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Summary Of Consider The Lobster By David Foster Wallace

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In the essay ‘Consider the Lobster’ by David Foster Wallace, a composition about ethics and regards to animal abuse is opened up. Much like minorities found in America, lobsters are considered to be the lowest level of the animal society. The biggest point he is trying to get out is about the essay is to knowledge people about the issues of torturing animals just for the sake of our humility and pleasure. What is honestly socially acceptable as normal behavior is not always the most ethical or moral behavior. In the beginning of the essay the author describes an recurring holiday in Maine, the Lobster Festival. The festival is self-explanatory in that people from all over the area gather to indulge in immense amounts of lobsters. While this part of the festival is rudimentary, a second part about the festival raises the need for concern. A cook comes to the festival and literally boils lobsters live in front of the entire audience. It’s easy to shrug off because it’s just a lobster, right? Wallace even says what lobsters are by definition. The main point about that quote is that unlike dogs or cats that serve as typical house pets, lobsters do little to nothing to help contribute in any way other than as food. People are so quick to immediately defend the murdering of animals to eat, but a majority of Americans fail to see the moral issues …show more content…

Is life simply defined by how something sits on the food chain, or rather how that organism enjoys life. There is a video that showcases a woman who cannot walk because of a medical condition, but refers to her daily strolls in her wheel chair as, “walks.” Much like the life of lobsters, is walking only defined by the definition of the word, or instead the experience the person has. Society has seemed to forget the fact that all life is created equal and by no means does that exclude

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Foster Wallace’s article “Consider the Lobster” was published in Gourmet magazine, and is about the cruelties involved in eating lobster that many people consider elegant. Wallace starts off in this article by discussing the 56th Annual Maine Lobster Festival where over 25,000 pounds of fresh-caught lobster were eaten, and cooking competition were also available. In this article, Wallace discusses everything from how the lobster is caught, stored, and the cruel method in which these lobsters are cooked and finally consumed and also defined what lobster is by saying it’s a giant sea-insect. Furthermore, Wallace goes on to explain the history behind lobsters.

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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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Wallace states that the guilt you feel is because “you do it yourself- or at least it’s done specifically for you, on-site” (5). Also “the intimacy of the whole thing is maximized at home” (5). The thought of an animal dying only for your needs is saddening to a lot of people. Wallace continues and talks about the reaction the lobsters have to being boiled alive such as, “If you’re tilting it from a container into the steaming kettle, the lobster will sometimes try to cling to the container’s sides or even to hook its claws over the kettle’s rim like a person trying to keep from going over the edge of a roof” (5). What’s even more graphic is “when the lobster’s fully immersed.

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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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In August 2004, Gourmet Magazine published award winning novelist David Foster Wallace’s article “Consider the Lobster”. In the article, he focuses on the negative experiences he had at the Maine Lobster Festival. He later uses the opportunity to ask rhetorical questions about the morality behind cooking lobsters alive and if they feel pain while being cooked. Simply, the main question he poses is, “is it alright to boil a sentient creature alive just for our gustatory pleasure?” (Wallace, 2004, p.4) Gourmet magazine was the first monthly publication exclusively for food and wine.

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In the essay, “Consider the Lobster,” the writer, David Foster Wallace, analyze the pain that Lobster’s feel when they are being cooked alive to be eaten by humans. The main point of the essay is to inform the readers about the issue of killing animas just for the benefit of our humanistic pleasure. The author used specific details. He is very detailed in informing the readers of how the Maine Lobster Festival has been celebrated.

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Consider The Lobster By David Foster Wallace Summary

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He opens this reading by discussing the Maine Lobster Festival where over 25,000 pounds of fresh-caught lobster are consumed each year and continues with Maine’s lobster industry. Wallace advances by defining the word lobster and points out that lobsters are basically giant sea-insects. He also goes on to explain the history of the lobster, describing how up until the early 1800s lobster was a low-class food that was only eaten by the poor and institutionalized and discusses how now a days lobster is seen as a delicacy or even posh. The paper then takes a turn when Wallace begins to question the ethical background of boiling lobsters alive. Wallace brings up many points that are made on both sides of this moral battle, discussing how some say that because a lobster doesn’t have a cerebral cortex it doesn’t feel pain.

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The consumption of animal meat is highly accepted in today’s society, however, the methods, in which the animals are killed are sometimes questioned for their cruelty. David Wallace, in considering the Lobster, takes the readers to the Maine Lobster Festival, where the consumption of lobsters is exploited, and the festival's attendees celebrate these acts. However, the essay goes furthermore than narrating the lobster’s festival, because through sensory details, and different techniques, he makes the readers question society’s morality. By stressing the cruelty it takes boiling lobsters alive, Wallace is capable of creating a sense of awareness in society decisions that demonstrate their corrupted morality, and how it affects directly others (like lobsters)

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I am always questioning why we have to cook lobsters alive? And, do lobsters feel pain when they are in the boiling water? The article of David Foster Wallace “Consider The Lobster” claims that lobsters can feel pain and there is a moral implication about cooking them alive. Wallace’s argument tries to convince his audience effectively with an strong appeal to ethos, pathos, and logos.

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On page 60, footnote 8 compares the pegging/banding of lobsters’ claws to the debeaking of broiler chickens, the cropping of swines’ tails, and the dehorning of cattle. Recognizing that the reader will likely fail to see the impact of the banding, Foster Wallace provides the comparison of other similar practices that will likely be more promptly deemed unacceptable. Under footnote 14, Foster Wallace extends the comparison, driving the reader to understand the distinction made between the consumption of mammals and non-mammals that is notable in speech. When describing mammals as food, we use separate words to distinguish them as creatures and dishes, such as “cow” and “beef,” and “pig” and “pork.” However, non-mammals share the same names in the wild and on menus, such as “shrimp,” “salmon,” and “lobster.”

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Lobster is one of the most delightful feasts that exist. However, do people know the fact about the lobster that people cook also feel the pain like a human? Through this essay "Consider the Lobster" by David Foster Wallace, he verbosely examines this topic using the rhetorical strategies. Wallace uses both ethical and logical illustration of lobsters that are embodied in the passage, he trying to assure the readers who are into foods but handled the animal in a wrong way. Moreover, the 56th Maine Lobster Festival (MLF) that held on July 30 through August 3, 2003, represents the evidence of the way lobsters are treated.

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