Barbara Kingsolver Springing Forward Summary

In the novel, The Botany of Desire, Michael Pollan tells the intriguing story of how plants are domesticated from the perspective of the plant with regards to four specific plants.. The four plants he chose for discussion are the apple, the tulip, marijuana, and the potato. As he discusses the domestication of these plants, his overall focus is the desire that each of these plants have to us as humans. Pollan has written books and magazine articles among other pieces of literature that discuss the relationship between plants and humans. Throughout this informational text, Pollan tries to keep the perspective from the “plant’s-eye view of the world,” but he often slips into Pollan’s eye view of the world. As he talks about experiences that he has had with each of these plants and gives a little bit of their history, it was often hard to stay focused on the topic that he was trying to convey. However, I found that the perspectives that Pollan brings up are interesting to think about. The Botany of Desire was an interesting journal type informational novel that didn’t quite live up to my expectations of what it could have been.

Barbara Kingsolver’s “Stone Soup” is a personal response to society’s view of the “broken” family. Kingsolver believes that society has for too long criticized divorce, remarriage, single parenthood, gay parents, and blended families, and that alternative families deserve equal standing in our society. In response to reading Kingsolver’s essay, this paper will serve to show which parts of “Stone Soup” are supported by outside evidence and which are not.

1 Farmers may not totally understand the product value. They may not easily accept new product that they have never heard about.

Family. What do you picture? Two married parents, their son and daughter, and maybe a dog, all living in a two story house in a nice suburban neighborhood. And who should blame you for picturing that? It’s been drilled into our minds all throughout our childhoods. Through our families, the tv, the books we read. But is this really all true? 50 percent of all marriages end in divorce and of that 50 percent, 46 percent are families. So why is this “perfect” family ideal so widespread? Author Barbara Kingsolver tries to explain this in her essay: ‘Stone Soup’. She claims it’s because society is so traditional and primitive in the way we idealize what a family is supposed to be: two married parents and their children. But that’s not really the case anymore. The main idea of her essay is that the definition of family needs to be reimagined to define more of what a family means, rather than what its terminology implies.

Epiphanies are central to the plots of many novels. In the novel The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingslover, the main character, Taylor Greer, has an epiphany that changes the course of her life. After Turtle is traumatized in the park, Taylor withdraws from her and the rest of the world, believing that no nothing she does truly matters. As Turtle improves, Taylor realizes that her positive actions do make the world a better place. When Turtle begins to talk again, Taylor has an epiphany and realizes that every small compassionate action is important and that even she can help make the world a better place. As a result of her epiphany, Taylor is more willing to help others. The positive results of Taylor’s epiphany are first shown when she decides to fight for custody of

In the book Good Food Revolution, it focuses on the main point of Will Allen’s life and how he has always been around food. I believe the book does a good job with tying in different connections and references with food and with Will Allen since he has grown up around food ever since he was little. When the book states “The fate of a seed can be predicted by the health of the soil where it takes the root” I believe that Will Allen is referring and connecting it back to himself. I believe he relates this to himself because a plant's roots are surrounded by soil and Will Allen has planted his roots around farming and food. A plant needs soil to survive and Will Allen needed farming to survive. His whole life and job has revolved around planting. A plant lives off of what it knows and its surroundings and Will Allen did the same. His parents planted the seed to get the initial start in farming so he picks up where they left off. Even though he was not into farming when he was younger he learned to grow and find a  passion for farming as he grew older because it has always been around him. No matter where he went he held onto farming because that is all he knew. I believe this connection between Will Allen and the quote about the plant enhances and helps tell the story of how Will Allen got involved in farming.

Kingsolver makes a very good point when writing about her search for fresh fruit during a season when fruit doesn 't grow. She makes the reader aware of the fact that shopping for fruits and veggies out of season means we are impatient. To really make this point stick, she adds another commonly shared

Next, the authors write about how food has been modified throughout the years. They use the example of “cultivated rice, wheat, corn, soy, potatoes, and tomatoes have very little in common with their ancestors.” They use this example to go on to reveal that genetically modifying foods is nothing more than hybridization, or the mating of different plants of the same species to integrate the desired traits from several different varieties into a leading variety. The authors use the example of the tomato and how it is commonly bred with wild tomatoes to make the plant more resistant to pathogens, nematodes, and fungi while eradicating any unwanted traits from the wild plant such as toxins. This example, as a whole is a brilliant use of ethos. It displays that genetically modified foods are healthy and safe because it compares this new technology to a technique that has been done for thousands of years that has never been thought of as dangerous. More importantly, this comparison shows that the authors are credible and that they use their evidence wisely and correctly.

which Codi was bred to be distanced from is the past. As Codi grew older she

In the first few pages of Chapter Three, Kingsolver talks about heirloom vegetables and says “these titles stand for real stories.” What is meant by the title is heirloom plants give off seeds that end up being saved and used for many generations (112). Those seeds have history behind them; family stories that span over several years. For example, on page 144 Kingsolver talked about this heirloom seed exchange in Iowa where one of the founders’ grandfather left a pink tomato plant that his parents brought from Bavaria in the 1870s. The seeds are comparable to a family heirloom. Both get handed down from generation to generation and have a story of what the meaning of the object is and how it all got started.

The Bean Trees, by Barbara Kingsolver, is her first novel, published in 1988. It is a novel that tells the story of a young girl who leaves her hometown to create a new life for herself. Along her journey, she finds a group of friends who offer endless love and support, allowing her to fulfill a happy life. Although she is presented with many obstacles, she is determined to continue her journey, in which she is faced with a lift-changing decision. Taylor Greer, the protagonist in the novel, must take on the challenges of motherhood and accept her newfound responsibilities. In the novel, The Bean Trees, the author uses the key literary elements of setting, character development, and theme to create interest in a young woman’s journey through life.

Generations of families have attempted the journey from their home to a new life in the United States. Families have made the journey from their home to a new foreign land for a new life, and while some succeed in the journey others do not. The journey to the United States is very dangerous, but when the families arrive their journey is not over. Families face immigration and border services which are the last barrier to their new life. In The Bean Trees, Barbara Kingsolver addresses the different views on immigration through her many characters. Taylor is young and moved away from her home in Pittman County, she left to start a new life as a new person and was given a child on her journey to find a new home in the

Modifying plants is not a new concept. "For centuries, gardeners and farmers have been crossbreeding different species of

Society must educate itself on what type of food is healthy such as fresh or fresh frozen vegetables, lean meats, whole grains and fruits. Parents should take the time to explain what these are and why they are important, educating themselves if necessary. Families can also extend this education to a hands-on experience but starting a small vegetable garden which produces some of the vegetables they eat. Author and farmer, Sharon Astyk, and sustainable systems land planner, Aaron Newton, argue that people need to take back the control of the food selection and prices by growing their own or purchasing directly from local farmers. In their article, “The Rich Get Richer: the Poor Go Hungry”, Astyk and Newton (2015) write, “When we grow our own food, or buy it directly from local farmers, we take power away from multinationals” (p.518). I agree that society should become more involved and self-sustaining pertaining to food to retain independence from companies that are loyal to shareholders. This education will provide the current and future generations necessary resources to make improved food choices, thereby reducing the obesity and diabetes epidemics gripping our nation.

I have therefore looked at the potential of genetics to meet various aspects of the SDG goal, and used that analysis to identify a number of non-scientific factors associated with the potential of the science to make a significant impact. I have then, in turn, used that analysis to design a semi-structured interview with Professor Heslop-Harrison. This chapter will therefore discuss the various themes that have emerged including an analysis of those of the chapters, along with insight provided by an expert in the field of agricultural plant science.