The three texts from this semester’s reading which were most important to me were Pollan’s chapter on Organic food, Asimov’s article “Intelligence” and the video “Meet your Meat”. Pollan’s Organic chapter discussed both the organic Market products and their source, the farm. He wrote about organic food in health food stores and traced its origins back to the farm’s listed on the product labels. Asimov’s article spoke about meaning of intelligence and it’s variance depending upon one’s environment. He also described how he was effortlessly duped by his mechanic. Last, but not least, is the video “Meet your Meat.” This video clip was produced by PETA, and its purpose was to expose the harsh treatment of animals on factory farms, CAFO’s. It showed the violent treatment of cows, chickens, pigs, turkeys and other animals.
Pollan’s chapter on Organic food and the “Meet Your Meat” video were both important to me for similar reasons. My interest stems from my recent commitment to vegetarianism. Before I decided to become a vegetarian, I had though about potential alternatives to such a lifestyle change. One of my thoughts was that I could consume only organic meats. This idea seemed a decent alternative because it was operating on the assumption that the animals on organic farms are treated more ethically. While, as presented through Pollan’s work, they don’t seem to be treated in such an egregious manner as the factory animals, they are not given the life they are advertised to have. Organic products are advertised in such a way that it seems the animals have ample amounts of space and access to green pastures. Pollan’s visit to an organic farm exposed the fact that these farms are extremely similar to factory farms in that thousands of chickens are crammed into a small area with almost no space to move about. And as for the access to green pasture bit, there was a small hatch that led to a fenced in area of grass. Oddly enough, the chickens never took up this golden opportunity. In addition to similar treatment, the chicken’s diet is still altered- they are made to consume grains. The factual information Pollan’s chapter provided paired with the pathos appeal of the “Meet Your Meat” video have helped solidify my decision to give up all meat, non-organic and organic, in favor of a more animal friendly diet. While I miss the taste of meat terribly, I can’t help but see pain and suffering when I look at a chicken cutlet.
In addition to these articles, I found Asimov’s article to be extremely engaging. This article provides commentary about the concept of intelligence and how it is a multifaceted term, with different communicative values depending on the environment. This relates to last class’s discussion of the term “literacy”. In my opinion, literacy refers to how the varied forms of communication are used based upon the environment in which they are employed. One’s use of oral language may be effective in one environment; however, it may be completely ineffective in a different environment. This parallels Asimov’s experience. Upon stepping out of the academic world and into the world of the mechanic, Asimov found that his communicative skills were completely useless and that there was an entirely different literacy with which he was quite unfamiliar.
