First reflections on Pollan’s concept of Omnivore’s Dilemma

What is the concept of the “omnivore’s dilemma”?  Look at the definitions of the words.  What is the hard choice?

What are the economic conditions that Pollan’s argument takes for granted?  How has modern technology, agriculture, and distribution changed the way we eat?

What is your understanding of the modern food supply?  Re-read this article with this question in mind.

Does Pollan’s general view apply to people in poverty?  Use your knowledge of other countries to reflect on the difference in food and eating in different countries.

Do you agree that in modern, developed economies, there is an abundance of food and food choices?

What is your view on the ethical treatment of animals?  Do humans have a “right” to kill and eat other animals?  Are human beings a special animal with a higher status?  How does the religious view, that man is created in the image of God, give man a special right to “be fruitful and multiply?”  Does this include eating other animals?

Compare the Darwinian view of man and nature.  If there is no god, but survival of the fittest, in what way does this support the “right” to eat meat?  Under what circumstances does survival of the fittest make it a wise choice to stop eating meat?

 

 

 

9 thoughts on “First reflections on Pollan’s concept of Omnivore’s Dilemma”

  1. When I first read “The Omnivore’s Dilemma” by Michael Pollan, I really thought it was about a really good Chef that can really cook but he wasn’t. Pollan was telling us reader how people in America have a national eating disorder and its not just American people its everybody in general. Also Pollan tell us readers that when we eat food it could be confusing like the foods that people eat everyday is it good for them or fattening for them. I liked how Pollan is talking about food because there is food in this world that people eat and its not good for them, but there are good foods that people should eat. Finally I like how Pollan brought about how people hunt for animals and make them for food. The author was really creative just by talking about only food in the story that got us readers interested.

  2. Humans are known to be omnivores, which means they eat herbs, plants, and meats coming from animals. The concept of the “Omnivore’s dilemma” is that we always have a hard time when making decisions about what to eat and what not to eat.

    Modern technology, agriculture and distribution have changed the way we eat because food has become a product for some food industries and fast foods, such as McDonald’s. Fast foods have taken a big place in today’s world and have become very popular. They sell food made with industrialized corn, which lacks an essential amino acid called lysine because it grows very easily, and it is cheap. Fast foods have somewhat contributed to diseases that affect so many people’s lives.

    The modern food supply has been taken away by industrial agriculture. Farmers inject animals some products or hormones to grow and produce faster. Animals are being fed with corn instead of grass. There are people who give a lot of different advice about what to eat and what not to eat that it became so confusing. Sometimes, while buying meat, I see phrases like cage-free or no trans fats that I do not even understand what they mean, so I just buy food like that unconsciously.

    From my point of view, Pollan’s general view does not really apply to people in poverty. When it comes to food choices, it takes a lot of money and people living in poverty cannot afford certain kind of food. Most of them do not have omnivore dilemma because they do not have an abundance of food choices. They farm, produce food, plants seeds and raise animals by themselves. Comparing to people in poverty; modern, developed economies have an abundance of food, food choices, lower prices, and they are open to afford and try new food or recipes from other places or cultures.

    Hunting animals for pleasure or sport is very bad and it should be forbidden. I agree that we should protect our animals. However, meat is somewhat known to be essential for human body. In my case, I was operated at age seven because I swallowed a big fish bone, I spent several months in hospital bed. Once I got well, I promised not to eat fish again, so meat is the only thing that I consume. I know people who became vegetarians because to them, meat is murder. In the survival of the fittest, there is only one survival, it is usually the strongest or the most intelligent. Either human beings or animals. Sometimes human beings feel like they have to kill animals who can be very dangerous.

    Pollan wants us, readers, to be conscious while making food choices because we are what we eat, so Knowing the provenance of food that we eat every day is actually a good idea to have enough information and questions that we may have answered than eating in ignorance.

  3. The “Omnivore’s Dilemma” was able to open my eyes to the modern food supply that we consume today. Pollan explains to us that we all have a “national eating disorder.” He asserts that we deal with confusion when it comes to the food choices we make and that we are pushed to change our eating habits, or diets, due to so many constant changes in the modern food supply. This is a problem all humans face throughout the world in being that humans are omnivores, who can eat plants and animals, which is why we are indecisive on what to ingest into our bodies. For example, in America, we have a variety of food choices and most of them are processed which is unhealthy for the human body. This makes it difficult for us to better our eating habits, or even decide on what to eat because we have gotten our bodies into the custom of eating these processed foods and it’s something we consistently crave all the time. Pollan discovered that one of the significant food sources in America is corn and he guides the process of corn from one part of the food chain to the other by speaking about farms and fast food restaurants. By doing this, Pollen makes suggestions as to what Americans should eat, within the modern food supply, for their own health and for the safety of the planet.

  4. Michael Pollan begins by diagnosing America with a “national eating disorder.” He argues that Americans are suffering from mass confusion about what to eat, propelled by constantly-changing food trends and conflicting diets. This is a uniquely human problem, since humans are omnivores by nature who can eat most plants and animals and, therefore, are faced with the challenge of deciding what to consume. This problem is especially acute in a country with endless food choices—many of which are highly processed and far removed from their natural origins. Pollan sets out to trace major American food sources like corn, which he follows from one end of the food chain to the other in a journey that takes him from farms to fast-food restaurants. In doing so, he explores the implications of the choices Americans make within the modern food system, ultimately seeking to answer what Americans should eat.As Pollan shows, the natural evolutionary advantage of omnivorousness—being able to choose between many dietary options—creates difficulties in human culture and society. In Pollan’s diagnosis, the remarkable complexity of eating in modern-day America is partly a result of this abundance of choice.

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