Childhood and Heritage

Julia Carolyn McWilliams was born in Pasadena, California, on August 15, 1921 to her proud parents John and Caro McWilliams. Caro, as she was called, was an energetic woman who wanted to see the world before settling down. When she finally married John McWilliams she maintained her independent free spirit that made her special. John McWilliams junior was a second generation pioneer and was known for his strong will, reserve in private matters, and public service. Julia was their first born and was known as a wild child. At age four, Julia was enrolled at the local Montessori school of May and Augusta Davies who had studied with Dr. Montessori. It was here that Julia developed her coordination that would later be so important in her work. The McWilliams were a very well off family, looked upon as "wealthy" and "aristocratic." It was because of their social status that they had a number of cooks throughout Julias childhood, that did all the culinary work. Food meant weekly Sunday dinners, the arrival of the milk-and-egg wagon, and the learning to make fudge from Fannie Farmers cook book published in 1896.Culinary historians bemoan the trends of this period, when home economist in white were incorporating frozen foods and bad attitudes into their recipes. Food represented science, not pleasure. Julia was very tall for a woman and it is not surprising that she had the appetite of a horse. Julia also had a younger brother and sister whom she bossed around, as any good older sibling does. The McWilliams family traveled a good deal during the summer, which exposed Julia to a variety of hotels and restaurants and gave her a love of travel. Julia was an extrovert and a very social being. She would rush her meals to play with her group of friends. When Julia was nine she began attending The ploytechnical school. Julia excelled here as an athlete and a student. Julia wrote in her diary that she was, "like no one else," the possessor of "unique spiritual gifts" and "meant for something" special. Although her family was Presbyterian, Julia paid little attention to religion. Julias height and voice kept everyone from suggesting she follow a theatrical career, but she was definitely skilled verbally as well as dramatically. Julia was not considered the typical "feminine" of the day because she was tall and a tomboy. The teenage Julia headed off for boarding school in San Francisco. It was here she studied French and developed her writing skills. All in all Julia led a very normal early life.


The Education

Julias mother had gone to Smith college, and so it was pre-arranged that Julia too would attend Smith. Julia was impressed by the size and freedom of Smith. She excelled in being social once again. This was her major concentration in college. Not many girls went to college during this time, only five percent of the college population. In college Julia continued studying French, and she also took two years of Italian. During Julias Freshman year, an event occurred in St. Louis that would eventually make a major impression on her life. Irma Rombauer, a German-American widow, and her friends put together a collection of recipes that they self published: The Joy of Cooking. It would become Julias first cookbook after she herself discovered the joy of cooking. Junior year Julia declared her major of history. Senior year she and her friends campaigned for the repeal of prohibition. Julia was faced with confronting a career option. When she has enrolled at Smith she listed her vocational choices as "No occupation decided; Marriage preferable." Julia graduated from Smith still a free spirit looking for a calling. She thought she might take a try at journalism, but toke off a year after college instead. From there Julia went to New York and worked in a home-furnishing firm. Julia worked several different places in the coming years. She even moved to Washington and worked for Americas secret intelligence. It was through this job that she was able to go to India and Sri Lanka. Julia met Paul Cushing Child on this trip. Paul was a ladies man, worldly, a decade older than she and several inches shorter. Paul was a gourmet and had lived in Paris some of his life, so naturally Julia stated she was also a Gourmet although she really had no clue when it came to cooking. After this mission was over it was off to China for Julia, Julia and Pauls relationship continued to develop and they finally were married when they returned home at the wars end. Julia became the typical Washington housewife at the age of 34. Julia was determined to learn to cook. She had a real taste for food and would make elaborate recipes that called for fresh ingredients and a mix of spices. She subscribed to the new magazine, Gourmet. She found joy in cooking, but she was learning and often made mistakes. Soon after they got sent to Paris where Julias real education began. Julia found a new love of French food, she savored every bight from all the restaurants. Julia undertook a real study of French cuisine. Julia began her formal training at the Cordon Bleu, a well known cooking school in Paris. Julia was the only woman in her class. Julia spent all her time in the kitchen, and would prepare elaborate meals which her husband Paul would critique. While studying with two chefs, Julia got the opportunity to meet her major influence, Irma Rombauer whom had written the now famous, joy of cooking. Julia owned tons of French cookbooks and read cooking magazines galore. Julias greatest reverence was for Georges-Auguste Escoffier, the world famous chef who cooked for royalty and high society during the Belle poque. Escoffier invented assembly-line cooking, stock reductions for sauces, and food endorsements, as well as codifying conduct and recipes. Fifty years later she would call him her greatest hero. Julia was a member of a society called the gourmettes, who attended the birthday party of the current god of the food world in Paris, Curnonsky.


The Work

Julia in Collaboration with Curnonsky helped to co-author a book of French cooking for Americans. Although she was only supposed to rewrite the recipes for American Kitchens, she ended up re-writing the book. Her book was a book for American home cooks that would present cuisine bourgeoisie using the techniques of haute cuisine. Paul and Julia moved around in the next few years and Julia continued to perfect her book. Julia added for the first time the option of cooking ahead of time and reheating. When they moved to Cambridge, Julia began teaching cooking classes. At the age of forty-nine, Julia finally published her 734-page book that had taken her ten years to write, it was titled Mastering the art of French cooking. The book one her rave reviews in the New York Times and a spot on the today show. Julias career as a chef took off. No other U.S. culinary manual had been so detailed and yet so encouraging to those hesitant to try complicated procedures. "What Julia Child did is deconstruct this French, classical, rule-based cooking tradition and make it accessible."


Bringing Cooking to TV

Shortly after the success of her book, Julia was called in to do an interview for educational television. The response to this show was enormous and soon after WGBHs president offered her a pilot show. Julia had started televisions first cooking show and at the same time strengthened the trend of French cooking. Julia received several awards during the next years both for her cookbook and for her television show. Through all her success and fame Julias husband was her number one fan. They were a team and were interdependent on one another. Julia continued to grow in fame and Paul helped design all of her sets and tasted all of her recipes. Julia even did a show at the White House, where she met President Kennedy. In February of 1968 Julia found a lump in her left breast and had to have a mastectomy. During the next few years, Julia relaxed a bit on the cooking shows and wrote a cookbook, mastering the second. By 1970 Julias show was in color, and people were thrilled to see how red the strawberries were! Through her career in the U.S. Julia kept in close contact with the chefs of the day, she mainly collaborated on a weekly basis with chefs such as James Beard and Richard Olney. Julia continued her work and wrote a new cookbook titled, From Julia Childs Kitchen. It was at about this time that the Novelle Cuisine movement began to take place. The term meant innovative cooking, and Julia was not fond of it. " This food looks fingered. It doesnt look foody to me." It was also around this time that feminism was a big deal. This movement made her reflect on her role as a woman in a male dominant field. " it wasnt until I began thinking about it that I realized my field is closed to women! It is very unfair. You cant teach in the Culinary Institute of America! The big hotels, the fancy New York restaurants dont want women chefs!" she declined the label of feminist, but she is recognized as a symbol of womens liberation. In the following years Julia continued a successful career both in writing cookbooks and on television. In the mid nineties Martha Stewart came on the scene, a corporate overachiever turned domestic superacheiver who was building an empire that included cooking, home decoration, and gardening. Julia began fading in the spotlight as Martha Stewart took over. Still the public viewed Julia as a warmer person, a friend, and not a rival. Julia shifted her focus more to teaching and began giving commencement addresses at world renowned colleges. She received an honorary degree from Harvard. She also had her own CD-ROM, and video series. She had a variety of master chefs on her show, and wrote a cookbook, titled cooking with master chefs. Today Julia Child is retired, but her legacy lives on. "She is one of those figures who transformed American culture."


How She fits into the Gardner Model

Julia Child creative genius was the gustatory/ olfactory intelligence, combined with smarts in the inter-personal arena. Throughout her life Julia retained the spark of curiosity because of her strong personality. As a child, she was able to explore a variety of interests. It was not until later in her life that she explored cooking, but from that moment on cooking occupied her time and mind. As Gardner expected it took a great deal of time and steady work at her discipline to master it. Julia Child cast off in new directions never explored before. She fought the battle of being a woman in a male dominated field and world, along her way. She found the tools and status quo of her field unsatisfactory and began work on a new way of thinking about food. Julia, however, did not follow Gardners concept of Faustian bargain, but rather had good interpersonal relationships. Julias creative genius allowed her to succeed in a critical world.


Bibliography

Internet Source: http://www.users.muohio.edu

Child, Julia. The Way To Cook. Knopf Inc. Canada, 1989.
Cooper, Ann. A womans Place is in the Kitchen. Reinhold, 1998.
Fitch, Noel Riley. Appetite For Life. Doubleday, NY. 1997.