The Dark Side Of The All-American Meal

“In many respects, the fast food industry embodies the best and worst of American capitalism at the start of the twenty-first century – its constant stream of new products and innovations, its widening gulf between gulf between rich and poor” (Schlosser 6). In 2001 Eric Schlosser published “Fast Food Nation.” Eric Schlosser’s early 21st century muckraking text, “Fast Food Nation,” attempts to shed light on the consequences of the fast food industry on American society. The rise and growth of the fast food industry, like the meatpacking industry, illuminates the evolution of the American dream in post-World War II America. “Fast Food Nation” is a book about fast food, the values it embodies, and the world

The All-American meal takes more out of Americans to make then at first glance. Eric Schlosser’s book Fast Food Nation delves deep into the intricate workings of the fast food industry to expose mistreatment and cruelty towards workers in the business, just as Upton Sinclair had done in the early 1900’s regarding the meat packing industry. Schlosser is able to bring light to the darkness behind the All-American meal through extensive research and personal confrontations of which he has high regards for.

Chapter four begins with a typical night on the job for a Little Caesars employee. The employee is driving to a customers house to deliver a pizza, he then collect the money owed, and drives back to the Little Caesars Pizza where he is employed at. The author then tells us about the local Little Caesars manager, Dave Feamster. He informs the readers on how Feamster was supposed to be playing in the National Hockey League, but an injury prohibited him from doing that. When a friend suggested that he become a franchisee of a fast food restaurant, he was a bit hesitant. Dave Feamster soon gave it a try and became and ended up becoming a franchisee for Little Caesars Pizza.

Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser is a nonfiction book that tries to show Americans what really goes on behind the flashy signs, friendly mascots, and the cheap and convenient food. In his book he covers three main topics: marketing, the providers, and the employee treatment in the food industry. After illustrating these issues, he explains how America could go about changing the all American meal for the better.

Many feel that the fast food industry is providing a valuable service by catering to consumer needs; that it is inexpensive and easily accessible. For people who don't have time to prepare meals, for households in which both parents work, there's no question it provides a service. But what is the true cost of this convenience? In the book, Fast Food Nation, Eric Schlosser reveals that the cost is the lives of the people who work in the meat processing plants. Meat packing is now the most dangerous job in the United States.

The story of the fast food industry and its effect on the world is well told in the book Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser. Schlosser makes the claim that, what started out as a special treat for the kids eventually ended up defining a way of life. During a brief period of time, the fast food industry has helped transform not only the American diet, but also our countryside, economy, workforce, and popular culture. The book thoroughly describes how important the two factors of money and power are in today's society. The book clearly establishes the broader thesis that as consumers, we should know what we eat even if it makes us uncomfortable by the knowledge.

The book, Fast Food Nation was written by Eric Schlosser, he discusses how fast food has shaped the world we live in today. The store is a research-based view on how the fast food industry has consisted of low cost and speedy meals. He discusses how and why it developed, working conditions in the fast food environment, how the food can be manipulated, advertising, and how fast food has spread across the world. The book is divided into two sections. The American Way and Meats and Potatoes.

Schlosser also provides the facts of Salmonella appearing in the cooking of the infamous greasy meals, “A tiny uncooked particle of hamburger meat can contain enough of this pathogen to kill you.”(201). Schlosser’s verification of insecurity in the daily meals American’s consume can tug of the heart strings of the readers. Fast food and its eye opening facts is a reminder to the audience that not only are they hurting themselves, but that the effects are also affecting the family members and the ones who care most about the individual. What’s in the meat is not only a major concern, but also a major safety issue.

He wants to show a personal account of the difficulties that everyday people endure trying to accommodate different aspects of a fast food meal possible to the consumer. By stressing this, Schlosser also shows the need for the sanitation of fast food to be dealt seriously. He directs these ideas towards the less informed of American society. Schlosser wants to reach out to those that wish to become more informed of the fast food aspect of America, and to Americans, fast food has become a normal aspect of life. Even Professer Pothukuchi, of Wayne State University agrees that “fast food is destroying us: individuals, communities, work and family life, and indeed, our very connections with the world” (Pothukuchi 1). This book is intending the audience to steer away from what seems harmless, because fast food seems innocuous, when in reality is the opposite.

Fast Food Nation: The Darker Side of the All-American Meal is very interesting and stimulating. The author, Eric Schlosser, makes excellent points in all his chapters, for example in the epilogue he describes how we can make a difference and that is by not buying fast food and by going somewhere else to eat. Also is chapter ten, he explains how the fast food industry is like a circus. However, not every chapter is as critical for people to read as chapter one. Chapter one is the most important chapter because it describes how fast food originated (the founding fathers), the chapter shows how corrupt and back-stabbing the fast food industry has become, and how gullible Americans can be.

Fast Food Nation and The Jungle discuss the working conditions for workers in United States factories during the 1900’s. Both books talk about the shortcuts that were taken in the factory and in the fast food restaurants. Fast Food Nation mainly describes the employees working in the fast food restaurants and the demands for quick service. The Jungle mainly describes how meat packaging was not regulated and every part of the animal was packaged and sold for profit. No regulations were in place for wages or what meat could be packaged and sold at the time.

From a study completed by Chicago-based Research International USA completed a study called “Fast Food Nation 2008. The panel consisted of 1,000 respondents of ages 16-65 who provided their inputs with an online survey which was conducted between March 13 through 2008. Which was based on results on fast food restaurants like McDonald’s, Burger King, and Wendy’s are gaining popularity even through the economic hardship and recession. Marketing strategy has become more of influence on kids and young American’s. As population grows and the demand increases of fast food restaurants are expanding their stores to capturing more consumers. Fast food chains are also willing to change their menus to continue to gain and retain repeating customers.

Eric Schlosser is one of the authors who describes the fast food phenomenon in his book Fast Food Nation. According to him, the biggest problem is the fast food industry that is increasing day by day. Fast food has affected not only the restaurants and the market, but also all the sectors of people's life, from the professional life to the personal one. This affirmation is sustained by Schlosser's statement: "Fast food has infiltrated every nook and cranny of American society. " ( Schlosser 3 ) The fast food industry has got into institutions and parts of the world that no one believed would be affected. Moreover, the power of fast food can be seen by taking a look at the American individual, who gives fast food different

The New York Times bestseller Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal is one of the most riveting books to come out about fast food restaurants to date (Schlosser, 2004). Fast food consumption has become a way of life for many in the United States as well as many other countries in the world. The author Eric Schlosser an investigative reporter whose impeccable researching and bold interviewing captures the true essence of the immense impact that fast food restaurants are having in America (2004). Beginning with McDonald’s, the first fast food restaurant, which opened on April 15, 1955 in Des Plaines, Illinois to current trends of making fast food a global realization McDonald’s has paved the way for many fast food

All aspects of fast food have been criticized significantly, especially since the health food trend craze came around. An argument by culinary Luddites that is often thrown around is that our ancestors never had the access to these options and lived a much happier natural lifestyle. Rachel Laudan brought these points to the forefront to be critiqued in her writing “In Praise of Fast Food”. Rachel Laudan brings the argument that individuals have always participated in the consumption of convenience based foods, the goal in growing and producing food has always been to alter produce to make it more convenient as well as better tasting. Fast food is not as new of an invention as many believe it to be. Modern mainstream media outlets have pushed the belief that processing food has been the worst thing for the well being of the human body. Rachel Laudan makes some very solid points in the fast food debate that should be noted.