The Omnivore's Dilemma Summary
Claudia Castillo-Medina
Eng1A MWF 11-12
April 19, 2013
Literary Analysis: The Omnivore’s Dilemma In Michael Pollan’s, The Omnivores Dilemma everything we eat is somehow derived from corn. Dating back to the day of the Mayans when they were sometimes referred to as “the corn people” (Pollan 19). Pollan takes us back to the “beginning” of the industrial food chain. In The Omnivores Dilemma historical context, ideology, and setting do not do the reader justice in opening their eyes to the harsh reality that without the corn industry eating as we know it today would cease to exist. The use of historical context in The Omnivores Dilemma insufficiently details the actual origin of corn. Per Pollan’s writing he explains that “Squanto taught the Pilgrims to plant maize in 1621…..” (Pollan 25), but the existence of corn dates way back much further than 1621. In a 1948 excavation of Bat Cave, New Mexico by then student of anthropology at Harvard University, Herbert W. Dick found small cobs of corn at the bottom of Bat Caves floor which were estimated to contain maize that had their beginning no later …show more content…
Though interesting it still insufficiently addressed many facts. In my opinion it would have been appropriate to add that in the U.S. alone there are over 400,000 corn farms and that the U.S. is the largest corn producer in the world, producing 32 percent of the world’s corn in the year 2010 ( www.ncga.com www.epa.gov). According to the National Corn Growers Association a good 80 percent of corn grown is eaten by both domestic and overseas livestock, poultry, and even fish. Also according to the NCGA Americans eat 25 pounds of corn a year. (www.ncga.com). Pollan details how corn travels “About a fifth of the corn river flowing out from the elevators at the Iowa Farmer’s Cooperative travels to a milling plant…” (Pollan 86), but epically fails of informing us of the “bigger
Eng1A MWF 11-12
April 19, 2013
Literary Analysis: The Omnivore’s Dilemma In Michael Pollan’s, The Omnivores Dilemma everything we eat is somehow derived from corn. Dating back to the day of the Mayans when they were sometimes referred to as “the corn people” (Pollan 19). Pollan takes us back to the “beginning” of the industrial food chain. In The Omnivores Dilemma historical context, ideology, and setting do not do the reader justice in opening their eyes to the harsh reality that without the corn industry eating as we know it today would cease to exist. The use of historical context in The Omnivores Dilemma insufficiently details the actual origin of corn. Per Pollan’s writing he explains that “Squanto taught the Pilgrims to plant maize in 1621…..” (Pollan 25), but the existence of corn dates way back much further than 1621. In a 1948 excavation of Bat Cave, New Mexico by then student of anthropology at Harvard University, Herbert W. Dick found small cobs of corn at the bottom of Bat Caves floor which were estimated to contain maize that had their beginning no later …show more content…
Though interesting it still insufficiently addressed many facts. In my opinion it would have been appropriate to add that in the U.S. alone there are over 400,000 corn farms and that the U.S. is the largest corn producer in the world, producing 32 percent of the world’s corn in the year 2010 ( www.ncga.com www.epa.gov). According to the National Corn Growers Association a good 80 percent of corn grown is eaten by both domestic and overseas livestock, poultry, and even fish. Also according to the NCGA Americans eat 25 pounds of corn a year. (www.ncga.com). Pollan details how corn travels “About a fifth of the corn river flowing out from the elevators at the Iowa Farmer’s Cooperative travels to a milling plant…” (Pollan 86), but epically fails of informing us of the “bigger