HW # 7d

The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan - Chapter 17

Précis: In order to fully comprehend the ethics of eating animals, I read about the arguments that embody the controversial subject (the authors I read Peter Singer, Descartes, John Berger, Jeremy Bentham, Tom Regan, James Rachels, Steven M. Wise, Joy Williams, Matthew Scully, J.M. Coetzee, Kant, Danel Dennett, Stephen Budiansky, Tim Flannery, and Ben Franklin) and formed opinions and questions of my own.  Humans are addressing this topic more now than ever, because we are turning from Descarte's view that animals are machines, to the views of modern food-philosophers like Peter Singer, which support the individuality and rights of animals. All the material I read, especially Peter Singer's Animal Liberation motivated me to become a vegetarian (which I became) so that I could approach forming opinions about this topic without being overly defensive and biased. My questioning led me to feel that it is morally upright to eat meat if one is conscious and respectful about it; the animal must be raised in an environment like that of Polyface Farm, have lived without unnecessary suffering and killed humanely. However, there are many beliefs and approaches to meat, all of which can operate upon some shred of truth, except an approach that entails mindless animal slaughter and comsumption.

Gems: "Is it faculty of reason, or perhaps the faculty of discourse?...But a full-grown horse or dog is beyond comparison a more rational, as well as a more conversational animal, than an infant" (page 308).

             "The great advantage of being a 'reasonable creature,' Franklin remarks, is that you can find a reason for whatever you want to do" (page 310).

             "We are the better for it, and they are never the worse...The death they suffer in our hands commonly is, and always may be, a speedier and, by that means a less painful one, than that which would await them in the inevitable course of nature" (page 328).

             "We no longer have any rituals governing either the slaughter or eating of animals, which perhaps helps explain why we find ourselves in this dilemma, in a place wehre we feel our only choice is to either look away or give up meat" (page 332).

Thoughts and Questions: What did Pollan mean when he said, "What's wrong with eating animals is the practice, not the principle" on page 328? After completing the chapter, I'm inclined to infer that, according to him, eating something that was once alive, even raised and killed as a means to making meat, is not wrong. Eating meat defensively (which means twisting or ignoring a premise like "all animals experience pain") or eating meat after looking the other way is wrong. Unfortunately, our society and government seems to favor those who eat animals without thinking, because this means more ease and money for it. This chapter has helped me realize that seeking out truth is necessary, and if you want to learn the truth, you must learn it in its entirety. Seeking it means admitting constantly that you know very little, and disposing your pre-supposed opinions, and possibly of the opinions of people around you. 

The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan - Chapter 18

Précis: My first experiences hunting by myself were marked by silence, solitude, alertness, loss of short term memory, a high that was similar to that of marijuana, and a connection with nature and the animal I was hunting. While hunting with Angelo and his three friends, my first opportunity to shoot a pig was unsuccessful because I was not ready, but the second opportunity marked the death of a 190 pound sow. "Dressing" (which is actually undressing) the pig was disgusting, and even more upsetting than the moments during and after I shot it; I decided that this was a result of evolution, an ancient tool for discerning what is and isn't poison, and probably the reason why so many people are disgusted by hunting yet support the killing of animals by eating meat.   

Gems: "The experience of hunting suggests another theory. Could it be that the cannabinoid network is precisely the sort of adaption that natural selection would favor in the evolution of a creature who survives by hunting?" (page 342).

              "In hunting you always need to be ready. So, okay, you learned something new today" (page 347).

             "So much of the human project is concerned with distinguishing ourselves from beasts that we seem strenuously to avoid things that remind us that we are beasts too - animals that urinate, defecate, copulate, bleed, die, stink, and decompose" (page 357).

Thoughts and Questions: Although I cannot remember a specific time when I felt the degree of guilt that Pollan felt upon seeing that picture (on page 362), I nevertheless felt his guilt and disgust as I read. The only time I can remember that I've negatively affected an animal in such a direct manner is when I was 7 and stepped on my relatives' dog's tail by accident, and I was told to tell him sorry as my relatives watched. I felt horrible, because I (albeit by accident) had stepped on his tail with such nonchalance and absentmindedness. Maybe I felt guilty as I read because I felt his pride and excitement when he described the pig's death, and was ashamed that I would probably have similar emotions to his. It is commendable that he was able to see both perspectives of hunting: the view that it is a beautiful, meditative past time, and the view that it it is a disgusting, savage sport. Why don't women hunt, I wonder? I have never read of or met a woman who hunts for sport as Pollan and Angelo did...Is our culture really that defined by gender roles?   

The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan - Chapter 19

Précis: Foraging for mushrooms, or more appropriately called "mushroom hunting", is unlike any other way of obtaining produce because the location of mushrooms (forests and woods) makes it very easy to get lost while foraging, and the ability of mushrooms to camouflage is unlike that of any fruit or vegetable, which prospers from being picked. Fungi are also very mysterious because no one knows why they grow where and when they grow, the different genders of fungi, how to consistently distinguish between poisonous and non-poisonous, or the chemical properties that lead to hallucinations, to name a few unknowns. Although fungi are mysterious and hard to find, it is an extremely rewarding experience to forage for mushrooms, morels, or other kinds of edible fungi.

Gems: "Who's to say the day won't come when science will be able to measure the fungi's exotic energies, perhaps even calculate our minimum daily requirement of lunar calories?" (page 378).

            "It was such a feeling of empowerment, to feed yourself by figuring out the puzzle of nature" (page 380).

            "...I'd just won a round. This is not something I can ever imagine saying to an apple in the garden; there, it just wouldn't be news" (page 387).

Thoughts and Questions: This chapter reminded me of a couple I met at the Green Market in Union Square. When they first told me they made a living from foraging for mushrooms, I wondered why more people did not pursue such an easy job. Now I understand that it is quite a valuable and difficult way to make a living. I have a newfound respect for all who attempt to forage for mushrooms and other fungi. I wonder if mushrooms are really powerd by the moon? Is it possible to obtain energy from the sun, and yet still wilt and melt in sunlight?



The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan - Chapter 20

Précis: I spent all day Saturday, and many hours week before, preparing a meal (that was made entirely out of ingredients that I or a friend had grown, foraged, caught, or hunted) for Angelo, Sue, Anthony, Richard, Judith, Isaac, and myself. It included Fava Bean Toasts, Sonoma Boar Pâté, , Egg Fettuccine, Power Fire Morels, braised leg and grilled loin of Wild Sonoma Pig, Wild East Bay Yeast Levain, Very Local Garden Salad, Fulton Street Bing Cherry Galette, Claremont Canyon Chamomile Tisane, and 2003 Angelo Garro Petite Syrah Wine. This meal was not 5-star or "great" compared to my or my guests' standards for meals, but perfect? It was, because the transparency, thoughtfulness, opposition to fast or industrial food, and joy that went into and resulted from that meal was well worth its physical, intellectual, and emotional costs; It was a priceless reminder of what food has the potential and power to be.
Gems: "No, little if anything about this meal was what anyone would call 'realistic'. And yet no meal I've ever prepared or eaten has been more real" (page 392).

              "What this means is the calories we'd be consuming represent energy captured by trees rather than, as is typical now, by annuals in fam fields or grasses in pastures" (page 399).

             "Industrial and domestic, hard and soft, metal and meat: This place was a lot like Angelo himself" (page 400).
Thoughts and Questions: Pollan seemed a little overly sentimental about this meal at first, but I soon came to (at least partially) comprehend the beauty of such a dinner. It can be eaten without worry or guilt regarding its effects on the body or environment. It did not support industrialization, animal cruelty, biased food lobbyists, propaganda, oversubsidation of corn, etc. Also, if I had gone through all those experiences that Pollan did to arrive at that dinner table, I too would feel an inexplicable attachment to the different elements and meanings of the meal. This chapter, indeed this whole book, inspired me to attempt to grow my own food more, buy "beyond" organic when possible, appreciate knowing where my food came from, and value food as a sacred means of supporting my existence and connecting me to the earth rather than a commodity.