Between Taste and Order: An Ethnomethodological Study of Semar Mendem in Javanese Culinary Culture
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.20961/filitra.v1i2.2880Keywords:
Semar Mendem, Ethnomethodology, Boundary Epistemology, Javanese Cuisine, multisensory experience, moderation, food symbolismAbstract
This study examines Semar Mendem as an epistemic arena that links taste, eating practices, and Javanese cultural values. Using an ethnomethodological approach combined with multisensory ethnography, the research explores how bodily experience through texture, aroma, small portioning, and modes of consumption produces knowledge about sufficiency and self-restraint. The ancestral proverb “siji kurang, loro kakehan” is interpreted as a social practice that regulates behavior through an awareness of limits. A symbolic analysis of the dish’s name and form shows that Semar, as a threshold figure, and mendem, as a liminal condition, merge to construct a distinctive boundary epistemology in Javanese culture. The findings affirm that Semar Mendem is not merely a market snack but a moral cosmogram that teaches moderation, self-reflection, and the wisdom of taste. Amid today’s fast and excessive consumption culture, Semar Mendem opens a new discourse on “wisdom through taste” and offers an ethical model of consumption that remains highly relevant to contemporary society.
References
Bruner, E. (2019). Culture on Tour: Ethnographies of Travel. University of Chicago Press.
Coulon, A. (1995). Ethnomethodology. Sage Publications.
Douglas, M. (1972). Deciphering a Meal. Daedalus.
Fischler, C. (1988). Food, self and identity. Social Science Information, 27(2), 275–292.
Fuller, D. Q., & Castillo, C. (2015). Rice: Origins, history, and development. Rice: Biology and Culture.
Garfinkel, H. (1967). Studies in Ethnomethodology. Prentice-Hall.
Garfinkel, H., & Sacks, H. (1970). On formal structures of practical action. In J. C. McKinney & E. A. Tiryakian (Eds.), Theoretical Sociology (pp. 337–366). Appleton-Century-Crofts.
Geertz, C. (1960). The Religion of Java. University of Chicago Press.
Hadi, S. (2016). Semar: Simbol Kebijaksanaan Jawa. Bentang.
Heritage, J. (1984). Garfinkel and Ethnomethodology. Polity Press.
Korsmeyer, C. (2019). Making Sense of Taste: Food and Philosophy. Cornell University Press.
Lynch, M. (1993). Scientific Practice and Ordinary Action: Ethnomethodology and Social Studies of Science. Cambridge University Press.
Magnis-Suseno, F. (1997). Etika Jawa: Sebuah Analisa Falsafi tentang Kebijaksanaan Hidup Jawa. Gramedia.
Montanari, M. (2006). Food Is Culture. Columbia University Press.
Mulder, N. (2001). Mistisisme Jawa: Ideologi di Balik Kebudayaan Jawa. LKiS.
Nguyen, T. (2022). Glutinous rice in Vietnamese ritual culture. Journal of Asian Food Studies, 9(2), 112–126.
Psathas, G. (1995). Conversation Analysis: The Study of Talk-in-Interaction. Sage.
Sato, M. (2021). Mochi and Japanese ritual purity. Journal of Japanese Cultural Anthropology, 43(1), 55–78.
Turner, V. (1969). The Ritual Process: Structure and Anti-Structure. Aldine.
Wibowo, A. et al. (2023). Food, memory, and ritual identity in Javanese community. Journal of Indonesian Gastronomy Studies, 5(1), 45–60.
Zhao, L., & Wang, H. (2020). Symbolism of Zongzi in Dragon Boat Festival. Chinese Journal of Folklore Studies, 12(3), 77–89.
Zoetmulder, P. J. (1995). Manunggaling Kawula Gusti: Pantheisme dan Monisme dalam Sastra Suluk Jawa. Gramedia.
High, H. (2014). Fields of Rice: Nation-Building and Glutinous Rice in Laos. SOAS Press.
Krisnawati, R. (2024). Dewi Sri and Javanese cosmological food systems. Journal of Nusantara Heritage, 4(2), 99–118.
Marquez, J. (2020). Glutinous rice and festive tradition in the Philippines. Southeast Asian Culinary Journal, 3(1), 22–34.
Wati, N., Prasetyo, B., & Larasati, D. (2025). Rice symbolism in Javanese ritual food. Journal of Cultural Foodways, 7(1), 15–30.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Filitra Cultura
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
