Ketcham 1 Lacey Ketcham Professor Guenzel ENC 1102 25 February 2013 Rhetorical Analysis Draft #2 Secrets of the Supposed

American Grown Foods Ellen Ruppel Shells book, Cheap, is an enlightening work on the subject of discounts in America. One of the chapters that stands out because of the biological aspect was a chapter titled Cheap Eats. In this chapter, Ruppel Shell discusses where our food comes from when grown internationally as well as some of the disease-ridden spaces they are grown in. Normally, one would think that the government would not allow a book that discusses such topics and reveals such intimate details about where our food comes from to be published. In this way, the chapter reminds the audience of Upton Sinclairs The Jungle in regards to the shocking details about the food industry back at the turn of the 20th century. When this book was published, however, there was huge public outcry. Ruppel Shell chooses a few certain foods Americans should be familiar with and compares the average American consumers assumptions about the foods whereabouts with the surprising reality. This chapter is aimed at audiences who are unaware of where most of their so-called fancy foods come from, or most middle class American consumers. The audience, however, is probably neutral on the subject because they do not know or want to know where their food comes from, especially if it is not locally grown and was once living. The authors main point is that food that was at one time grown with care. She uses the example of shrimp and pork. Not too long ago both were considered a delicacy but are now imported frozen from several countries

Ketcham 2 in Asia where most of the shrimp and the hogs grow in filth, some writhing with disease, all because Americans want to save a few dollars. This frugality is what resulted in the improper care of these meats. Why would the growers invest money in making sure everything was clean and the animals were healthy when they would make the same profit either way? This way saves them money in the long run along with the American consumers. But it is the consumers that may end up paying the ultimate price if the wrong piece of meat is consumed. Ruppel Shell assumes most Americans have never even tasted carefully grown pork and shrimp, which is probably true for most. It seems price comes before freshness nowadays Shell seems to point out. In this chapter, Ruppel Shell uses certain strategies to get her audience to continue reading in order to consume more information. She uses shock factor figures such as how only two feedlots in a city in Colorado housing cattle produce more manure excrement than the cities of Atlanta, Boston, Denver and St. Louis combined (179). The image one gets from this is extremely unsettling, yet oddly convincing. This strategy is definitely effective and keeps the reader wanting to know more. Another effective strategy she implements is to persuade the reader to consider the future and the potential for the food industry to either plummet or grow. She starts off one paragraph with, There are more than 6 billion people on this planet and billions more to come (184). This gets the reader thinking how much food we will need in the future in order to feed everyone. The earth is already at its carrying capacity and even considering billions more is mindboggling. She goes on to say that if the food industry as well as farms and factories are to continue to grow, we must face the fact that good and healthy foods cost more. Plain and simple, she seems to say. If only it were that easy. This chapter appeals to pathos in terms that food, while a physiological need for survival, is an intimate subject. Ruppel Shell backs up her argument many times with statistics dealing

Ketcham 3 with the FDA and the USDA (181) and their actual involvement (less than 1% and 16%, respectively) in our imported foods. Her statistics appeal to ethos and logos as well and heighten her credibility and trustworthiness. Her evidence is extremely convincing, considering how many food horror stories, from rat heads in a can of green beans to maggots in chocolate bars, have accumulated over the years. Although her evidence is shocking, it does not come as a surprise. She states that Americans claim to put safety first (181) but, as we all know, that is surely not the case or we would not have so many cases of E. coli, consumption of unsafe bacteria, etc. from our foods. Most American citizens do have true desires to eat healthy, high quality foods while not making too big of a dent in their wallets, but unfortunately that is definitely not how the process works in America. All in all, Ruppel Shells organization of the chapter is effective. She introduces the central issue, talks about a few main, relevant food sources, and concludes with a personal note about what food means to us, connecting us to our culture and values. She uses an anecdote as well which, again, strengthens her credibility. There are, however, some parts of the chapter she should have left out that neither helped nor hindered her argument or evidence, such as her research on rice, and she seemed to drone on, disinteresting the reader after an eventful first half of the chapter. The authors tone is informative but has a slightly opinionated ring to it. Obviously, when talking about something so personal such as food, most people feel like there is someone to blame for the bad things in our food and Ruppel Shell almost seems to be trying to find places and people to put all of the blame, a majority of it on American consumers for buying such things in the first place. She says that if we, ourselves as American consumers, demanded fresher, safer food and were willing to foot the bill, we would get it easily. But exactly at what

Ketcham 4 cost? Most middle class Americans, including myself as a college student, buy cheaply because that is all our budgets will allow us to spend on food at this point in time. Ruppel Shell does not address this as much as she should have. For most Americans, price is the deciding factor in whether or not to buy a certain food. Do I have a coupon? Is it on sale? These are very important questions that many consider every time they make a shopping trip. In turn, this part of her argument is what appeals to pathos but in an unfavorable way. However, thinking logically, one can definitely see what she is trying to get her audience to understand. Generally, her facts seem to check out. Research should still be done on ones own time if one wishes to see if all her facts are as true as she puts them. But, judging by how many figures of knowledge she has interviewed and quoted in her book, she seems trustworthy in her credibility. She also seems, based on my own research, to be an established writer who has written other successful books as well. There are probably many conflicting views from readers on this chapter. On the one hand, some may agree that if Americans were willing to pay a bit more for the foods they buy, they would, in general, eat healthier which is what they set out to do all along. On the other hand, some are not unwilling to pay more. They are unable to pay more. Therefore, many run the risk of eating food that is not safe for consumption every day and the majority are not the healthiest. Ruppel Shell does a good job presenting her facts in a believable manner as well, which definitely plays a factor in the extent to which her audience will take in her information.

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Work Cited Ruppel Shell, Ellen. Cheap: The High Cost of Discount Culture. Penguin Press, 2009. Print.