...English 101.11 4 October 2013 Rhetorical Analysis: Exigence: When Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring was published in September 27, 1962, it triggered a storm of disputes over the use of chemical pesticides. Her book helped raise awareness for the environment, warn humans of the dangers of using pesticides such as DDT, preserve several plant and animal species, and make the atmosphere cleaner. Her intent in writing Silent Spring was to warn the public of the dangers related with pesticide use. Throughout her book are countless case studies documenting the harmful effects that chemical pesticides have had on the environment. Along with these facts, she explains how in many occasions the pesticides have done more harm than good in eliminating the pests they were supposed to destroy. Carson points out that many of the long-term effects that these chemicals may have on the environment, as well as us humans, are still unknown in addition to her report. The argument in Carson’s Silent Spring led to the passing of environmental legislation and the establishment of government agencies to better regulate the use of these chemicals (Griswold 2012). Kairos: While working for the U.S. Bureau of Fisheries, Miss Carson first became aware of the effects of chemical pesticides on the natural environment. Her main concern was the government’s use of chemical pesticides such as DDT, a colorless substance used as an insecticide that is toxic to humans and animals when swallowed or absorbed...
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...Silent Spring: A Journey to a Radical New World Synopsis Silent Spring, written by Rachel Carson, describes the catastrophic effects of humanity’s interference with nature. The novel focuses on the overuse of pesticides and the toxic contamination it can cause. Carson highlights the damage done to wildlife, livestock, domestic animals, and humans; at both a visible and molecular level. She explains the futility of chemical methods in controlling insects and gives examples of effective biological alternatives. This book was instrumental in banning the insecticide DDT, as well as in raising public awareness of environmental needs. Agreement with the author I agree with the majority of the opinions that Carson expresses, and particularly...
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...* Provide a brief explanation of the cause and effects associated with this case. Rachel Carson had a history of interest with the chemical called DDT. She had tried to get DDT some attention unsuccessfully until her book came out in 1962. She had a friend who wrote her about the large bird kills on Cape Cod from the use of DDT. DDT around the late 40’s and 50’s was thought of a miracle pesticide and its use became very popular. Carson tried over a long period to get a magazine to support her in showing the negative side of DDT usage. But after a long time she had a lot of her own research and decided to go on with her own book. Her book “Silent Spring” showed how ddt entered the food chain and then we stored in the fatty tissues of animals and even humans which was the cause of cancer and genetic damages. Carson discovered that a single application of DDT to a crop would kill insects for months, and it would kill more than just the target insects. Even after being diluted by rain it would still remain toxic to the environment for a long period of time. Carsons book concluded that DDT, along with other pesticides had irrevocably harmed birds and other animals which had contaminated the worlds food supply. * Provide a brief explanation of biomonitoring and the steps involved in risk assessment. Relate these to the case study. Biomonitoring is a method for determining which chemicals get into members of the populations and what those concentrations are. It can be used to monitor...
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...Silent Spring - How Rachel Carson Changed the World On September 27, 1962 Rachel Carson released her sixth book, Silent Spring. On publication day, the advance sales of Silent Spring totaled 40,000 copies and another 150 copies were sent to the Book of the Month Club (Frontline: Fooling With Nature, 1998). Silent Spring remained on the bestseller list for almost a year. The world was beginning to take notice. Countless experts and organizations have proclaimed Rachel Carson’s book the starting point of the environmental movement. Carson described numerous case studies where the use of hazardous pesticides, insecticides, and other chemicals led to environmental problems all over the world. Whether directly or indirectly, everything in the environment is connected and affected by each other. Silent Spring describes, in depth, the harmful effects that chemical control has placed on all components of the environment. They include: air, water, land, wildlife, plant life, and humans. I will discuss each of these categories as examined in Silent Spring along with my personal analysis. First I will discuss the damage from chemicals released in the air. Aerial spraying of pesticides, mostly DDT, began on a small scale over farms and forests. With the development of new insecticides and the availability of planes from the war, the sky almost literally turned into a shower of toxic chemicals. The justification behind the massive sprayings of the 1950âs was to exterminate exotic species...
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...Silent Spring RA Renowned biologist and author Rachel Carson, in her book, Silent Spring, describes a harmonic and beautiful town which experiences a plague over time. Carson’s purpose is to warn the world that if we continue to abuse the environment, we could very well end up like this town. She uses imagery and tone to convey that this can be the outcome of our actions. Throughout the text, Carson’s tone shifts from reminiscent and joyful to dark and lifeless to show that the people had caused this plague by abusing nature. Her tone is lively as she describes this town as a beautiful and harmonic place where life is flourishing.“THERE WAS ONCE a town in the heart of America where all life seemed to live in harmony with its surroundings.” Carson uses this joyful tone to convey the reader that this town truly was a place of beauty and life. As she concludes describing this beautiful town, her tone suddenly shifts. Her tone becomes dark and lifeless as she describes a “strange blight” that the town experienced. Carson explains how “Some evil spell had settled on the community… and there was a strange stillness.” She also explains how the people were confused as the plants, animals, and even some townspeople had died. Then, she explains how there was, “No witchcraft…. The people had done it themselves.” The people were confused as to why the town was withering away, however, they had abused the environment so much that they had caused this blight. This relates to...
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...master’s degree in zoology from Johns Hopkins in 1932. Several decades later in 1962, Carson made her first big debut by publicizing her revolutionary story called ‘Silent Spring’ – an ecological tale exploring the impacts of pesticides such as DDT. In honour of her efforts to preserve the environment, there is an international environmental...
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...heard the word ecology. b) The term, environment, meant little as a political or social issue. 2) Silent Spring by Rachel Carson a) Rachel Carson published Silent Spring in 1960. b) At about the time the book was published, several environmental events were occurring. c) Examples of these environmental events are oil spills and highly publicized threats of extinction of many species. d) Environment became a popular issue. 3) Early Days of Modern Environmentalism a) Environmentalism was dominated by confrontations between those labeled environmentalist and those labeled anti-environmentalists. b) Environmentalists believed that the world was in peril. c) The anti-environmentalists believed that social and economic heath and progress were necessary. 4) Today a) The situation has changed from the early days of modern environmentalism. b) Public opinion polls show that people around the world rank the environment among the most important social and political issues. c) No longer is there a need to verify that the environmental problems are severe. 2. Complete the rest of the worksheet based on the example above. Remember to be thorough in your answers and write in complete sentences. a. Water Management 1) Describe Water Management and Use a) Freshwater sources b) Water supply problems c) Water conservation d) Water use 2) Effects of Water Use and Management Practices on the Environment a) Short-term effects b) Long-term effects b. Three Major Types of Environmental...
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...Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring gives a strong argument against the use of pesticides such as parathion. Silent Spring was aimed at people with similar ideas to her own, and her goal in writing this book was to inspire those people to rally together and take action against what she believed was unjust and cruel. Her book proved to be a successful motivator and transformed America’s views on the environment. One of the things that made Carson’s book so powerful was its almost apocalyptic tone. Her word choice was extreme at times, but not so much that it was ineffective. Her very first sentence from the passage talks about the “habit of killing” and how humans choose to “eradicate” creatures that annoy them. Already she establishes an extremely negative view on the use of pesticides...
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...the word ecology. b) The term, environment, meant little as a political or social issue. 2) Silent Spring by Rachel Carson a) Rachel Carson published Silent Spring in 1960. b) At about the time the book was published, several environmental events were occurring. c) Examples of these environmental events are oil spills and highly publicized threats of extinction of many species. d) Environment became a popular issue. 3) Early Days of Modern Environmentalism a) Environmentalism was dominated by confrontations between those labeled environmentalist and those labeled anti-environmentalists. b) Environmentalists believed that the world was in peril. c) The anti-environmentalists believed that social and economic heath and progress were necessary. 4) Today a) The situation has changed from the early days of modern environmentalism. b) Public opinion polls show that people around the world rank the environment among the most important social and political issues. c) No longer is there a need to verify that the environmental problems are severe. 2. Complete the rest of the worksheet based on the example above. Remember to be thorough in your answers and write in complete sentences. a. Water Management 1) Describe Water Management and Use a) Freshwater sources b) Water supply problems c) Water conservation d) Water use 2) Effects of Water Use and Management Practices on the Environment a) Short-term effects b) Long-term effects b. Three Major Types of Environmental...
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...Silent Spring Analysis Silent Spring is a book that makes just about everyone think, except for the major chemical companies that it was attacking. This is definitely one book that help shaped how we look at the environment today and also how we approach it. Rachel Carson aimed for a book that was going to open peoples eyes to what really was happening and who and what was doing it. She nailed this right on the head, while the book was very technical when it came to talking about the details of DDT, it was written at a level that everyone could understand and relate too. Easily this could be one of the most important books written in American history, where would we be without it and how would our future have turned out. While this book was aimed for the public to be able to understand, it also directly attacked the companies who were manufacturing the chemicals that people were using, especially DDT. If one were to try to explain how DDT worked at the chemistry level, most people would think your insane, but Carson is able to explain the devastating effects of this chemical in a way that everyone can understand. She does this by explaining the process chemically first, but then switches gears into how it is hitting people at home. This starts in the first chapter where she begins with “There once was a town…”. This is the beginning of the account that shaped Americans way of looking at the environment, especially when it came to using chemicals and other harmful substances...
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...Section 005C June 6, 2007 Pesticides and their place in modern life In “A Fable for Tomorrow”, the introduction to her book Silent Spring, a marine biologist Rachel Carson showed that indiscriminate use of pesticides is harmful and can make the earth unfit for life. Although Carson was a scientist, she chose to use fairy-tale style of language to attract the attention of a large audience to the problem. And she did it successfully. Published in 1962, Silent Spring became a cornerstone of modern environmentalism and spurred changes to the laws. First, on an example of imaginary town, Carson showed a world without pesticides, where “ all life seemed to live in harmony with its surrounding”(469). Farms were prosperous, fields were full of grain, and orchards bloomed. Streams flowed clear water and had abundance of fish. Woods and roadsides were places of beauty with variety of birds, berries, fens, wildflowers, and other vegetation.“ So it had been from the days many years ago”(Carson, 469). Then the author showed how dramatically life changed after a mysterious white powder (pesticides) was sprayed over the area. Instead of prosperity, illness and death came to the farms. Chicken, cattle, and sheep sickened and died. There were almost no offspring, “ the young survived only a few days”(470). Woods that had once throbbed with bird voices were silent now. Birds had gone. The roadsides lined with withered vegetation, and the fish died in the streams. Much illness and several...
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...Shrestha Mrs.Naples HUSH Set:1 Environmentalism Fighting for the preservation, restoration, and improvement of the natural environment is what the environmentalist of the 1960s wanted to accomplish. They also had a main goal of the restoration between humans and their natural environment. This movement gained recognition through a publication of Silent Spring by Rachel Carson’s. Silent Spring is an environmental science book that documented the detrimental effects on the environment with the indiscriminate use of pesticides. Carson’s book opened the eyes of many because it showed the harmful toxins that were being released. This brought concerns to the American public about their safety and brought many to be concerned with their environment....
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...Keith Lyman Professor Patrick Welsh AMH2020 – 218620 21 October 2016 Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring Book Review In the environmentally historical book Silent Spring, by Rachel Carson, the horrific consequences of insecticide use on the environment and ecosystem are chronicled. Carson’s novel was originally published as a three-part journal article in the New Yorker in June followed by the publication of the book in September of 1962. The book is known for beginning the modern environmental movement, which eventually led to the banning of “the domestic production of DDT and the creation of a grass-roots movement demanding protection of the environment through state and federal regulations” (Carson/Lear 9). Carson used her widespread knowledge...
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...Silent Spring was written by Rachel Carson. It was published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Company in 1962, containing 378 pages. It’s a nonfiction book about widespread pesticides use and its dangers on both wildlife and humans. This book contains a lot of evidence about these serious charges for these pesticides and is recommended for anyone who is interested in the environment and is ready to take heed. This book is mainly about DDT and how it has caused damage to the plants, insects, birds, agricultural and domestic animals, and even humans. There are many examples from where communities are effected from the use of pesticides. The author was trying to raise important questions about human’s impact on nature with chemicals....
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...University of Phoenix Material Environmental Pollution Outline Complete the following outline using Ch. 21–25 of the text. Use complete sentences. Here is an example: Example - Environmental History Before 1960, few people had ever heard the word ecology, and the term, environment, meant little as a political or social issue. Silent Spring by Rachel Carson Rachel Carson published Silent Spring in 1960. At about the time the book was published, several environmental events were occurring. Examples of these environmental events are oil spills and highly publicized threats of extinction of many species. Environment became a popular issue. Early Days of Modern Environmentalism Environmentalism was dominated by confrontations between those labeled environmentalist and those labeled anti-environmentalists. Environmentalists believed that the world was in peril. The anti-environmentalists believed that social and economic heath and progress were necessary. Today The situation has changed from the early days of modern environmentalism. Public opinion polls show that people around the world rank the environment among the most important social and political issues. No longer is there a need to verify that the environmental problems are severe. Complete the rest of the worksheet based on the example above. Remember to be thorough in your answers and write in complete sentences. Water Management Describe Water Management and Use Freshwater sources are ground water...
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