PROJECT #2 (ALL DRAFTS)
Project #2, Draft 1
Shannon O’Roak
Professor Miller
English 110
2 March 2020
Wizards and Prophets and the End of the World
In today’s world, we are facing a multitude of global crises, that coincidentally connect to one another. Some of these pressing issues include global warming, overpopulation, and food scarcity. The increasing population of our planet is creating a food scarcity, which we in turn need to compensate for. One way we are compensating is by engineering new food options, which is contributing to pollution in our atmosphere and therefore is a cause of global warming. In an essay titled “Can Planet Earth Feed 10 Billion People?” by Michael C Mann, the concerns of our increasing population and if feeding that many people is even humanly possible are examined. Mann illustrates two clear sides with different ideas on how to feed a population of 10 billion people. One side is known as the Prophets, who believe we should take advantage of the resources we already have, while also caring for the environment. They are very concerned about the environmental issues new food technology could bring. The people on the other side of the argument are referred to as the Wizards, who feel engineering new foods or new ways to maximize our food production are necessary to feed a population as enormous as 10 billion. In a separate essay “Out of the Kitchen, Onto the Couch” by Michael Pollan our ability and desire to produce real meals is discussed. Both sides of this food predicament have compelling arguments, but these arguments are useless without the ability to cook and create with the organic foods we will need to utilize in our ever-growing population.
In “Can Planet Earth Feed 10 Billion People?” Mann seems to stay neutral when comparing and contrasting the views of Wizards and prophets. The Prophet’s originated from ideas brought to light by William Vogt, and the Wizards originated the same way, but instead from Norman Borlaug’s research. Vogt was what modern-day people would call and environmentalist, while Borlaug was a researcher who studied science and technology and how it can help create new food solutions. After reading Mann’s essay in its entirety, I couldn’t help but associated myself with one side, which makes me wonder how Mann was able to stay neutral in his writing. When Mann is explaining the Prophets, Mann explains “high-intensity, Borlaug-style industrial farming, Prophets say, may pay off in the short run, but in the long run will make the day of ecological reckoning hit harder.” I feel very connected to the Prophets because of this particular environmental focus. I believe I associate more with the Prophets because even though technological advances could aid in the creation of more food resources, I also believe we would then have an even larger environmental crisis on our hands. Even if humans can manage to engineer enough food for 10 billion people, it won’t matter if our planet become inhabitable.
Looking at food scarcity through the lens of the Prophet’s also supports Pollan’s ideas of reintroducing cooking into the household.
Project #2, Draft 2
Shannon O’Roak
Professor Miller
English 110
9 March 2020
Wizards and Prophets and the End of the World
In today’s world, we are facing a multitude of global crises that are all interconnected. Some of these pressing issues include global warming, overpopulation, and food scarcity. The increasing population of our planet is creating a food scarcity, which we in turn need to compensate for. One way we are compensating is by engineering new food options, which is contributing to pollution in our atmosphere and therefore is a cause of global warming. In an essay titled “Can Planet Earth Feed 10 Billion People?” by Michael C Mann, the concerns of our increasing population from two different views and if feeding that many people is even humanly possible are examined. In a separate essay “Out of the Kitchen, Onto the Couch” by Michael Pollan our ability and desire to produce real meals is discussed, with a focus on a revolutionary woman in the kitchen named Julia Child. While reading Mann’s essay, I could see both sides of the issue he presented. While reading Pollan’s essay, I completely agree that we need to make an effort to cook more in our households, but our ability to cook from scratch in today’s world is still in question. Both sides of Mann’s food predicament have compelling arguments, but these arguments are useless without the ability to cook and create with the organic foods we will need to utilize in our growing population. We may be able to live off processed foods now, but that is a short-lived dream that will decrease our health, environment, and quality of life.
In “Can Planet Earth Feed 10 Billion People?” Mann seems to stay neutral when comparing and contrasting the views of both sides. One side is known as the Prophets, who believe we should take advantage of the resources we already have, while also caring for the environment. They are very concerned about the environmental issues new food technology could bring. On the other side of the argument the Wizards are presented, who feel engineering new foods or new ways to maximize our food production are necessary to feed a population as enormous as 10 billion. The Prophet’s originated from ideas brought to light by environmentalist William Vogt, and the Wizards originated the same way, but instead from Norman Borlaug’s research on food technology. In “Out of the Kitchen, Onto the Couch” Pollan centers his story around Julia Child, who he knew from a cooking show called “The French Chef” his mother watched when he was a child. Pollan talks about how Child inspired women to cook, because it was made for intelligent women and a true craft. He also discusses how Child inspired another young chef Julie Powell. Pollan stresses the importance of cooking to our physical and mental health in his writing, and how today we are trying to obtain that through television food network programs. He urges American’s to begin cooking again, because of his belief that real cooking is essential to human life.
After reading Mann’s essay in its entirety, I couldn’t help but associated myself with one side, which makes me wonder how Mann was able to stay neutral in his writing. When Mann is explaining the Prophets, Mann explains “high-intensity, Borlaug-style industrial farming, Prophets say, may pay off in the short run, but in the long run will make the day of ecological reckoning hit harder.” I feel very connected to the Prophets because of this particular environmental focus. I believe I associate more with the Prophets because even though technological advances could aid in the creation of more food resources, I also believe we would then have an even larger environmental crisis on our hands. Even if humans can manage to engineer enough food for 10 billion people, it won’t matter if our planet becomes inhabitable.
Examining Pollan’s ideas through the lens of today’s chefs brings in a specific point on how cooking improves our quality of life. Pollan explains “The chefs on TV get to put their hands on real stuff, not keyboards and screens but fundamental things like plants and animals and fungi; they get to work with fire and ice and perform feats of alchemy.” Pollan brings this point of cooking with real ingredients into his writing many times, always allowing inference on how beneficial it is to humans. He explains this point when discussing the courage and empowerment Julia Child instilled in women everywhere. If our quality of life is compromised by not cooking with raw materials or appreciating the art of cooking, then are we truly living to our fullest potential? Furthermore, if environmental pollution envelopes our planet, then does this also hinder our quality of life?
Processed foods can lower our quality of life, even more so than a lack of cooking or environmental issues. Processed foods lack nutritional value and can cause critical health conditions such as heart disease and obesity with prolonged overuse. Pollan presents information on current American nutrition from research done by Harvard economist David Cutler, finding that “obesity rates are inversely correlated with the amount of time spent on food preparation.” This means rising obesity rates may be largely due to a lack of cooking in the kitchen, and more investment in processed foods. This is not beneficial for a growing population, because it requires more processed and genetically modified foods than whole foods to satisfy a single person. This concept ties into Mann’s essay, where he uses the opinion of the Prophet’s to explain “evaluating farm systems wholly in terms of calories per acre is folly” and “it doesn’t consider whether the food is tasty and nutritious.” Mann’s explanation here reiterates Pollan’s point that it isn’t all about how many calories we put into our body, but how nutritious and fulfilling they are for our bodies. I also believe quality over quantity is more important. When pertaining to medical conditions, we believe someone’s quality of life is lessened, so why wouldn’t the nutritious food we do or don’t eat constitute the same belief? If we began to focus more on the quality of food, we put into our bodies rather than quantity we would be healthier, fuller, and more energized individuals.
Although I lean towards the side of Prophet’s in Mann’s essay, it is not a black and white issue. Mann makes an analogy about a bus in his writing, thoughtfully stating “everyone knows at some point the bus will have to turn. Problem is, Wizard’s and Prophet’s disagree about which way to yank the wheel.” The Wizard’s also have some innovational ideas on how to feed 10 billion, which I have realized after further analyzing Mann’s writing. Even though the Wizards may not have as much of a regard for environmental factors as the Prophets, both sides want to reach the same common goal: feeding 10 billion. When Pollan writes extensively about Julia Child and the impact she made on American families, he is also working towards his common goal of reintegrating cooking into households. This is also not a simple solution, and something we as a society will have to work towards.
While comparing the writings of Mann and Pollan, I’ve realized there are more important questions we should be asking ourselves than how to feed 10 billion people or reintegrate cooking. Some of these questions include is it even possible to feed 10 billion people without diminishing nutrition? If we accomplish this goal, will we see a planet dictated by pollution afterwards that decreases our quality of life? Is reintroducing cooking possible and would it in turn improve our health? Will cooking ever be the same as it was for our parents or grandparents? These questions require a deeper analysis than just a yes or no answer. Like Pollan says, younger generations such as my own will need to investigate these questions as they become even more pressing. The global issues we are facing today will require togetherness humans haven’t quite mastered yet. I have realized while reading the work of Mann and Pollan that they both present a similar underlying theme. That theme is one idea from a single person will never solve our complex global problems, it is intelligent minds working in harmony that will bring us the most success.
Project #2, Draft 3 (final draft)
Shannon O’Roak
Professor Miller
English 110
24 March 2020
Wizards and Prophets and the End of the World
In today’s world, we are facing a multitude of global crises that are all interconnected. Some of these pressing issues include global warming, overpopulation, and food scarcity. The increasing population of our planet is creating a food scarcity, which we in turn need to compensate for. One way we are compensating is by engineering new food options, which is contributing to pollution in our atmosphere and therefore is a cause of global warming. In an essay titled “Can Planet Earth Feed 10 Billion People?” by Charles C Mann, the concerns of our increasing population and how we can support it are analyzed from the views of the environmental-conscious Prophets and the innovative Wizards. In a separate essay “Out of the Kitchen, Onto the Couch” by Michael Pollan our ability and desire to produce real meals is discussed, with a focus on a revolutionary woman in the kitchen named Julia Child. I sympathize with both the Prophets and Wizards’ way of thinking, but the importance of cooking from scratch to our growing population resonated with me while reading Pollan’s essay. We may be able to live off processed foods now, but that is a short-lived dream that will decrease our health, environment, and quality of life.
After reading Mann’s essay in its entirety, I couldn’t help but associate myself with the side of the Prophet’s due to their environmental focus. While I do understand the points made by the Wizard’s that were brought to light by scientist Norman Borlaug, I am more apt to agree with the Prophet’s point of view, that originated from environmentalist William Vogt. Through Mann’s writing on the Prophets, he explains Vogt’s belief “unless humankind drastically reduces consumption and limits population, it will ravage global ecosystems” (Mann 2). I associate more with the Prophets because even though technological advances could aid in the creation of more food resources, I also believe we would then have an even larger environmental crisis on our hands. We will worsen already terrifying environmental issues such as global warming and harmful gas emissions. Even if humans can manage to engineer enough food for 10 billion people, it won’t matter if our planet becomes inhabitable. A better solution to this growing concern for humans and our planet is cooking with the raw materials we already have access to.
Examining Pollan’s ideas through the lens of today’s chefs brings in a specific point on how cooking with natural ingredients improves our quality of life. Pollan explains “The chefs on TV get to put their hands on real stuff, not keyboards and screens but fundamental things like plants and animals and fungi; they get to work with fire and ice and perform feats of alchemy” (Pollan 13). Pollan brings this point of cooking with real ingredients into his writing many times, always allowing inference on how beneficial it is to humans. He explains this point when discussing the courage and empowerment Julia Child instilled in women everywhere. Cooking within the household is a true craft, can be used as a learning tool, and also brings joy to those who partake in it. Cooking is an improvement to our quality of life just like working towards a better environment is and allows us to live up to our fullest potential. Not to mention that cooking is actually healthier for you, unlike boxed or processed foods.
Processed foods can lower our quality of life, even more so than a lack of cooking or environmental issues. Processed foods lack nutritional value and can cause critical health conditions such as heart disease and obesity with prolonged overuse. Pollan presents information on current American nutrition from research done by Harvard economist David Cutler, finding that “obesity rates are inversely correlated with the amount of time spent on food preparation” (Pollan 19). This means rising obesity rates may be largely due to a lack of cooking in the kitchen, and more investment in processed foods. This isn’t beneficial for a growing population, because it requires more processed and genetically modified foods than whole foods to satisfy a single person. This concept ties into Mann’s essay, where he uses the opinion of the Prophet’s to explain “evaluating farm systems wholly in terms of calories per acre is folly” and “it doesn’t consider whether the food is tasty and nutritious” (Mann 14). Mann’s explanation here reiterates Pollan’s point that it isn’t all about how many calories we put into our body, but how nutritious and fulfilling they are for our bodies. I fully believe quality over quantity is more important. When pertaining to medical conditions, if someone is sick, we believe someone’s quality of life is lessened, so why wouldn’t the nutritious food we do or don’t eat constitute the same belief? The biggest reason I believe in quality over quantity is if we focus more on what we put into our bodies rather than how much, we will be healthier, fuller, and more energized individuals.
Even though I believe more strongly in the views of the Prophets than the Wizards, one could argue that the Wizards have a better argument. Some may say the Wizards have more innovative ideas because of the new options technology could bring to a larger population. Even though this is true and could possibly be a solution for a larger population, it fails to address critical points such as our environment and our quality of life with genetically engineered or processed foods. With genetically modified foods, we may not get all the nutrients we need, and our environment will suffer because of the toxic gases released into the atmosphere to yield these crops. Scientists such as Edwige Botoni have also found tropical crops in Africa, Asia, and Latin America that produce a larger crop yield naturally (Mann 16). This could be a testable solution to feed a bigger population before trying genetically engineered foods.
Although I lean towards the side of the Prophet’s in Mann’s essay, I still believe the battle between Wizards and Prophets is not black and white. There will come a point where the people inhabiting the Earth will have to make decisions on how to feed the largest human population we have ever seen. Mann explains this in his own writing by making an analogy about a bus, thoughtfully stating “everyone knows at some point the bus will have to turn. Problem is, Wizard’s and Prophet’s disagree about which way to yank the wheel” (Mann 7). Even though the Wizards may not have as much of a regard for environmental factors as the Prophets do, both sides want to reach the same common goal: feeding 10 billion. When Pollan writes extensively about Julia Child and the impact she made on American families, he’s also working towards his common goal of reintegrating cooking into households. He explains how we as Americans have lost a connection with cooking on an emotional level, that we are trying to regain through television (Pollan 16). This is also not a simple solution, and something we as a society will have to work towards. One of the main points both Mann and Pollan are trying to convey is that we have to make a change. It probably won’t be perfect and won’t be directly to one side or the other, but if we keep traveling in the direction we are headed, we will certainly crash.
While comparing the writings of Mann and Pollan, I’ve realized there are so many more issues facing my generation than how to feed 10 billion people or reintegrate cooking. Our environment and global warming are growing concerns each day that need an equal amount of attention as food. Our health is also diminishing as the obesity levels continue to rise here in America. If we forget to address key issues such as these, we will be putting a vital part of our quality of life in jeopardy. Like Pollan says, younger generations such as my own will need to investigate these issues as they become even more pressing. One of these global issues is already upon us, and that’s the COVID-19 outbreak. COVID-19 has engulfed our lives, and much to my surprise has made cooking essential with social distancing in place. This makes the dilemma of food presented by both Pollan and Mann even more real. To overcome obstacles like COVID-19, people will need to work together, a skill we haven’t quite mastered yet. I have realized while reading the work of Mann and Pollan that they both present a similar underlying theme. That theme is one idea from a single person will never solve our complex global problems, it is intelligent minds working in harmony that will bring us the most success.
Works Cited
Michael C Mann. “Can Planet Earth Feed 10 Billion People?” The Atlantic, 2018, pp. 1-18.
Michael Pollan. “Out of the Kitchen, Onto the Couch.” The New York Times, 2009, pp. 1-21.
