The concept of “fish soup

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The concept of “fish soup” is central to Anne Fadiman’s understanding of the Hmong. What does this metaphor mean? How is it reflected in the structure of her book? In what ways does Anne Fadiman’s application of this metaphor resemble an anthropological approach to the study of human societies?
The Hmong of Southeast Asia, including Laotian immigrants have a different culture than Americans and this leads to a clash of cultures as Americans rely on western biomedicine. In Anne Fadiman’s The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down she focuses on the “fish soup” in chapter two to highlight things that seemingly have nothing in common are connected. Fish soup is an important delicacy to the Hmong, and this is linked to the history of the people and their use of oral narrative. The Hmong are fiercely independent and have lived in mountains, which allowed them to preserve their culture as they did not want to be governed by the Chinese. Cultural collisions in the book are revealed as there is strong emphasis on cultural values, animist traditions and spirituality when seeking medical interventions.[Anne Fadiman, The Spirit Catches You And You Fall Down (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2012).]