Blog #5- Consider the Lobster- A Response

Reading David Foster Wallace’s piece was a bit of a transport back in time, as I read this piece for my ENC 1101 class because my teacher loved Wallace. She liked to use his piece as an example of connecting to your research, and she had an appreciation for his use of footnotes. Reading this piece for the second time brought me back to the same thoughts I had when I first encountered this article: should I go vegan? Because this whole boiling the lobster thing is pretty cruel, and I don’t even want to begin to think about what happens to cows and chickens. (Alas, I still eat meat so clearly these thoughts didn’t stick, though I do try to go for free range raised meats as a way to make up for my selfishness). Aside from the message of Wallace’s article, this work is an interesting read format wise. Wallace’s use of footnotes is far from the typical use as a scholarly definition or factoid or a reference to a citation, and it allows Wallace to add more opinionated comments to is article, but also not detracting from the article itself should people choose to not read the footnotes. They also serve as a bit of comic relief at some points, making comments the may not seem quite appropriate for the body of the piece but can be slid in unobtrusively in the footnote. Wallace also has an interesting progression of ideas within the article, as one initially believes it to be just about the festival until it takes a darker turn where more serious moral and ethical questions come into play that one did not initially expect from such a seemingly happy event. Wallace’s article is has a specific target audience: readers of Gourmet magazine. This piece however, seems to almost be intended for a larger audience however, as its implications are universal, not just for those with an affinity for finer dining and cooking. The implications of humanity’s selfishness and feelings of superiority are not new, but these implications have never really been given a response of what it could mean, other than we take what we want. I’m sure psychologists somewhere are studying why we define things as lesser beings or how we develop our moral views of other creatures’ rights and abilities to possess feelings/emotions, but currently the answers are not simple and understandable. Overall Wallace created an article that was relatable and asked important questions. I would be interested to read more of his works and see if his style works with all his pieces, if it is consistent.