The Mother of Environmentalism

The environment as we know it today is an incredible marvel that has developed over
billions of years. In this time, plants and animals have developed specific adaptations to survive
in life. Biologist Rachel Carson discusses how the self-interested actions of humans is rapidly
reversing these countless years of natures development in her book, Silent Spring. Carsons
book serves as a scathing expose of the practice of using pesticides. This passage from her
book showcases Carsons writing prowess by employing anecdotes, harsh & focused rhetorical
questioning, and combative diction. This passage from Silent Spring highlights the effects of
scouring the earth with dangerous toxins. Carson begins her argument by outlining how these
toxins affect the animals. She then draws attention to the tragic effects such poisons have on
people. Carson concludes her argument by honing in on the cause of horrific abuses to the
environment: bystanders who do nothing to end this perversion of the earth caused by these
poisons.
Carson establishes her argument in the first two paragraphs through concrete facts and
anecdotes. The crux of her argument is that abuses towards nature are due to human
selfishness. This plight of selfishness has led farmers to bathe the earth in a poison known as
parathion. This pesticide is designed to eradicate any birds that may serve as an inconvenience
to a farmer. Carson stresses that parathion does not only harm pests, but it acts as a universal
killer(28). This combative language is designed to reveal the malicious intentions of these
farmers: farmers who intend to employ a murderous poison upon innocent animals in order to
better their own life. Her claims of the destructive nature of parathion are corroborated through
an expert testimony by the Fish and Wildlife service. In their view the treatment of parathion
constitutes a potential hazard, to humans, domestic animals, and wildlife(10-12). This poison
is used by farmers to control, or in actuality kill, birds, yet the government would argue that far
more than a few birds are affected by this poison. This governmental organization makes it clear
that this pesticide affects not only wildlife, but also domestic animals and people as well.

Farmers greatly underestimate the sheer death toll that such a poison can create. In fact, the
Carson describes an anecdote in which a casualty list included some 65,000 red-winged
blackbirds and starlings(24-25) were caught in the crossfire of parathion. In this example
Carson coalesces factual evidence, with the war-like diction of the casualty list to drive her
claim home. Carson makes it very apparent that this is not a minor or isolated incident that
should be discounted, but rather a prolific issue in agricultural practice. Incidents such as this
take years for the ecosystem, in fact the ecosystem may never fully recover. The saddest
aspect of this entire issue of troublesome birds is that these birds can be deterred in a far safer
manner. This issue could have been negated if the farmers merely changed to a different variety
of corn that is inaccessible to the birds. Instead of being spared, these birds and other animals
have unfairly been condemned by a judge or jury who neither knew of their existence nor
cared(31-32). Through these words, Carson asserts that humans are becoming indifferent to
the needs of nature.
The third paragraph concentrates on the aftermath of an area treated with parathion, and
how it affected humans. Rachel Carson points to an episode at some orchards in California that
were sprayed with parathion.There was a case in which workers collapsed and went into shock
upon handling foliage that been treated a month earlier(35). These workers learned first hand
that these chemicals linger for weeks after they have been sprayed. This further shows the
lasting effects of parathion on an area. Carson uses a plethora of relatable anecdotes to affirm
that the effects of these poisons is closer to home than you may think. This idea is expressed
through the hypothetical situation of a boy wandering in a misguided search of unspoiled
nature(41). In the case of the workers, they survived their sudden state of shock only through
skilled medical attention. A lone boy in the woods, an innocent stroller, would have no idea that
the fields that they are about to set foot in is coated with a lethal film(44). A lone boy would not
have immediate access to medical care like a worker might. A lone boy could be seriously
injured due to the gross negligence, and selfishness of farmers who want to cut corners and

spray pesticides sporadically. All of these ideas in this paragraph are voiced through an
onslaught of piercing and deliberate rhetorical questions. Carson chooses this line of
questioning to make the wrongdoings of these farmers unequivocal.
To conclude her argument, Carson dwells on the reason that the actions of pesticideabusive farmers have gone unchecked. Carson points to bystanders who have allowed this
continued distortion and abuse of the earth. Carson draws out her thoughts through a run-on
sentence from lines 51-56. This section is filled with impassioned diction that creates pathos
and forces the reader to reflect on how they have indirectly caused the unselective bludgeon of
insecticidal poisons(56). The purposeful run-on slows down the pace of the passage. This
syntax commands the reader to meticulously evaluate each and every word. Thus the lasting
effect of the words on the reader is a prolonged one. On top of this, extensive questioning is
employed to reveal that the decision is that of the authoritarian temporarily entrusted with
power(61-62). The word choice of authoritarian highlights the illogical and inequitable manner
that the environment is looked upon and violated. As it would turn out, the very people who
neither knew nor cared of the full effects of these poisons are the ones deciding on how these
chemicals are to be used.
When Rachel Carsons book Silent Spring hit the shelves in 1962, she inadvertently
commenced a movement of environmentalism. Her words awakened the people of America to
fight against pesticide use, ban the insecticide DDT, and pressure the government to start the
Environmental Protection Agency. Her ability to move the nation towards a cause was beyond
belief. Each era has a book that defines that generation. In the 1850s, Harriet Beecher Stowes
book, Uncle Toms Cabin had such powerful ideals that it provided a spark for igniting the civil
war. In the early 1900s, Upton Sinclairs The Jungle led to the Progressive Era which brought
about nationwide reforms in all walks of life. And Now Carson has sparked the environmentalist
movement with her book Silent Spring. None of this would have been capable if Carson had not
imbued this book with her poignant language teeming with pathos, logos, and ethos.