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Summary Of Consider The Lobster By David Foster Wallace

677 Words3 Pages

Aastha Rai
Miss Matalone
English 101 H1
October 19, 2017
Lobster Love “Consider the Lobster” is an article written by David Foster Wallace that appeared on the magazine Gourmet which provides thought provoking information about the morality behind consuming lobster. Wallace wants his readers to literally consider the lobster as he discusses about the culinary and ethical dimensions of cooking a live creature with possible sentiment. By giving the example of a lobster, he tries to convey that many other animals such as deer are treated inhumanely for the sake of human satisfaction. Even though Wallace has no intentions of persuading his readers to become a vegetarian, the sole purpose of writing this article is to address animal …show more content…

He writes about how the lobster is raised and harvested, stored in a supe market and eventually boiled alive in a pot or a kettle. He also explains about the history of the lobster and mentions how it was a low class food, eaten only by the poor and industrialized. But now it is served as one of the greatest delicacy in a high end restaurant. According to Wallace, “the lobster will sometimes try to cling to the container’s side or even to hook its claw over the kettle’s rim like a person trying to keep from going over the edge of a roof…you can usually hear the cover rattling and clanking as the lobster tries to push it off or the creature’s claw scarping the sides of the kettle as it trashes around.” (page 62). Here, he tries to explain how just like humans, lobster also try to escape from the heat coming while they are stuffed in a kettle with boiling hot water. They can detect the slightest changes in the degree of the water. In order to make his point, he describes about the lobster’s decentralized nervous system which cannot interpret pain even if they can feel it. The visual image of the lobster trying to escape from the heat is really disturbing which give the reader a whole new perception about animal

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The author also said lobsters require no cleaning or plucking, but are relatively easy for sellers to keep alive. Wallace then begins to question if it is right for lobsters to be boiled just for human tasting pleasure. He then said his own opinion that lobsters are extremely sensitive and shouldn’t be eaten. Wallace also discusses how some people say that because lobster have no cerebral cortex-the area of the brain that gives the experience of pain, they feel no

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“Consider the Lobster,” by David Foster Wallace, explains in great detail how the lobster industry is celebrated in Maine and many other mid-coast regions. David F. Wallace mentions the region’s two main communities are Camden and Rockland whom host the festival every summer at Harbor Park with a pleasant view of the water. Camden is described to have a many five star restaurants and phenomenal B&Bs to enjoy and feast upon. Tourism and lobster are the two main industries in the mid-coast region and brings joy to people and is very lucrative. The article “Consider the Lobster” was going on its 56th Annual MLF on July 30 – August 3, 2003 and was themed “Lighthouse, Laughter and Lobster” (Wallace, 2004, Para 2.)

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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.

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The essay I chose was “Consider the Lobster” by David Foster Wallace published in August 2004. The purpose of the essay is to point out the consideration and suffering of the lobster and more specifically, he uses the Maine Lobster Festival as an example. His introduction begins with the background and culture of the MLB. He even goes in to detail about the paid attendance of the festival, all the festivities that are held. From carnival rides to a parade and he even stated the amount of fresh caught lobsters (25,000).

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David Foster Wallace in the article, “Consider the Lobster,” argues that the way people treat lobsters is horrible. Wallace supports his argument by questioning whether lobster can feel pain, listing and describing the different ways to cook a live lobster, and telling the origin of the lobster. The author’s purpose is to inform people that the way people treat lobster is horrific in order to report about the Maine Lobster Festival. The author writes in a sarcastic and casual tone for the readers of the Harper’s Magazine and to the public. If we look at Wallace’s question in black and white

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The essay, “Consider the Lobster,” the writer David Foster Wallace, explains how the Lobster industry is celebrated in the state’s midcoast regions and Maine being one of the most popular locations. One descriptive writing pattern being used in the essay is specific language. The author is using specific terms and avoiding vague and general words throughout the article. The author mentions two main regions that host the festival is a place that has 5 star restaurants, B&Bs and Rockland every summer right by Harbor Park with a clear view of the water.

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He employs precise terms and maintaining a strategic distance from equivocal and general words all through the article (Connell & Sole, 2013). Wall utilized this expressive written work arrangement well since he exploits his words to give unique points of interest that painted a vignette for me by, “filling in the visual portrait” (Connell & Sole, 2013). Wallace paints this picture, In case you're tilting it from a container into the steaming pot, the lobster will try and attempt to stick to the container's sides or even to entrap its hooks over the kettle's edge like a man trying to keep from falling over the boundary of a rooftop. Furthermore, more terrible is the point at which the lobster's completely submerged.

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Wallace also rationalizes his decision for eating lobster as well as other animals by claiming that he believes that we as humans are more morally valuable but does admit that his views are selfish. Wallace uses a descriptive writing pattern throughout the essay providing vivid details and descriptive words. Wallace paints a picture

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Rhetorical Analysis Essay: Consider the Lobster The lobster is a disgustingly beautiful creature, known for its delicate taste, menacing shell and controversy. In his essay, “Consider the Lobster”, David Foster Wallace describes the events and festivities of the Maine Lobster Festival and the history of the lobster to deliver a poignant message about the moral implications of killing and eating animals. Wallace is able to develop his position and vividly capture the audience’s attention through a strong use of humor, deliberate tonal shifts and a unique structure. David Foster Wallace, and “Consider the Lobster” in particular, are known for their footnotes- and for good reason.

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Likewise, he demonstrates his discomfort about society’s acceptance of lobster’s pain and dismissal of their essence. However, in order to understand Wallace’s real intention in the essay, it is necessary to know his perspective towards modern society. By reading the Incarnation of Burned Children, it is possible to relate the society issues displayed, with considering the Lobster issues. The inability of lobsters, or the child, to communicate their pain of our careless acts is what disturbs Wallace. Therefore, he displays different examples to persuade the readers that society’s morality is corrupted and that the whole industry of boiling lobsters alive is accepted under a false premise that some animals are not deserving of protection, or are not ‘highly developed’ to feel pain.

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Ethics can be based off of preference on this topic by acknowledging that lobsters are sentient beings and that humans should have “the willingness to exert personal agency and accept responsibility”(Wallace 6) if they partake in the practice of boiling lobsters. Another step towards a moral and ethical practice is trying to understand why humans disconnect and dissociate themselves from the similarities found in other species. It is acknowledged that the “clacking” of lobsters in a boiling pot are indications of pain, but there are prolong and complicated effort to reach this answer. This difficulty stems from the fact that lobsters are not place on the same level of importance. The author states, “I have not succeeded in working out any sort of personal ethical system in which the belief is truly defensible instead of selfishly convenient.”

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“Consider the Lobster,” by David Foster Wallace, published in the August 2004 edition of Gourmet Magazine explores the morality of the consumption of lobsters through the analysis of the Maine Lobster Festival. Foster Wallace guides his readers through his exploration of the festival and general circumstances of lobster eating before evoking a sense of obligation to the creature’s well being. His gentle slide into the ‘big picture’ through his causal argument wades readers into the depths of his thoughts through the power of storytelling until they are left with no choice but to engage with their own perception of the act with skepticism. Ultimately, the passage commands readers to reexamine their own consumption of lobsters regardless of

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