Analysis Of Lars Eighter's Essay 'On Dumpster Diving'

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In the essay “On Dumpster Diving” Lars Eighter explains his life as a dumpster diver. What to eat, where to go, he explained it all. What was unclear was his purpose; he did a good job explaining and getting people to get emotional but then there was no purpose. What did he want his audience to feel or do after they read “On Dumpster Diving”? Did he want them to feel bad for wasting stuff that could have still been used or was it a survival guide type of thing?
His purpose constantly changed throughout the story. When he changed his purpose the audience also changes with it. The audience changed from other dumpster diver to people that live near the dumpsters then to anyone who wastes. Having an indistinct purpose or changing purpose makes the audience confused and sometimes causes them to stop reading. In the essay it seems the author wanted the audience to stop being so wasteful but on the other hand it seems Eighter is trying to explain the way to live out of dumpsters. In a way both purposes counteract each other. One is saying people need to stop being so wasteful and the other is saying that people are always going to be wasteful so here’s a guide to help you make it.
Even though Lars Eighter purpose was a little foggy, the story …show more content…

What exactly was “On Dumpster Diving” suppose to do? Make people feel bad for wasting as much food and things as they are or is it more of a survival guide to dumpster divers? Since there is no clear purpose it’s difficult to say that it was effective. If he had stated a purpose within the essay then it could have had sometime of impact on people. He had the audience feeling bad about wasting stuff but then he changed directions and started talking about how to survive by dumpsters. It was a little messy and disorganized, seemed to bounce back and forth between