Babette's Feast: The Last Supper

      One of the most prominent theme in Babette's Feast is spirituality via food. Food is a predominant symbol that shows the transformation of the hearts of people and the atmosphere. Before Babette's appearance, food in the sect community of Berlevaag has only one sole purpose, which is sustenance. Seeking pleasure through food is sinful, and food is forbidden to be look upon as a luxurious experience. However, the appereance of Babette brings a new perspective of food and pleasure to the town of Berlevaag. Babette loves preparing exquisit food for pleasure purposes, and she has one chance to show this to the sect society, through "Babette's Feast."
       Babette's Feast resemble the last supper because there are 12 people that participate in the feast, similar to the last supper with Jesus' 12 disciples. The feast itself is a symbol of luxury and transformation  since the feast that she prepares creates an atmosphere that initiates interaction and delight within the 12 people, even after Martine and Philippa warned everyone not to apprehend the food as something luxurious. Babette also resembles Jesus in a way that she spent all of her money to prepare for the feast, expressing joy upon the 12 people that eat the feast. This can be seen through the expression of the guests. Even when the Berlevaag people were told not to speak much while they were eating, their expression shows that they have been transformed spiritually and physically. The audience/readers can also understand the beauty and authenticity of the feast through General Lowenheilm, in which he expresses his adornment of the feast freely.
       Babette as a Christ figure is further shown through the sacrifice that she made, through the 10,00 francs that she won from the lottery. First of all, she's a foreigner to the people of Berlevaag and she still has an unselfish and selfless love. At first, the people of Berlevaag seems to not appreciate French cuisine because of its luxurious elements. However, Babette acts as a humble woman and transform the villagers through the extravagant meal that she made. The guests were expecting bad thing to come from this luxurious, but by the end of the feast, they find the value of goodness and love within the food. Lastly, similar to Christ, Babette spent everything that she has and says that "an artist is never poor." Her feast, a symbol of transformation and love, is something that can't be bought with money, more alone 10,000 francs.