Eating Animals
Encyclopedia
Eating Animals is the third book by the American writer Jonathan Safran Foer
, published in 2009
. It is a work of non-fiction.
and commercial fisheries. He examines topics such as by-catch
and slaughterhouse
conditions, saying that Indonesian shrimp trawlers kill 58 pounds of sea creatures for every 1 pound of shrimp they collect, and that in American slaughterhouses, cows are consistently "bled, dismembered, and skinned while conscious." He also explores the health risks which pervade American factory farming, including the claims that H1N1
originated in a North Carolina factory farm, and that 98 percent of American chicken is infected with campylobacter
or salmonella
at the time of consumption.
Foer also examines the cultural meaning of food, beginning with the experience of his own grandmother, who survived the Holocaust, with a lifelong obsession over food. He builds on and ultimately criticizes the work of Michael Pollan
on our relationship to the food we eat.
Finally, Foer examines humane agricultural methods, and the divide between animal rights and animal welfare.
magazine and The Washington Post
, were put off by Foer's safe conclusions, and "sometimes-sanctimonious attitude and the same over-the-top writing". While the New York Times Book Review was ambivalent about the efficacy of Foer's arguments, the Los Angeles Times
and The New Yorker
reviewed Eating Animals favorably, lauding both the conclusions Foer reaches, and how he reaches them. In an article for the Huffington Post
, Natalie Portman
explains that "Jonathan Safran Foer's book Eating Animals changed me from a twenty-year vegetarian to a vegan activist."
Jonathan Safran Foer
Jonathan Safran Foer is an American author best known for his novels Everything Is Illuminated and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close...
, published in 2009
2009 in literature
The year 2009 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*8 October - Romanian-born German novelist Herta Müller wins the 2009 Nobel Prize in Literature....
. It is a work of non-fiction.
Themes
Foer explores the topics of factory farmingFactory farming
Factory farming is a term referring to the process of raising livestock in confinement at high stocking density, where a farm operates as a factory — a practice typical in industrial farming by agribusinesses. The main products of this industry are meat, milk and eggs for human consumption...
and commercial fisheries. He examines topics such as by-catch
By-catch
The term “bycatch” is usually used for fish caught unintentionally in a fishery while intending to catch other fish. It may however also indicate untargeted catch in other forms of animal harvesting or collecting...
and slaughterhouse
Slaughterhouse
A slaughterhouse or abattoir is a facility where animals are killed for consumption as food products.Approximately 45-50% of the animal can be turned into edible products...
conditions, saying that Indonesian shrimp trawlers kill 58 pounds of sea creatures for every 1 pound of shrimp they collect, and that in American slaughterhouses, cows are consistently "bled, dismembered, and skinned while conscious." He also explores the health risks which pervade American factory farming, including the claims that H1N1
H1N1
'Influenza A virus is a subtype of influenza A virus and was the most common cause of human influenza in 2009. Some strains of H1N1 are endemic in humans and cause a small fraction of all influenza-like illness and a small fraction of all seasonal influenza. H1N1 strains caused a few percent of...
originated in a North Carolina factory farm, and that 98 percent of American chicken is infected with campylobacter
Campylobacter
Campylobacter is a genus of bacteria that are Gram-negative, spiral, and microaerophilic. Motile, with either unipolar or bipolar flagella, the organisms have a characteristic spiral/corkscrew appearance and are oxidase-positive. Campylobacter jejuni is now recognized as one of the main causes...
or salmonella
Salmonella
Salmonella is a genus of rod-shaped, Gram-negative, non-spore-forming, predominantly motile enterobacteria with diameters around 0.7 to 1.5 µm, lengths from 2 to 5 µm, and flagella which grade in all directions . They are chemoorganotrophs, obtaining their energy from oxidation and reduction...
at the time of consumption.
Foer also examines the cultural meaning of food, beginning with the experience of his own grandmother, who survived the Holocaust, with a lifelong obsession over food. He builds on and ultimately criticizes the work of Michael Pollan
Michael Pollan
Michael Pollan is an American author, journalist, activist, and professor of journalism at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism. A 2006 New York Times book review describes him as a "liberal foodie intellectual."...
on our relationship to the food we eat.
Finally, Foer examines humane agricultural methods, and the divide between animal rights and animal welfare.
Critical reception
Eating Animals received mixed reviews. Some reviewers, such as New YorkNew York (magazine)
New York is a weekly magazine principally concerned with the life, culture, politics, and style of New York City. Founded by Milton Glaser and Clay Felker in 1968 as a competitor to The New Yorker, it was brasher and less polite than that magazine, and established itself as a cradle of New...
magazine and The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
, were put off by Foer's safe conclusions, and "sometimes-sanctimonious attitude and the same over-the-top writing". While the New York Times Book Review was ambivalent about the efficacy of Foer's arguments, the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
and The New Yorker
The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
reviewed Eating Animals favorably, lauding both the conclusions Foer reaches, and how he reaches them. In an article for the Huffington Post
The Huffington Post
The Huffington Post is an American news website and content-aggregating blog founded by Arianna Huffington, Kenneth Lerer, and Jonah Peretti, featuring liberal minded columnists and various news sources. The site offers coverage of politics, theology, media, business, entertainment, living, style,...
, Natalie Portman
Natalie Portman
Natalie Hershlag , better known by her stage name Natalie Portman, is an actress with dual American and Israeli citizenship. Her first role was as an orphan taken in by a hitman in the 1994 French action film Léon, but major success came when she was cast as Padmé Amidala in the Star Wars prequel...
explains that "Jonathan Safran Foer's book Eating Animals changed me from a twenty-year vegetarian to a vegan activist."
External links
- New York Magazine book review
- The Sunday Times book review
- Cold Turkey, review by ethicist Peter SingerPeter SingerPeter Albert David Singer is an Australian philosopher who is the Ira W. DeCamp Professor of Bioethics at Princeton University and Laureate Professor at the Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics at the University of Melbourne...
- UNC, Duke select book on vegetarianism for summer reading