Enjoying an epic sushi rodizio lunch today, for 38 reais (£15) a head all in, I ordered the "soufflé" dessert. It turned out to be some ice cream surrounded by small pineapple chunks, covered in the ubiquitous condensed-milk-and-creme-de-leite combo. I said to the waiter: It's not a souffle. He agreed and helpfully added that a "real" souffle "is hot". I agreed. He laughed. I laughed. After I'd eaten the quite pleasant non-souffle he returned and asked if we'd like a coffee. "This time it will definitely be hot!"
And there in that tiny grain of gastro-comic interaction is contained an entire Brazilian world: a parallel universe in which things that might normally lead to conflict are so often deflated by a generous dollop of warmth and good humour.
Brazil is a high-context culture that includes the aspect of being non-confrontational especially in public.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comments Jonathan. What do you mean by "high-context"?
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