This course approaches eating not merely as a biological necessity but as a multilayered philosophical and cultural practice that spans from ancient traditions to contemporary approaches. Through examining diverse food philosophies such as the Mediterranean diet, Ayurvedic nutrition, the aesthetics of Kaiseki, Sufi approaches to food, and intuitive and emotional eating, students are encouraged to contemplate eating as an ethical, aesthetic, metaphysical, and ecological practice.

Rather than viewing eating solely as a physiological or cultural act, the course frames it as a profound philosophical experience. Students critically engage with fundamental philosophical themes—such as pleasure, ethics, identity, death, the Other, nature, and social structures—through the lens of food. The primary aim of the course is to reveal how eating can become a way of thinking and meaning-making, showing that nourishment is not only a “need” but also a form of producing meaning.