The Botany of Desire is a science novel written by Michael Pollan. This book explores the idea that throughout history, humans have been manipulated by plants. As humans we think that since we are the highest on the food chain, we domesticate and control all other living things. Michael Pollan challenges that idea and questions if plants have been evolving to meet our human desires, solidifying the plants survival. He examines four plants and the human desires that they satisfy; the apple for sweetness, tulip for beauty, marijuana for intoxication, and potatoes for control. Throughout the book he adventures around the world to find out why these plants were so important in history and really makes a good argument for the plants. Michael Pollan’s …show more content…
His first stop was to the birthplace of Johnny Appleseed’s famous myth, the east coast. Johnny Appleseed (aka John Chapman) was known for his strange attire, behavior and his love of nature. He is often thought of as one of the first conservationists and a man of nature. He often slept in bored out stumps of trees and he traveled the country planting trees. He was a talented tree farmer. He knew exactly where the frontier was going to be colonized next and he would plant apple orchards there to sell apples and make sure that more were planted. Apple's back then were not eaten, but turned into cyder and drank. John Chapman made apple cyder the most popular drink and the most healthy drink of the time because of all the vitamins in apples. After his death, his legacy lived on and Pollan visited many of his orchards to see how many apple varieties he planted. There were hundreds and he was amazed by the amount of history left behind by John Chapman. He was often thought of as an American dionysus and that thought really stood out to me. He is almost a one to one replica of dionysus and Pollan’s analysis was very insightful. Through all his travels, Pollan really discovered why apples are America's favorite …show more content…
He examines why we are so reliant on theses plants. We are reliant on the plants because they tend to our desires so they can survive. It is a symbiotic relationship that works for both parties. I think that Pollan’s writing style was a good fit for this format and complimented the premise well. Although he takes a very scientific approach, some bias comes across to the reader based on his previous experiences. For example, he is ok with the consumption of marijuana but that may not be the case with some people. So if they don’t agree with him, then his point will be less relevant to that reader. Pollan explains his book well and uses science to back up his claims. He talks about the genetics of plants and how they affect us. His exploration of marijuana and apples are a good example. This book was enjoyable to read because it was thought provoking and interesting. I enjoyed his exploration and the science that came with it was eye opening. I didn’t know some of the things he brought up and it is always a pleasure to learn while reading. The most interesting thing I learned was the scientific effects that marijuana has on the human body and how we are on the edge of discovering exactly what it can and will be used for is recreation and medicine in the future. This book has changed my appreciation for plants and I am more thoughtful because of it. I would recommend this to a
JOHNNY APPLESEED My famous hoosier is johnny appleseed .He is famous for planting apple trees. Johnny Appleseed was born in Sept 26,1774 his mother gave birth to him in leominster,Massachusetts. He spent his early years in the midst of the American Revolutionary war.
I found Pollan 's book to be very informative and enjoyable to read. I particularly liked the fact that I could associate Pollan’s cultural, political and economic views to the topics we covered in class. In order to complete this assignment, I selected Part 1 of the book "Industrial Food" because I was particularly captivated by the secrets of corn and also because I believed that this section sincerely disclosed the reality behind High-Fructose Corn Syrup (a major participant in the development of obesity). Not only that but, the fact that corn is found in almost every product in our pantry, it’s a little frightening.
It was another miracle. The flower trees were turning into bean trees” (194). It starts off with turtle pointing at the wisteria flowers that had turned into seeds. When we first hear about the trees we learn that they look dead, and then one day the tree has these beautiful flowers on them. Making Taylor realize that theses trees are a true
Do-able Ideal Americans are spending more and more money on exercising and eating right in an effort to lose weight and get healthy, unfortunately, in reality, we are getting fatter and fatter every year. In his article “Escape from the Western Diet”, Michael Pollan argues that we need to stop eating the western diet to improve our overall health and leave the industrial food system. He introduces his idea with a three part rule “Eat food. Not Too Much. Mostly Plants.
Regardless of the success of his inventions, he was successful in his impact and significance to agriculture. He was one of the few African-Americans of his time to become a important figure in science. He was an inspiration to other African-Americans and the poor that it did not take wealth to become an important figure. In the era of segregation, he was the kind of individual that people found strength and optimism
But Eiseley said, “there is nothing very “normal” about Nature. Once upon a time, there were no flowers at all.” Further implicating that without the emergence of flowers, the world wouldn’t be considered as a whole. Eiseley’s main purpose is to allude the readers into thinking that there are many other possible reasons as to why the world came to be, and his reason is the emergence of the angiosperms. The Immense Journey was specifically written to discuss the history of humanity, however Eiseley’s “How Flowers Changed the World” was written in a way to combine science and humanity in a poetic manner.
Pollan’s powerful essay ends with a paragraph that reads almost as a plea to farmers to consider changing their habits and reducing their dependence on these types of fertilizers which are so
A strong suggestion Pollan encourages, to his readers, is gardening. Gardening soothes the soul, produces more local produce, and reduces ones ' carbon footprint according to Pollan. Throughout the article, Pollan shows he understands that to make a differnece about climate change it may be difficult and a long process but is possible. By adding humor, specific diction, and concessions Pollan can make his argument in why we, as a society, should bother to do something about climate change. In the article "Why Bother?", Michael Pollan discusses the issues of climate change and why individuals should do something about it.
In “Marigolds” by Eugenia Collier the coming of age short story where a now grown up Lizabeth reminisce her childhood especially going into Ms.Lottie’s garden. Ms. Lottie, who did not like children but treated her precious marigolds gets them destroyed by Lizabeth. After destroying them, Lizabeth realizes her errors believing she became a women in that moment. This short story has several literary device that are used in it to help deepen the meaning. The use of imagery, symbolism and metaphors in “Marigolds” helps the reader that it is important to not lose
Back in the early twentieth century, marijuana was mainly used for medical purposes in the US. Now, both it 's recreational and medical use is increasingly being consumed by the population and the tendency is to continue increasing. Much has been said about the use of marijuana as a solution to different health problems, and although not everything that is said is true, it cannot be ignored that marijuana can help in the treatment of some cases of adult patients. CNN’s chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, was opposed to the medicinal use of cannabis. Based on his knowledge as a neurologist, he was convinced that the drug was dangerous and had dismissed its supposed therapeutic benefits.
Discuss the role cheap fossil fuel plays in determining the way American farmers grow corn. Explain why Pollan might characterize the availability of cheap corn as a “plague”. The cheap fossil fuels are killing the economy, killing the chances for corn. Pollan characterizes the availability of cheap corn as a plague because a plague is an infectious disease that harms a lot of people.
Instead of growing natural foods, food companies have found an easier, more profitable way of selling food to us: they take these plants and process them into something that tastes better and seems more appealing. And they’re also filled with artificial flavoring, preservatives, and all sorts of synthesized chemicals that make our food sweet but are harmful to us. With these processed foods, we can’t rely on tastes preferences to tell us what to eat, because if we want something sweet, we can eat it any time, which is the exact opposite of why we’ve evolved into liking something sweet. Pollan observes that we’re told to rely on science instead, but this ‘science’ keeps on changing. It seems like the only effect of this ‘science’ is that it helps the food companies make more money.
Mother Nature is commonly thought of as being the most powerful, through both creation and destruction. This idea applies to both real life, and the fictional world of Edward Bloor’s novel, Tangerine. The characters in this story struggle against Nature in several battles, causing severe outcomes. In the novel, the author uses the motif of nature’s power to show that nature has more force than man. A few of the ways the author shows that Nature overpowers Man is through a muck fire, a sinkhole, and a freeze.
Since the beginning of time, humans have felt the primal urge of lust over things they want. Lust is the desire for something, whether it be money or a relationship. Every single person has felt lust at least once in their lifetime. The most common form of lust is the sexual desire for another person. The desire and lust for women is ever prominent in culture and art.
Introduction Plants are a major necessity in the balance of nature, people’s lives, and our terrain. We may not realize it, but plants are the ultimate source of food for almost 95% of the world population so says the National Group of Food. It’s a fact that over 7,000 species of plants are being consumed today. Plants are one of the reasons that we get clean water; as they help regulate the water cycle.