Food is Everything

      In his article, "What We Eat," Eric Schlosser discusses his views on the fast food industry's rise to power and how its influence has revolutionized American culture. He scornfully states how the fast food industry, which used to be nothing more than a few hot dog stands, has "infiltrated" our society and has established chains of franchises practically everywhere. Although many may believe that our society's food choices does nothing more than affect our diet, Schlosser argues that it also plays a role in the general quality of our lifestyles by shaping our landscape, economy, workforce, and pop culture. He uses McDonalds as an example that influenced our workforce by raising the fact that it has been annually hiring one million people. He employs a method of comparing and contrasting to emphasize the extent of McDonald's influence; For example, he states that Ronald McDonald is as well-known as Santa Clause. We all know how influential and well-known Santa Clause is. Schlosser uses many other methods to convey his ideas.
         "Pull open the glass door, feel the rush of cool air, walk in, get on line..." By using such descriptive narration and process-analysis, Schlosser embellishes an experience that people have come to take for granted. By doing so, he demonstrates that purchasing fast food has become as routinely for us Americans as watching Hollywood movies and putting on blue jeans. With narration, he shows us that fast food has not only been absorbed by our stomachs, but by our American culture too.
          Schlosser analyzes exactly how fast food has caused our culture to change, and he gives his opinion on the effects. For example, he raises the fact that when the McDonalds franchises were established, they each employed the same, prescribed business model that maximized efficiency and profit. It was only natural for other industries (besides those involved with fast food) to adopt and incorporate a similar model into their own businesses. Those that conformed to this standard set by McDonalds got big while many that did not conform went bankrupt. The ultimate effect can be seen all over our country that is now filled with Gaps, Starbucks, Foot Lockers, and other franchises that have made strides towards monopolizing their own industries.
          By using a multitude of methods, Schlosser constructs a solid argument. He chose perfect times to use each method which led to flawless transitioning between paragraphs. This paved the way for a smooth flow of ideas that climaxed into his thesis about American culture being changed by food.
           I had never thought that food could be so influential, but I am now enlightened after reading "What We Eat." Schlosser does a fine job by backing up every one of his assertions with a carefully-placed example. It is hard not to agree with him.