TMA02: “Rubbish has no value “ In this essay i want to discuss and analyse rubbish and it’s value. Rubbish has been described as something with no value, however value is a complex term and does not complete a clear picture of rubbish. To define rubbish clearly I want to discuss the relationship between rising affluence and consumer society and how they have produced more rubbish. Also what rubbish means to different people and who are the winners and losers in the mass generation of rubbish. I will also look at the sustainability of affluent societies, its effect of the environment and why negative externalities should be but are often not considered in the valuation of goods. Using Thompsons theory of rubbish(1979) and Baumans …show more content…
They are seen to be valued in society and are socially included and have a valued identity. The opposite to which is they repressed whom consume less are often socially excluded and have devalued identities. People can move in an out of these groups depending on their income and circumstances. Advertising and social norms put pressure on people to become part of the seduced group whom consume more. Women entering the work place, households having dual incomes, the rise in the supermarket whom have low cost items allows people to consume more on smaller incomes and the decline in repair services are all factors in the rise of consumption and therefore more rubbish is produced. Now that we know some of the reason why rubbish has increased in modern society we can look more closely at the value of rubbish. I opened this essay saying that rubbish is often referred to something with no value. Rubbish sometimes can go from being worthless to being of worth again. We can use Thompsons theory ( Thompson, cited in Brown, 2009 p.123 ) to examine this . Rubbish can be often seen as something offensive or not wanted. Take for example household waste , it has to be disposed of or it would cause offence. General house hold waste is worth nothing to an individual , however to a company who collects this waste and gets paid to do so is big business. Not only are they providing a service but are also recycling some of the raw materials to be reprocessed. To a household
Heather Roger claims our current garbage disposal methods are short term and etiquette. Rogers’s position is clear that we need to minimize the use of landfills and create better means to discard trash. In supporting Rogers’s environment views I think that we need to create a more economic and environmental friendly garbage disposal system. Heather Rogers and Lars Eighner both acknowledge the issue with society’s throwaway mentality. Eighner proves that we throw away perfectly working stuff, having survived off others discarded materials. Eighner argues against excessive waste we create but does not have any prospected solutions. Whereas Rogers acknowledges the obvious need to minimize our consumption of waste but argues the need
“Waste” is a short essay in which Wendell Berry critically analyzes the growing epidemic of trash that is polluting the nation’s land, waterways, and the air. Berry explains to the readers how the remnants of floods and litter that leave farmlands scattered with trash, makes more work for the farmers who have to rid their land of the trash before they can use it. Along with the floods, roads and highways also lead to a barrage of garbage from people who are too lazy or ignorant to take proper care of their garbage, which Berry claims leads to “. . . a constant precipitation of cans, bottles, the plastic-ware containers of fast food joints, soiled plastic diapers, and sometimes whole bags of garbage,” (Waste 1) along the edges of their fields. The garbage of the country continues to be a burden for everyone, whether it impacts them directly or not. Although it would be impossible to eliminate garbage completely from the country, the waste could be greatly reduced. Most of today’s trash is a consequence of the laziness of American society.
In today’s society, there is an abundance of waste. This is clear in observing how people live, we often throw out items because we want something better. Lars Eighner, author of "On Dumpster Diving," writes about his experiences being homeless and how he survived on the waste of others. This provides insight on how the phrase "one man's trash is another man's treasure," is true. Jeremy Seifert, who directed the documentary Dive!, also talks about how he survives off of other people's waste, but this was a decision he made. As they tell of their experiences, Seifert and Eighner both come to the conclusion that society is wasteful. While both individuals provided good information, I believe Seifert presented the better argument. Both of
Today’s population being a waste generation is difficult to derive from the definition of dumpster. In addition, the motivation to capitalize such a simple word as “dumpster” seems absurd. In other terms, this essay did not establish educated ethos like that of the first essay.
Many individuals are accustomed to waste at least a portion of what they buy, whether it is food, clothes, furniture, supplies, or materials worldwide. According to the article: “On Dumpster Diving” many valuable items were found by the homeless who searched the dumpster for food. Surprisingly, they found useful items that helped them survive throughout each day. In fact, the products were worth for the exchange of money. At certain times, I myself may be considered to be a wasteful person during certain times such as, not finishing my drink and throwing more than half of it away. While rushing at work during break, this is a usual situation for many people Although, it isn't necessarily on purpose it is considered wasteful, valuable and influence advertising.
One man’s trash is another man’s treasure, or so the saying goes. What this classic idiom portrays is the idea that value is something entirely subjective, what is useless to one person is highly valued by another. Furthermore, the use of the word “treasure” implies a value so great it is almost incomprehensible; a treasure is something so valuable and important that it is cherished and held dear. The difference between something of value and something that is a treasure is generally an emotional attachment or reaction to the treasure.
In Matt Porter’s video, “Freegans: Creative Living Outside of Capitalism” a gentleman states, “Our waste can feed a nation.” In this case, some of America’s waste is feeding the scavengers. Homelessness can lead to dumpster diving for a means of survival. These people dig through thrown out items that can still be eaten and used. One man’s discarded garbage, in turn, can become another man’s lifeline. “Almost everything I have now has already been cast out at least once, proving that what I own is valueless to someone,” (362) Eighner confessed about some of the treasures he has gathered from dumpster diving. Because the general public missuses its resources, dumpster finds are either used for personal gain, such as eating, or they will be
In conclusion people over consume more than they need and more than they want. People relate to the more money, goods, better education or higher paying career they
A) A contemporary problem raised in “On Dumpster Diving” by Lars Eighner Is the amount of wealth spent by consumers, and the effect of that. Consumers spend too much money and waste even more when they throw food and clothing away. In the essay he explains the way of life as an scavenger and how to demonstrate how people are able to live by the minimal resources although most consumers continue to buy things they do not need and continue to waste resources that may be valuable to others. Aside from food, he additionally describes the emotional impact that living out of a dumpster can have on a person. He describes finding sad things such as "abandoned teddy bears, shredded wedding books, and pets lying in state." Seeing the pets makes him think about his dog Lizbeth and how she is likely to end up with a dumpster as her final resting place, as Eighner does not see himself having a place for her before she passes on. Rummaging causes Eighner to consider how much individuals underestimate, including the way that they can purchase something new to replace something old that they have discarded. He feels frustrated because of the individuals who don 't have that extravagance.
Verdant portrays them as the materialistic family, and always wanting more. He starts explaining how much money the Binges spends, which out limits their credit debt. With the money they spend, they purchase an excessive amount of electronic devices, disrupting their “relationships with friends and neighbors to suffer in this environment, because after all, for them, consumption is a form of aggressive competition” (Verdant, 156). In contrast of the Ables, the Binges have their wishes fulfilled with all the luxury materials they purchase, but are fully in debt and stressing. The author states their impulsive purchases affects the economy and the environment because of the shopping bags they always throw out, polluting the
The growth of consumption has caused a large increase in rubbish. This is due to people having more choice when out shopping. Many years ago women stayed at home and men went to work but now that both men and women are out earning there is a lot more disposable income which ends with people buying luxuries and upgrading items they already have. This results in the old ones being thrown away. People are constantly upgrading and renewing items to better models. Mobile phones bring out new models every year which people feel the need to buy to keep up with the trend and because they want the newest gadgets on the street. Pcs have changed to laptops which gives the pc no home except out to be collected on bin day. This causes a problem
The pie charts show how much each five types of garbage (including ‘other’) was wasted in America in 1990 and 2005. According to the two graphs, there are some changes in percentage of household wastes in the 15 years.
People tossing out trash means that they don’t care what happens to it as long as it’s out of their car or house. People should think of the impact they can cause the environment if they recycle properly, reusing water bottles, and when they go grocery shopping bring a reusable bags that won’t be thrown out into streams and lakes that will cause pollution to the environment. If someone throws garbage where it shouldn’t belong then throw it out for them to keep the environment clean.
(Amaral). The lack of proper disposal of trash is contributing to the existing problem of plastic pollution. Without changing our habits, the garbage patch will only continue to grow (Kostigen).
There are some reasons for the problem. The first reason is that the effects of the thrown rubbish are very dangerous and extremely harmful. According to Miller (1987), global industrial organizations produce over 80,000 different chemicals (para. 5). Basically, garbage is old, dirty and wet, so that it is a perfect place for bacteria and other viruses to stay in. Rubbish growth in cities has been a problem all over the world for centuries. Landfills have always been regarded as sources of illnesses and unpleasant smells. The harmful wastes from the garbage spread through the ground from paint, chemicals, petrol, batteries, and other toxic materials that have been thrown away into the garbage. The toxic chemicals get into the water pipes and spread through the people’s drinking water. Another reason of that problem is that people have created all these disasters, which are connected with environmental pollution. The more modern technologies are created, the more unbelievable become wastes and remains of what is produced. From this, man is responsible for what he or she created and for the following consequences. Anxieties about the environment have made people more aware of their environmental footprints or the kind of waste they leave behind during their existence. The difficulty is that an average person leaves an incredible amount of wastes in his or her lifetime. According to Lovejoy (1912), all biodegradable substances, contained in