Glenn and Pollan

Glenn & Pollan

Before you Read

When I picture a farm with with farm animals, I don't picture a very pleasant scene between the farmer and the farm animals.  The farmer probably doesn't treat the animals very nice.  I feel that all the farmer really cares about is the animals being slaughtered and him getting the money for it. 

Summary
In Glenn's article, "Constructing Consumables and Consent:  A Critical Analysis of Factory Farm Industry Discourse", she attempts to explain how animals are really treated on a farm and how their living conditions are terrible.  She uses examples and stories to help explain.  She talks about factory fram discourse and discourse communities.  

Synthesis

Glenn's article relates to only a few authors.  It slightly relates to Pollan's article because in Pollan's he talks about how farmers want to keep their processes cheap and Glenn is worried about livestock's living conditions and the way they are treated.  Glenn's article can also relate to Baron's because he talks about technology and it can relate to Glenn's because farmers are always trying to find a cheaper, easier way to have livestock and take care of their livestock.  

 

Response	Quotation
Through this quote, I feel that Glenn is trying to explain what this article is going to be about and I like that she try’s to set up the article for us.	“Discourse, for the purposes of this article, denotes the production of knowledge and power through language, and discursive practices are those institutional formations(or epistemes) within which meanings of and between contradictory discourses are constructed” (144)
Again, at the beginning of the article trying to set up what she is going to be talking about through out the whole article.	“In this article I am concerned with how that construction is accomplished and how it contributes to the way USAmericans think about nonhuman animals confined on factory farms.” (144)
Trying to make us get emotional about the Hens so we are emotionally reading the article to become more involved in the article.	“Hens also suffer immensely so that farmers can extract from them as many eggs as possible.” (148)
Just like in any other business the bottom line is profit, but farmers should care more for their animals.	“For the factory farm, as in other corporations, the bottom line is profit.” (149)
We are in an age of technology and that anything can change because of technology.	“Fox reminds us that we are in an age of cloning and of technology that can radically change the way we relate to the environment and other animals.” (151)

QD 1

The environment is also a product of our social institutions.  They are making livestock living conditions look ok when they are really not.  They are making it look as if farmers treat their animals with respect and make sure they are treated well.  Society is buying into something that is not really there.

Thoughts

I liked this article because it was about something that we haven't read about yet.  It was talking about real issues. It mostly related to Baron's article about technology.  I really enjoyed Barons article and I think that's why i liked this one so much.  It was really a great article and she made some great points.

 Pollan

Summary
In Pollan's article, "Farmer in Chief", he writes a letter to the President.  In the letter he talks about the the American food system.  He talks about how things need to change and he talks about how it effects everyone.  He also gives examples how how to fix the problem.

Synthesis
Pollan's article strongly relates to Glenn's article in the sense that he is talking about the food system and that Glenn's is talking about livestock and the food we get out of our livestock.  This could also relate to Baron's in talking about technology and how things need to change and they will always be changing.  

Response	Quotation
I like this quote because it just shows how bad Americans health really is and how something needs to change.	“You cannot expect to reform the health care system, much less expand coverage, without confronting the public health catastrophe that is the modern-American diet.”
I found this quote to be very interesting.  I never really thought about how much fuel we use to make food.	"After cars, the food system uses more fossil fuel than any other sector of the economy - 19 percent."
This is so true, we need to make American consume healthier things because this is about all that America is eating right now.	“The era of cheap oil-based food is drawing to a close.”
We need to start with the younger generation so that when they get to be old enough they can also help to make the change.	"Changing the food culture must begin with our children, and it must begin in the schools."
This quote just shows that reforming the food industry is not going to be an easy thing to do.	“Reforming the food system is not inherently a right-or-left issue.”

Thoughts
I really liked this article.  I like that Pollan decided to write to Obama.  I agree completely with Pollan.  I think a change does need to be made in America.