foregrounded. FNUs were extracted using an explicit protocol with documented scene boundaries and decision rules. Each FNU was coded for dominant mode, secondary mode, and coupling tags (e.g., COG-ESS, FAC-AG, OP-AG). The deposited materials include coding outputs and audit-oriented logs/metadata to support transparent interpretation. The data show that eating is consistently represented as a multi-register process. Across the corpus, recurrent couplings indicate that sensory experience is frequently linked to knowledge and self-formation (COG-ESS), craft and preparation often become practical agency (FAC-AG), and operational or infrastructural conditions shape what actions are possible (OP-AG). Additional recurring links (e.g., VIV-FAC, COG-OP) show that routine life and governance structures are embedded in food scenes rather than external to them. Notable findings include: (1) cross-genre stability of key coupling pathways, (2) repeated movement from bodily sensation to interpretation and decision, and (3) co-presence of ethics, social order, and material constraint within single narrative episodes. These findings support an interpretation of eating as a distributed epistemic-ethical process. This is a qualitative, theory-guided coded dataset intended for reuse and re-analysis. Coupling frequencies should be interpreted as patterned salience within this corpus, not population-level prevalence. Other researchers can use the FNU protocol and coding schema to replicate on new corpora, compare subsets (period/genre/region), conduct coupling-network analyses, or test alternative theoretical models on the same annotated units. Source material is published literary text; no human-subject personal data are included.

Steps to reproduce

This dataset was generated using a protocol-based qualitative workflow designed for transparency and reproducibility. The study did not use laboratory instruments, reagents, or human-subject surveys; primary materials are published novels and structured coding outputs derived from them. Data collection began with purposive corpus construction. Twenty-seven novels were selected to maximize variation in period, genre, setting, and narrative form, while ensuring each text contained analyzable food-related scenes. A corpus manifest was created with bibliographic metadata (author, title, publication year/edition, and text-level notes) plus inclusion rationale. Exclusion rules were also logged (e.g., texts with insufficient foregrounded food episodes). The analytic unit was the Food Narrative Unit (FNU): a bounded passage in which eating, cooking, provisioning, serving, or bodily response to food is narratively salient. FNUs were segmented with explicit boundary rules (entry trigger, exit trigger, and context notes), then assigned unique IDs. For each unit, location metadata were recorded (text identifier and chapter/section or equivalent locator) so that others can trace coded units back to source passages. Coding followed a predefined codebook based on the Six Modes of Eating framework: Essendi (being), Cognoscendi (knowing), Agendi (acting), Vivendi (living), Faciendi (making), and Operandi (operating). Each FNU received (1) one dominant mode, (2) one secondary mode when present, and (3) coupling tags for co-activation patterns (e.g., COG-ESS, FAC-AG, OP-AG). Coding rules, definitions, and edge-case decisions were documented in an audit trail so interpretive choices are visible and reviewable. Quality control used iterative calibration and audit logging. A pilot subset was coded first to refine operational definitions, after which the codebook was frozen for full-corpus coding. Ambiguous units were flagged and revisited in a second pass; decision memos record how conflicts were resolved. Versioned files preserve the sequence from raw extraction to final coded table. Deposited materials include: corpus manifest, FNU extraction log, codebook, coded dataset (tabular format), coupling summary tables, and audit notes. The workflow is software-agnostic (plain text plus CSV-compatible tables), allowing reproduction in common environments (e.g., spreadsheet software, R, or Python). To reproduce: apply the same inclusion rules, segment texts into FNUs using the boundary protocol, code with dominant/secondary mode rules, generate coupling tables, and compare distribution patterns across texts. No personal or sensitive data are included.

Institutions

• Adnan Menderes University

  Aydın, Aydin

Categories

Licence