On Dumpster Diving Analysis
In the essay “On Dumpster Diving” Lars Eighner describes the wastefulness of Americans, how they view the poor, and how to stay safe while living the life of a scavenger. As he travels the streets with his companion Lizbeth he scavenges through dumpsters in search of the necessities of life. There are many people that are homeless in need of these essentials. In America the hardships is being described the same way in the essay. The higher class donates to the poor, but they do not realize what they are going through. The next social class is the finically higher class of the poor. These stages of life are discussed effectively. This an effective essay because it explains how society views the homeless and the stages the poor goes through.
…show more content…
He comes up with certain rules that inform him to decide whether he should or should not eat the food. Although he has these set of rules there is always going to be some form of danger. The question he must ask himself why was this thrown away. “Eating safely from Dumpsters involves three principles: using senses and common sense to evaluate the condition of the found materials, knowing the Dumpsters of a given area and checking them regulary, and seeking always to answer the question “Why was this discarded (140-141)?”” He says that if the skin of the fruit or vegetable has not been punctured then it is ok to eat, but he realizes that it could be rotten depending on why it was thrown out. He also says that if the seal on soda pop has a good fizz to it than it is ok to drink. As he talks about canned goods he says that are the safest foods in the Dumpsters, but they are not always safe. Although he is vigilant on what he eats in drink he still gets sick from time to time. Eighner states in situations where college kids had thrown away mini refrigerators filled with yogurt and drinks. Little did he know there was alcohol mixed in the drink he later became
He comes up with certain rules that inform him to decide whether he should or should not eat the food. Although he has these set of rules there is always going to be some form of danger. The question he must ask himself why was this thrown away. “Eating safely from Dumpsters involves three principles: using senses and common sense to evaluate the condition of the found materials, knowing the Dumpsters of a given area and checking them regulary, and seeking always to answer the question “Why was this discarded (140-141)?”” He says that if the skin of the fruit or vegetable has not been punctured then it is ok to eat, but he realizes that it could be rotten depending on why it was thrown out. He also says that if the seal on soda pop has a good fizz to it than it is ok to drink. As he talks about canned goods he says that are the safest foods in the Dumpsters, but they are not always safe. Although he is vigilant on what he eats in drink he still gets sick from time to time. Eighner states in situations where college kids had thrown away mini refrigerators filled with yogurt and drinks. Little did he know there was alcohol mixed in the drink he later became