Penfold - Eddie Shack Was No Tim Horton

The essay described story of Donuts. At the beginning of essay, author use the story of defenseman Tim Horton to carry out whole article. Then it uses the development of Tim Horton’s restaurant as clue, which surface clue to introduce the history of Tim Horton’s restaurant or outlet. It also use the status changing of donuts in Canadian food culture as another clue, which interior clue to describe the role of donuts in different periods. These two clues throughout the whole essay and it make this essay clear and structured.
What is the central idea of the article? Is the author would like to advertise to the Tim Horton’s? Of course it is not. Donuts are original Canadian food, and it also belongs to one of mass culture in Canada. Before I read this essay, I was thought that the Tim Horton’s restaurant was created by Tim Horton. But after I reading it, the author let me know that Tim Horton’s are not only famous food brand created by Canadian, but also are food culture created by Canadian. Since donuts became mass culture in Canada; it marked the success of Tim Horton’s. Conversely, since Tim Horton’s restaurants and outlets across whole Canada; it marked the donuts had became mass culture in Canada as well. When we think about American food, what are the first thing come to your image? McDonald? KFC? Or any others? It shows us these fast food established image of American food. “In this way, the donut is helped along by its association with other, more established images of Canada.”

Although donut has become mass culture in Canada, I have a question want to ask. Is donut rich food culture of Canada or the lack Canadian food culture created donut? Try to image that if there are beer cultures, coffee cultures and fast food cultures in 1970s, will donut still be so bright in whole Canadian food culture or mass culture?

Penfold - Eddie Shack Was No Tim Horton (3)

The donut is often thought of as the unofficial national food in Canada. The donuts store is located in every intersection and rest stop, celebrated in song and story as symbols of Canadian identity. In Canada, the biggest donut Shop is Tim Hortons. The first chain of Tim Hortons is founded in Hamilton, Ontario in 1964, and it offered only two products – coffee and donuts. But as consumer tastes grew, so did the choices at Tim Hortons in 1980s. Tim Hortons brought about Muffins, cakes, cookies and so on. In this article, the author takes the humble donut in its historical context, examining how one deep-fried confectionary became, not only a mass commodity, an edible symbol of Canadian. Compare to Unite states, Slurpees and summer with American, Tim Hortons and winter with Canada-is surprisingly rich in its use of national imagery. Moreover, the donut is an unpretentious blue-collar food in Canada, and it has become a vehicle for quirky depictions of local and national life. The donut is a window onto key developments in twentieth-century Canada, such as the growth of a 'consumer society,' and it is the relationship between big business and community.

Penfold - Eddie Shack Was No Tim Horton (2)

After I read the first couple of pages, the first thing came to my mind was the time when my father visited me two years ago. He stayed in Toronto for a week for visiting, and I really wanted him to experience something different. Instead of taking him to eat something he was quite similar with, I took him to Tim Horton. I really thought the donuts were a part of Canadian food culture. It is like when you think of rice, you will automatically think about Asian.

The writher discussed two point of donut folklore: 1. the idea that the donut is a Canadian Food. 2. The way the donut expresses local identities for certain Canadian cities. Tim Hortons’ was established in Canada, considered as a Canadian local brand of coffee and donuts shop, and after years it has spread all Canada especially in the province of Ontario. It is also the most successful business in coffee shop field. Long time ago people were more interested in the Famous hockey player Tim Horton than the coffee and donut, but nowadays people prefer the sweet taste of donut than seeking to know the story of the man. For some people tasting the Tim Horton donut is the identify of “being” a Canadian. Same thing as if you went to China and you did see the “Great Wall”, that would be your lost.

Donut is more and more becoming a commodity for Canadians. A cup of coffee and a fatty donut as breakfast is good enough for some Canadians to survive in the harsh winters.