English dependence on the French during the seventeenth century was most pronounced in the area of food. It was this dependence that opened channels between the English and French allowing for the transmission of ideas concerning, among other things, the status of women in society. Beginning in the 12th century, European cooking became indicative of one’s personal constitution and, though culinary artistry underwent significant revival in the Middle Ages, it is not until the seventeenth century that regional variety surpassed mere preference and food availability and became a culturally based construction. French ostentation and courtliness, constituted in large part by the presence of a French court that allowed for the development of a consistent French cuisine, played an opposite role to the English Puritans and their consequently plain food and dress. France, especially throughout the Renaissance, held influence in Europe as the leading cultural power, and this definition lent credence to their dominance of cuisine, sex relations, and modes of behavior in society.
