Life of a Piscadores

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Under the Feet of Jesus brings the reader into the world of a migrant worker family suffering through the many hardships of poverty stricken piscadores. In this book author Helena María Viramontes exemplifies the struggles that these families must go through. A passage from the first chapter of this book truly made me picture what this family must be going through. This book was also very captivating due to the austerity of this migrant family. In this passage by Viramontes she explains how everything that happens to these people will affect them in the long run and are all important aspects for survival. Continue reading →

Environmental Racism in Under the Feet of Jesus

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It is not uncommon to see that within many cities there is a divide among the social classes, especially in reference to housing. A substantial amount of research has been provided that suggests people from the same social class typically live in the same area. For example, if an individual was considered to be within the upper, or rich, social class then he/she would probably live among many other people with the same status. Often times the people within this upper social class are “cared” about more by the government than people from the lower social class. This is evident if you look at the neighborhoods in the poor areas of the city and if you look at the rich areas. More often than not, an individual will notice that the richer neighborhoods have far greater institutions, such as schools or parks, while the non-wealthy neighborhoods have the complete opposite. This notion continually widens the gap between the social classes.

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Finding the Truth about Sun-Maid Raisins

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http://youtu.be/cJZcFq8ige8?t=2s (Sun-Maid Commercial)

 http://greatist.com/health/dried-fruit-decoded/ (Article by Leah Rocketto)

http://youtu.be/1GpiDqhArE0 (The Story of the Real Sun-Maid Girl)

After watching the advertisement for Sun-Maid raisins, I had begun to form a lot more questions about the product. For example, is the great central valley of California really that lush and green as the commercial claims it to be? Are the raisins only made with sun? Who is this animated girl they use to represent their product, and why does she put on sunglasses after she was put on the red carpet at night, when clearly those sunglasses would have been more useful in that sunny vineyard scene?

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Dr.Seuss

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During one of our discussions regarding Carson’s Silent Spring, it was brought to our attention that beloved Dr. Seuss played part in such biochemical warfare. I noticed my classmate’s reaction to this information was that of disbelief. Our generation grew up reading Seuss’s tales of environmental kindness and consciousness, stories such as The Lorax have touched and inspired many. In fact, just recently The Lorax was adapted as a film, and even here around the University of Oregon, a highly environmentally conscious community, there is a co-op named The Lorax. My initial thought was along the lines of the following: what does this mean if the creator of these fantastical tales is a fraud? Continue reading →

Anthropomorphism in Environmental Films

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Over the weekend I decided to watch the environmental documentary, African Cats. The film was released last year on Earth Day, what better timing for a new documentary film devoted to wildlife. African Cats captivates the audience as you follow a year in the life of a group of lions and cheetahs through Kenya. The films emphasis was on female cats that are the heroes. The audience is first introduced to Layla, an aging lioness struggling to keep up with her pride for the survival of her daughter, Mara. Then introduced to Sita, a single mother cheetah of three who lacks a pride for protection and food.

Samuel L. Jackson over dramatic narration emphasizes the anthropomorphism throughout the film. African Cats tumbles into anthropomorphic cuteness and applies human motivations to animal behavior. Throughout the film the audience can’t help but have sympathy through the suspense as the feline moms struggle for survival against hyenas, crocodiles, male lions, and cheetahs. The film anthropomorphizing of the cat with human emotions and motivations make the story emotional and are effectively done. The audience gets to know these wild cats enough to invest their sympathy through dangers and losses. The losses are balanced by triumphs and comic relief to teach children about life and death, without traumatizing them. Continue reading →

Differences in Culture: My Depiction

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Helen Viramontes

Helen Viramontes presents several interesting aspects of literary creativity that I would like to discuss. Her book gave me insight, honestly, into a new cultural perspective. Now, I understand her book is fiction, but all the same, it provides a different cultural perspective.
I grew up with a Mother, Father, and one Sister. More or less, this is a traditional family in the United States. My Father works in the production sector, and my mother works in business and both have worked hard to provide incomes that support my sister and myself. We have not lived in either the wealthy class, nor the under the poverty line, but rather right in the middle, comfortably enjoying the life that has been bestowed upon us.

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Organic Pesticides

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After taking about the controversy initiated by Rachel Carson over the exploitation of DDT and other synthetic insecticides, I became curious about current pesticide use in farming. The EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) released a document showing both the US and world market for all pesticide use for 2006 and 2007. The cumulative amount of money spent world wide for both years was $75,257,000,000 with the US contributing 33%. Agriculture is the main use for pesticides and total pounds of pesticide use for agriculture decreased approximately 7% from 2000 to 2007. Having said that, 877 million pounds of pesticides are still being used in agricultural practices.

It is important to discern between different types of pesticides as they have varying levels of toxicity. Organophosphates are particularly dangerous as they act as a neurotoxin and effect brain function. These types of pesticides are also on the decline, however, 33 million pounds are still being used annually and levels of organophosphates are still detected in food and the bodies of most humans.

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Environment and politics

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As the presidential election approaches and I read a little about both Obama and Romney – trying to stay neutral while gathering information – I wondered how important environmental issues are in this election. So I went back on both Obama’s and Romney’s websites and looked for what they had to say about the environment. I was very surprised when I realized that environment protection takes so little space on their websites. Of course, they discuss energy, but they are both mostly interested in how to make the United States independent when it comes to energy, how to cut the need of other countries for oil, how new energy technologies will create jobs and boost the economy. For such a large country, I thought protecting the environment, protecting nature, would be a bigger issue.

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Darwin’s Population Limits

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One of the key arguments that Darwin makes in his On the Origin of Species concerns the Struggle for Existence. Individuals are constantly locked in competition, whether with other members of the same species, different species that may occupy the same or similar ecological niche, or environmental factors. Those organisms that survive then reproduce and pass their traits onto the next generation. Those that do not win out die, and if this concept is applied to entire species, it may result in extinction due to a failure to adapt to changing conditions.

The most important aspect of the struggle involves the environmental limits that all organisms must face. These restrictions, which encompasses resources such as food, predator and parasite interactions, and climate, drive natural selection. Without these forces at work, Darwin’s theory would not stand. Since abundance reduces conflict while scarcity leads to competition, nature provides the pressure that fuels the engine of evolution.

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The War to Exist

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Out of many of the metaphors that Charles Darwin uses, one that sticks out greatly is that nature is a war. This metaphor can be seen in very many places–even those where he relates nature to something completely different like a web or a tree. No matter what it is, evolution in general comes down to the survival of the fittest. While all the metaphors are valid, the war is a reality that we all have to live with–one of the reasons we can never truly be at peace…because

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