Introduction In this article “Against Meat” (2009) Jonathan Safran Foer explains his experience from a young age until the present struggling whether being a vegetarian or an omnivore because he doesn’t want to hurt animals at the same time he can’t resist food because it tasted good. Jonathan Safran Foer is an American novelist (born February 21, 1977) He graduated from Princeton University with a degree in philosophy, in his freshman year he took a writing class from the novelist Joyce Carol.
I read an interesting book that left me thinking of the way I shop and I don’t mean the way I shop at clothing stores I mean the way I shop for groceries, it also left me thinking of the food that I’ve been eating and even the food that I order when I go to fast food restaurants. This book is “The Omnivore’s Dilemma” it pictures the reality in the food business, but in a different funny way to understand it better. The book even makes you think of how important food is in life and it can also make you see a new way of looking at the food that’s on your plate. Pollan’s point, the author for this book tries to make us think and realize of what we’re doing with our food, how we get it, and even if we save money with our way of buying it.
“Thou shouldst eat to live; not live to eat”, is a famous quote by the well known philosopher Socrates, who believed this is the perspective we should take when we are eating food. Unfortunately, the times have changed and so has the way we eat. We no longer have to go hunting for our food, or grow crops to receive all of our fruits and vegetables. Because we have become a society that has grown into the new world of technology, there would be no need to rely on ourselves for what we need-- we can simply gather our resources from other people. In the book, “The Omnivore’s Dilemma”, written by Michael Pollan, takes us on a journey full of concerns of the “Food Industrial Complex”.
In the essay, “Escape from the Western Diet”, the author, Michael Pollan discuss about how the western diet is harmful for the people. He think that because western diet is responsible for many kinds diseases nowadays such as diabetes, high blood pressure, cholesterol, and etc. I agree with Michael pollan that western diet is very unhealthy for people and the reason behind it, is because of the food industry. Food industry is making more processed food and they are also using different kinds of nutritional theories to make new product which is very unhealthy to those people who mostly eats diet food. Medical industries is also responsible for this problem because they make new drug treatment to treat the diseases.
The Omnivore’s Dilemma, by Michael Pollan, is a book about American dietary traditions, and the food quandary American’s encounter in today’s society. Pollan presents various philosophical points to entice his readers to question their current eating habits. Further, Pollan attempts to help readers determine the resolution to the long-standing question: “What will I fix for dinner?” by exploring the diverse food routes available to modern-day man and by dissecting those paths to reveal the best for well-being, solidity, and sustainability. Pollan initiates the book by examining the dilemma of the omnivore, a beast with infinite options for eating.
Following Michael Pollan’s view in his book, The Omnivore’s Dilemma, he covers the realm of concentrated animal feedlot operations (COFAs) in his extensive spiel about the overarching concept of corn in our society. He discusses his purchased steer, number 534, as he accompanies its journey through the system. In the beginning 534 enjoyed his life on a green pasture with his mother for six months, until he became strong and bulky enough to get a change of scenery. He was then transferred to a lovely place called a backgrounding pen; where 534 learned to live in a pen, eat from a trough, and to consume a new diet. Pollan’s observational study lead him to find many complications regarding COFAs and their effect on the environment.
In the book, The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan, Pollan claims we should be more knowledgeable about what we consume as omnivores. As omnivores we have a variety of food, we can choose from, however, we don’t regularly make the best decisions for ourselves. Pollan argues this by showing us where our food really comes from and how we can find many unwanted extras. Pollan shows us that we’ve evolved as humans from how we used to eat to how we eat now. Pollan argues this by introducing us to all the food chains we value today, some much more than others.
I believe that Micheal Pollan has described the bad habbits that the typical Americans do in majority of the time by mistaking fast foods with the whole healthy foods because lack of time or lifestyle. In the Michael Pollans argument about the "Western Diet" he informs that the majority of the American population about the western diet and believes that they need to get away from it, but it's for their own better health that many of us sometimes forget or don't even pay attention to it. There's many factors that the reasons Americans should get away from it is only to avoid the harmful chemicals we eat from a plain cheeseburger or fries and that effects our metabolism to get worse associated with it as the "western diseases" (page 433) Micheal Pollan has said.
There are more ways to shun obesity. Michael Pollan, who wrote “Escape from the western diet”, claims that the fast food industry are one of the main reasons why the people struggle with their health. He believes that the processed food we consume gives us harmful deceases. Pollan urges us to listen to his words to avoid the “Western diet”, he preaches that this is main cause of obesity, yet he does not give concrete information. I disagree with Pollan’s view that the food industry is the main cause of our health problems because although Pollan gives us great arguments he does not dive in into greater detail.
Put Down That Cheeseburger! “What incentive is there for me to put down the cheeseburger?” asks Radley Balko in his article "What You Eat Is Your Business." He argues that, obesity does not belong in the public health crisis. He claims that obesity is not a problem that should be dealt at the cost of public money but should be dealt at a personal level by every individual.
In The Omnivore’s Dilemma, Pollan encourages us to change the way we eat but he never instructs us on what consumers should be eating. He educates us on what we are eating and informs us of all the events that go on behind closed doors. By building and building on our knowledge, he can reel us in instead of driving us away with offensive remarks. He never attacks the fact that most of us eat without thinking about it. In doing this, he can calmly approach his audience with the facts.
The book, The Omnivore’s Dilemma, was written by Michael Pollan and describes a man’s interest in discovering where certain foods truly come from and explain why the humans of today struggle to find something to eat compared to the humans of the past. Pollan embarks on four separate quests having each serve a purpose to give him insight on America’s dynamic and complexed reception of food. In his first quest, Pollan watches a cow and sees its development up until it gets slaughtered. This experience reflects on commercial farming and tries to show animal development in relation to their feed.
People that eat a Western diet are more likely to suffer from chronic diseases than those who eat a more traditional diet. The different theories scientists come up with to explain what in the Western diet causes these diseases all contradict each other (Pollan 421). In Escape from the Western Diet, Michael Pollan examines these issues and gives his solution to the problem. He believes scientists can argue about what causes these diseases, but the only solution, though it may be difficult, is to stop eating a Western diet. Pollan believes one of the biggest challenges in escaping the Western diet is changing how we eat and think.
In the article, “Is It Possible to be a Conscientious Meat Eater”, the authors argue that processed meat can greatly affect the many things in our everyday life. Sunaura and Alexander’s argument is significantly unreliable because of the certain professions both authors yield. As stated in the article “Sunaura is an artist, writer, and activist in Oakland.” “Alexander’s profession is studying philosophy, and ethics in Athens, Georgia.” This shows that neither of them are qualified to argue in the subject of conscientious meat eaters.
In today’s world, there is a division among the people in the world regarding whether or not it is ethical to eat meat. After researching about eating meat and vegetarianism, I have come to the conclusion that it is indeed ethical to eat meat in today’s society. Sure, eating meat might have its drawbacks, but I have found that the benefits of eating meat far outweigh the negatives of eating it. Eating meat not only helps improve people’s health, but it also helps strengthen our economy and it has little difference in the environmental impact that involves in the farming of vegetables. Eating too much of anything usually results in a negative outcome.
