You Are What You Eat

“Are there refreshments?” asked Caleb I. Franklin ’05, who, like many other first-years, was in search of food as well as information at a social studies information session in the Hilles Library basement. “No,” replied an administrator, “but you’ll get a concentration handbook!”

Literature held its meeting in a narrow, coffin-like room in the Boylston Hall basement where prospective concentrators got a sample thesis proposal packet as well as the requisite handbook. In its Science Center office, history and science provided a comfortable sofa and chairs for 10 or so interested first-years. But the Chinese takeout whose odor wafted from an office room was not for students but faculty only. Religion held its meeting in a Barker Center classroom; again, no food.

The only non-department concentration that provided refreshments was history and literature, which held its information session in the Barker Center’s Thompson Room. While committee director Steven Biel talked about the recent champagne and cheese fête for hist and lit thesis writers, prospective concentrators sipped soda and nibbled on Oreos served in napkin-covered plastic bowls.

The regular departments turned out to be the only ones with quality refreshments. Philosophy was an exception, but at least its meeting was held in the wood-paneled, carpeted and clubby Bechtel Room in Emerson Hall. Nevertheless, it paled in comparison to the Romance languages and literatures meeting in the Ticknor Lounge. There, along with Pepsi, Canada Dry and Diet Coke, students found neatly laid-out rows of Carr’s Water Biscuits, Brie wedges and French bread slices on plates with paper doilies. There were also assorted cookies from boxes of Pepperidge Farm’s Entertainment Collection (Milano, Geneva, Bordeaux, Brussels, Lisbon, Chessmen and Chocolate Pirouettes) arranged in enticing circles. The pièce de resistance was a white porcelain bowl with a blue flower pattern filled to the brim with fresh strawberries.

But the history department one-upped Romance languages with two platters (albeit black plastic ones) of about 100 white and dark chocolate-covered strawberries. Assorted soda, wafer sandwiches, Goldfish crackers, pretzels, gingersnaps, oatmeal raisin cookies and peanut butter cookies were served along with the same selection of Pepperidge Farm cookies that Romance languages had. Although the history department did lose on presentation—the Pepperidge Farm cookies were served in their paper ruffles and the pretzels in their plastic bag—the luxurious spread of foods did cause history concentrator Melissa M. Borja ’04 to exclaim, “I love these history events!” while munching on a pretzel. And though department chair and Coolidge Professor of History David G. Blackbourn joked, “This is not an attempt to recruit you,” there were plenty of first-years, cookie in hand, signing their names to the history e-mail list.