Michael Pollan s Journalistic Investigation Into The...

In his journalistic investigation into the depths of industrial agriculture, Michael Pollan analyzes â€Å"what it is we’re eating, where it came from, how it found its way to our table, and what it really cost† in an effort to provide both himself and his readers with an educated answer to the surprisingly complex question of â€Å"what should we have for dinner?† (Pollan 411, 1). However, what appears as a noble attempt to develop a fuller understanding of the personal, social, and environmental implications of food choices soon reveals itself as a quest to justify Pollan’s own desire to continue eating meat despite its undeniable detriments to animals, human health, and the environment. Indeed, the mere title of Pollan’s book The Omnivore’s Dilemma as well as his assertion in the book’s introduction that â€Å"omnivory offers the pleasures of variety,† exposes the author’s gustatory preferences that prompt him to ask w hich meat to eat, rather than if to eat meat at all (Pollan 4). This preemptive refusal, due to mere gastronomic pleasure, to consider methods of eating responsibly that do not involve meat renders Pollan’s investigative endeavor essentially meaningless why would he take the time and effort to thoroughly examine the consequences of his food choices if he vowed at the outset to not allow his discoveries to truly shift his eating habits? Why would he write an entire book delving into the minute details of industrialized food production only to advise himself and his audience