Throughout time inventions have come and go, styles have come and go, and people have come and go. But it seems that the “essentials” of life have stayed put. Those essentials include homes and within those homes, lie kitchens. Kitchens are the source for many daily activities and conversations. Whether one is preparing a meal for the family or sitting down to discuss report cards with a child, kitchens are a necessity the typical American family can not live with out. Kitchens can say a lot about its inhabitants and their lifestyle. It can show one’s taste in gadgets and furniture, what someone likes to eat, and so on. In this analysis I will compare the Greenbelt Museum’s kitchen with my father’s kitchen.

In order to get things in perspective before I discuss my father’s kitchen I should give you some background about our lifestyle, neigborhood, and actual house. Our house was built in 1995 in a townhouse community. This town house community consists of very affluent people. This is not a community in which one would raise a child. In fact, up until a few years ago to attain one of these town houses you had to be over forty-five years of age. This is an adult community (not old age), where there are specific rules to live by, just like Greenbelt. First, the blinds or shades one uses must be light in color. In order to add to the already present landscaping a plan must be drawn out and approved by a committee. This area is for the pleasure of the resident’s, and so called individuality that would take away from the exclusiveness of the community is not permitted, and all residents seem to agree to these rules. The purpose of these townhomes are for the ease and pleasure of living with tennis courts, pool, club house, snow plowing, and landscaping. This is not what you would call an economic place to raise a child, unlike Greenbelt’s planned community. The town that these town houses are located in is called Wyckoff, New Jersey. It is located in an extremely affluent area known as nothern Bergen County. Surrounding this area are terrffic schools either private or public. Many quaint gourmet deli’s, and Manhattan is a mere twenty-minutes away.

Now for the specific house. It is a contemporary style house, with an open floor plan. All rooms in the downstairs are not separated by walls or other barriers. When one walks in, they can immediatley see the kitchen, living room, and dining room, as well as the stairs. Inside these rooms are high end furniture and the latest entertaining equipment. The kitchen is also contemporary in style. It is all white, except for the hard wood floors. There is no standard kitchen table, instead there is a long bar in front of the stove. It is long enough to seat six people comfortably. There are lights that come down from the ceiling attached to black rods and they stop about two feet from one’s head. Every gadget one could imagine for a kitchen, my father owns. From espresso-makers to waffle irons to olive grabbers for martini’s. Pretty much if they make it, we’ve got it. Not only do we cook in our kitchen but we socialize in it. When my father is having a dinner party everyone can see what he’s doing and therefore converse with each other. That is because one can sit in the living room and talk and see someone in the kitchen. Cooking is entertainment in our house. If someone ever walks into my house and my dad is home alone you can bet that the TV Food Network is on, and my dad is trying to follow Emeril Lagosi as best as he can. I think the family is in the kitchen more than any other room in the house (not including sleep time).

This kitchen was personally designed by my father and my stepmother. The townhouse was primarily built around the kitchen. Walls were knocked out and rooms eliminated to get this grandiose kitchen that he has always wanted. As a family we usually sit at the bar instead of the dining room. Casual dining, in front of a small kitchen sized TV is how we eat most of our meals. Only if our whole family is there (Dad, Stepmom, Me, and Stepsister) do we eat at the dining room table and that is usually a big production. Because the table is made out of a certain kind of wood chemical cleaners can not be used, so we tend to use this table as infrequently as possible.

This kitchen was made extremely effective. Everything is in a arm lengths reach, items are easy to find and sorted in their proper place. As an artifact it does not compare with normal kitchens. One has to remember that this particular house was primarily built around this kitchen. It serves its purpose more than anyone could possibly imagine.

Our kitchen reflects our lifestyle perfectly. It is all white and there are no pictures on the refrigerator. If one opened the frig all they would find is gourmet coffee, cheeses, and left overs from the night before. God forbid that we were trapped in that house because we would all starve to death. My father does not believe in prepurchasing food, he buys everything the night they intend to eat it. Thank goodness for the little gourmet deli at the top of the hill.This kitchen means a lot to me. When ever I need to talk to my Dad about something important I usually wind up talking to him in the kitchen. Our kitchen is more than a vehicle to make food in. It is a main source of communication and entertainment for us. Learning how to cook interesting food was a apart of growing up for me. Essentially, this kitchen represents all the good times I have had in my new house.

Greenbelt, Maryland was first proposed by Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1935. It was intended to provide work and affordable housing for government workers and low-income urban families (Model City). This was a planned community, that would provide a certain type of living for the chosen families. Greenbelt provided schools and recreation centers to keep the community together. Families were able to escape the city and provide a better and safer home for their children. In this analysis I will be discussing the kitchen in a typical Greenbelt home as well as comparing it to my own kitchen in Wyckoff, New Jersey.

Greenbelt kitchens were rather modern for the average person living in the 1930’s. It had everything that a family could need and hope for. It was rather small in size, yet it served its purpose. Most of the actual eating took place in the dining room since there was not enough room for a kitchen table. Most kitchen floors were made out of hard black tiles. In the kitchen there was a refrigerator, two sinks, a counter with cabinets, coffee pots, toasters, oven and stove, and other gadgets used to make life easier for Greenbelt residents.

Its function was to basically cook for the family and make life pleasant with all of the innovative items within the kitchen. I can only assume that there were not many unintended functions for the kitchen. Because it was so small in size only a few people could be inside it at a time. Maybe a child would talk to their mother about their day at school, as she cooked dinner.

The kitchen in the Greenbelt community were basically all the same in design. In comparison to the rest of the country the design was very modern.Nurun Nahar seems to agree with myself that the Greenbelt kitchens were extremely modern for their time. She states that they are made of edurable equipment, and yet relatively inexpensive, which is what families in Greenbelt were lokking for. Women found cooking a lot easier and enjoyable than before. With all of the different options a family now had with their new kitchen people were happier with life.

Greenbelt’s kitchen were more than satisfactory to the residents. It was made extremely sturdy to ensure that nothing could break. There was ample cabinet space to put all of the dishes that the family owned. The refrigerator has plenty of room to fit milk, eggs, butter, and any other perishables that would need to stay cool. They was also a freezer, which many people had never owned. In comparison to other kitchens of that era, it surpassed most of them. Greenbelt was a planned community with a very high reputation, everyone wanted in. Therefor it was necessary to have the rooms a comfortable and efficient as possible

With in its own culture it was essential to have a highly functional kitchen. Each family had primarily the same kitchen. Everything was orderly and modern, just like Greenbelt. It seems like the theme in Greenbelt was simplicity. Schools were located close to all homes, and children did not have to cross the street to get to them. Community projects were put together to form a sense of community and friendship. Well, the kitchen displayed that same sense of simplicity. When people first moved in, many of these appliances were already installed. As soon as people arrived they were able to cook meals, and discuss their daily issues. From this artifact one can learn a great deal about the culture that went along with it.

Women were the primary cooks in the family. Each day they would cook breakfast and dinner, as well as fix their children and husband lunch.Ryan Westervelt states that although the kitchen was rather small, it served its purpose perfectly. It allowed mothers enough space to cook for her family, and that was what was important. One can see that this was a very organized community and so was the kitchen. Everything had its own place and reason for being there. The modern kitchen located in Greenbelt made them a model community, where many people wanted to live. It showed how much easier life could be with just a few simple appliances. They were essential to keep the hard working Greenbelt family afloat.

Both communities that I have discussed in this paper were some what planned. As Sara Headman states, just like Wyckoff, Greenbelt had their trash picked up from their door step. As well as instead of having a groomed area for the kids to play in, we have our trees and bushes groomed. Aside from the difference in socio-economic backgrounds Greenbelt and Wyckoff are quite similar. Both have rules to abide by. Some of them are residents of both communities are not allowed to have dogs. Greenbelt residents must kept their landscaping up to par, and Cedar Hill residents have to ask a council if they can add to the already present landscaping.

Each community asks for its residents to be respectful of the community and their neighbors. One major difference in the two communities is that Greenbelt was an excellent place to bring up children with its playgrounds and schools. Cedar Hills, on the other hand, is not a great place to bring up children. It is a place where people have already own a large house, raised their family, and now want to enjoy life.

Both kitchens are full of gadgets necessary to make life easier and more enjoyable. Of course there is a difference between the two because of the inventions that have come about throughout the years. But they were and are both extremely modern and provide a place of happiness. Maybe if their kitchen was a little larger they would entertain more, like we do in our kitchen. Whether in Greenbelt or in Wyckoff I'm sure one could get a great meal in either kitchen.