The Vegetarian By Han Kang Essay

In his article "Vegetarianism and the Other Weight Problem", James Rachels argues that meat eating is immoral and it is a moral duty to be vegetarian. In order to discuss the problems and come up with his conclusions, Rachels considers two arguments for vegetarianism.

Cannibalism: It Still Exists By: Linh Kieu Ngo and Love: The Right Chemistry By: Anastasia Toufelis are the two selections assigned to go with the concept essay. In the Cannibalism essay author Ngo explains a different side of cannibalism. The side of cannibalism that is practiced for dietary reasons, ceremonial purposes, and survival. Toufexis’ essay on love talks about the “physical” more chemical and biological aspect of love, relationships, and romance. It delves into the comical explanation for passion and why people fall in love.

In Michael Pollan’s essay “Escape from the Western Diet,” he informs Americans about the western diet and believes they need to escape from it. The reason Americans should escape the western diet is to avoid the harmful effects associated with it such as “western diseases” (Pollan, 434). To support his view on the issue, Pollan describes factors of the western diet that dictate what Americans believe they should eat. These factors include scientists with their theories of nutritionism, the food industry supporting the theories by making products, and the health industry making medication to support those same theories. Overall, Pollan feels that in order to escape this diet, people need to get the idea of it out of their heads. In turn he

There has always been a negative remark towards people that choose not to eat meat. I have been a pescartrain, a person that abstains from eating any meat except fish, for three years and most of the time people tend to either assume that I want to lose weight or try to convince me that it is an unhealthy lifestyle. They always say, “you aren 't getting enough protein”, or one of my personal favorites, “so, you only eat salad?”. As absurd as it sounds, I get asked this multiple times either from people I just met and even my family. People often stereotype vegetarians as skinny and extremely fit; however that is not the case. Adapting to non-meat eating lifestyle can be difficult; however there are many benefits. Even though many people assume vegetarians do not get enough protein, becoming a vegetarian can decrease the chances of certain cancers and heart diseases.

Throughout time, humankind has been known for many characteristics that make it notable and fascinating. Man is praised for many capabilities like creativity, art, and altruism, but perhaps the most notable trait we claim as our own is the ability man possesses for adaptation and survival, both emotionally and physically. In the memoir The Aquariums of Pyongyang by Chol-Hwan Kang, the author details the events that led to his imprisonment, his time in captivity, and his release from prison camp as well as his escape from North Korea. The autobiographical work is not only touching because of the suffering Kang and the other prisoners he writes about experience, but primarily because the story focuses on the desperate struggle of individuals to survive and adapt to even the most horrendous of circumstances. The memoir shows the tenacity and resilience of man through its accounts of prisoners’ struggle to feed themselves and their families, Kang’s desire for comforts as coping mechanisms, and the reluctance of Kang to adapt to change.

Brought up in the southern of China, I often heard about that people from there “eat anything with four limbs except tables, anything that flies except aero planes, and anything that swims except ships”. Nevertheless, I eat more fruit, vegetables, nuts, and whole grains but less meat to make careful choices for environmental protection. Similarly, Kathy Freston argues that animal agriculture is one of the top contributors to global warming. In her Huffington Post selection “Vegetarian Is the New Prius,” Freston lists how many emissions of greenhouse gases people make when they eat meat and illustrates the consumption of tree in animal agriculture. She effectively convinces her audiences that the livestock results in the most serious environmental problems and encourages people to lead a greener diet to protect our environment. However, ardent craving, poor health, and perpetual hassle and cost prevent all Americans from being vegetarian.

In First They Killed My Father, Loung Ung writes of her family’s struggle for survival during the Khmer Rouge Killing Fields. Her purpose for writing this was to inform the reader of the hardships that not only her family but the entire country endured during this genocide and the toll that these hardships and the brutality of war can take on an individual. She reflects back on this time in her life and focuses on the importance of family in difficult situations such as the one she experienced, and she expands on the personal growth she experienced during this time in her life.

The Western Diet mainly consists of fried foods, refined grains, sugar, high carbohydrate and fats, and meats (3). It has been hypothesized that having a Western Diet increases one’s chances for developing depression. There has been a great deal of research into why the western diet increase’s one chance of having depression. A common sense reason maybe that the Western Diet consisted of large amounts carbohydrates, fats and sugars which promotes obesity and then causes depression (1). More scientific evidence suggest that having a improper diet like the Western Diet negatively affects peripheral and central dopamine, which are neurotransmitters (chemical which transmit signals across the synapse from the nerve cell to the target cell)

Shin Dong-Hyuk’s earliest memory was of the sound of gunshots and an execution. Underneath Shin Dong-Hyuk’s clothes, he bears numerous burn scars on his lower body from being held over a fire, dangling by a hook. This was after his mother and brother were caught trying to escape Camp 14 in North Korea. There was no such thing as love or mercy in the world Shin was born into. His mother was publicly hung and his brother was shot by the firing squad. As Shin watched his mother die, he felt no remorse. She deserved it and with her gone there was less competition for food. He could receive a bit more of a scarce helping of corn grown from the homemade fertilizer straight from the prisoners into the ground. This was the place Shin Dong-Hyuk called home. This is only one story from the few escapees out of the 80,000-120,000 inmates believed to still live in the prison camps. X

Typically, a parasite is known as any organism, which lives off or benefits at the expenses of another organism, its host. When the non-mutual symbiotic relationship between them end up with the host being killed directly by the organism, then it is better known as a parasitoid. On the other hand, when the organism makes an intermediate host more prone to die due to be eaten by the next host, then it is named a trophically transmitted parasite. In order to survive, they all depend on transmitting themselves from one host to another one. Some of them have the ability of manipulating their host’s behavior in order to achieve a successful transmission. In other words, the way humans and animals think or behave could be being controlled by some

My scale was my ticking time bomb. Every time I step upon it, I was a pound closer to my death. I didn’t concur with me at the time, but I was anorexic, I had an eating disorder. I was never was fat child growing up. As I grew older I did accumulate a few extra pounds, but it never became an issue until seventh grade. I became extremely fixated with my figure, to the point of not eating. I would forcefully make it a game and see how many hours I could go without eating. I would wait endless hours until my stomach ache, to the point of fainting to consume something. If I did eat the meal would consist of soup or one piece of chicken. I dropped down to a low seventy pounds that summer of 2013, and I specifically remember jumping for joy as if

Fraser’s strongest arguments for eating meat is that vegetarians are being selfish and antisocial by rejecting food made by other people. She argues that, “How often did my vegetarianism cause other people to go to extra trouble to make something special for me to eat, and why did it never occur to me that that was selfish?” (Fraser 549). It is quite hard for vegetarians to be comfortable around others because most of them are not vegetarians and when they are invited over to eat or are taken out to eat, it is hard to find food to eat. The argument helps support her thesis that “And we humans, as it happens, are omnivores” (Fraser 549). It is alright to eat both plants and animals because that is what’s best for us and we shouldn’t neglect what we truly

Christopher McCandless, a young American who was found dead in summer of 1992 in wild land in Alaska, wrote in his diary about his moral struggle regarding killing a moose for survival. According to Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild, Chris had to abandon most of the meat since he lacked the knowledge of how to dismantle and preserve it (166-168). Not only did he have a moral dilemma to kill a moose, but also had a deep regret that a life he had taken was wasted because of his own fault. He then started recognizing what he ate as a precious gift from the nature and called it “Holy Food” (Krakauer 168). Exploring relationships between human beings and other animals arouses many difficult questions: Which animals are humans allowed to eat and

According to a recent poll 6 to 8 million American’s do not eat meat, fish, or poultry. From these studies, they have been researching about the effects of a vegetarian diet on the body. Compared to most meat based diets, vegetarians consume less saturated fat and cholesterol from not eating meat. Choosing this route will have a person what would be considered a better quality of life and overall good health. Research so far has shown that a vegetarian diet reduces the risk of heart disease. In recent years a study was done using different participants and the results showed that vegetarians were 25% less likely to die from heart related problem. “This is because vegetarians tend to consume more high-fiber, whole grains, and legumes which have a low glycemic index and the body digests slowly. This keeps blood sugar levels steady. Another food item that helps reduce the risk of heart disease is walnuts” (Sixwise). This is because the omega-3s in walnuts help reduce total cholesterol. There is some controversy over this specific topic, thus, are they really that healthy? What does it mean to be a vegetarian, and what do professionals have to say about being a vegetarian?

Albert Einstein once wrote “Nothing will benefit human health and increase the chances for survival of life on Earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet.” The consumption of meat is commonly considered to be a natural aspect of human behavior, however in our modern era, more and more people turn away from meat based diets. This dietary shift proposes the question “which diet and lifestyle is healthier?” Personally, I live off of a predominantly vegan but strictly vegetarian diet (I do consume some animal byproducts, however I generally avoid these when possible). Because of this, I have a high level of interest in whether or not my dietary choices are healthiest for my body. I know that there are definitely some benefits to avoiding the consumption of meat, but I always wonder which diet is officially healthier and what are the benefits and drawbacks of each. I’m well aware of both sides of the argument, and although morally vegetarians make a much more compelling point, are their decisions actually the healthiest? My goals for this paper is to expand my understanding on the health side of these polar diets. Although I have my personal opinions on which diet is superior I want to see the facts. The majority of my research will revolve around the connection of these two diets to increased or decreased likelihood for diseases, the differences in vitamins and proteins attainable through each, the effects on quality and length of