As mentioned, one of the primary objectives of the common book approach is the fostering and nurturing of community feeling.  Now, creating community feeling and the level and depth of discussion it engenders is not at all easy.  Ours is a diverse community composed of many different nationalities, languages, cultures, and racial and ethnic groups.  With such diversity, finding and agreeing upon a common book that is able to generate discussion and debate on an analytical level, hold widespread interest, and be integrated into a variety of academic disciplines is a challenge.

     Keeping in mind this challenge, the focus of this guide is the ESL student who might be unfamiliar with the unique cultural context of the common book, Fast Food Nation.  This lack of cultural knowledge or context on the part of ESL students necessarily inhibits their understanding of the book thus preventing them from fully contributing to the on-going campus dialogue and experiencing the sort of community feeling this dialogue fosters. 

     Specifically, then, this guide is designed to acquaint the average ESL student with the American idioms, slang, colloquialisms, and peculiarities of culture found in Fast Food Nation, so as to give her or him not only a better understanding of the aim and argument of the book, but also provide the student with the ability to better comprehend and contribute to a common campus dialogue.  Such dialogue, it is hoped, will better enhance understanding among the many different cultural groups and enrich our campus community on a cultural, academic, and interpersonal level. 

     Schlosser’s Fast Food Nation is an excellent common book choice for the ESL student.  On a more mundane and practical level, it is common for newly arrived immigrants and international students in the United States to first find work in fast food restaurants, or, if they live in a more rural area, to seek employment at a meat, poultry, or vegetable processing plant.    Schlosser’s book is valuable in that it offers a glimpse of the sort of working life immigrants and ESL students can expect to experience should they choose that path.

     On a broader level, Schlosser’s book portrays, or exposes, the kind of corporate conglomeration that has become a pervasive influence within, and shining example of, American culture.  Indeed, as Schlosser points out, the “Golden Arches” of McDonalds is now a more recognizable symbol among the global population than the Christian cross and has somehow come to symbolically represent or epitomize the “American Way”---the very core of American culture and identity.   This is important because ESL students, no doubt at least remotely familiar with the American fast food industries’ globalization efforts, often hold a view of America, its culture, and its people much influenced by the images fast food corporations put forth.  As the fast-food view of American culture continues to spread, the notion that “you are what you eat” carries some weight; in other words, is the globe becoming more “Americanized” with every bite of the Big Mac?  Has the strip mall with its ubiquitous McDonalds replaced the family farm as the American ideal?  Reading Schlosser’s book gives ESL students an opportunity to develop important insight into American culture itself and recognize the threats lying behind and beyond the colorful façade created by the fast food industry.  Moreover, through a number of captivating personal stories Schlosser’s book allows the reader to glimpse a deeper and truer vision of America and its culture—one which contrasts greatly with the vision conjured by the plastic sheen of the strip mall fast food joint. 

          This guide, then, will help ESL students (in fact, all students) work their way through the basic outline and argument of Fast Food Nation.  To this end, this guide offers the ESL student assistance with American idioms and colloquialisms, and provides information about certain aspects of American culture that figure within the book.  As noted above, Fast Food Nation is first and foremost a book about American culture, and the typical ESL student is likely to experience difficulties relating to portions of the book thus interfering with their understanding of the book’s overall aim and argument and interfering with their ability to contribute to the common dialogue.  Finally, because Fast Food Nation offers a wealth of information and a keen insight into certain defining aspects of American culture, it is important that the ESL student who wishes to learn more about American cultural mores and practices understand at least the basics of the book.  I hope that this guide will prove helpful.

     Before reading Schlosser’s Fast Food Nation, it may be beneficial to review a few literary terms that will guide the reader through his book and allow the reader to better see the flow and coherence of his argument.  They are:

 

(1.)  Metaphor:  A Greek word literally meaning, “transfer” (“meta” and “trans” meaning “across”; “phor” and “fer” meaning “carry”: to carry something across).  (See Harper Handbook to Literature)  Thus, a “metaphor” is a figure of speech that allows the writer to make an implied comparison or contrast between two things that are not literally alike, e.g., American culture and frozen, packaged, square apple pie.  Schlosser makes these sorts of comparisons and contrasts throughout his book and they are central to the development of his argument.

 

(2.)  Archetype:  An archetype is an ideal, symbol, standard, pattern, or model.  How does Schlosser use fast food as an archetype for American culture throughout Fast Food Nation?

 

(3.)  Symbolism:  Literally, “symbolism” means that a word is used as a symbol; that is, a word not only presents its own meaning or idea, but also represents something else.  For example, a “rose” represents beauty; a “black rose” represents death.  Fast Food Nation is a book full of symbolism.  What, for example, does the automobile symbolize in the book?  How about the symbolism of Michael Gorbachev speaking at the Twenty-sixth Annual Chain Operators Exchange in Las Vegas?  (p.236-239)

 

(4.)  Theme:  a central idea of a book, essay, project, etc.  What is the theme of Fast Food Nation?  Clearly, Schlosser uses fast food as a metaphor and symbol for the profound changes in American culture and society over the past thirty years—how does Schlosser outline and develop his theme and, once his theme is developed, what does Schlosser do with this theme?

I.                    Fast Food Nation:  Introduction (pp. 1-10)

     (1.) Before his introduction, Schlosser cites Robert Lowell—“A savage servility slides by on grease.”  Often, a writer begins with a quotation that sets the tone, direction, and purpose of his or her piece.  What tone or direction for his book is Schlosser setting by using the Lowell quotation?

 

     (2.) “Cheyenne Mountain…looks like the backdrop of an old Hollywood western…[a]nd yet Cheyenne Mountain is hardly pristine… .”  (p.1) Here, Schlosser begins immediately by pointing to an American ideal or archetype (e.g., the “Hollywood Western” with the cowboy).  This archetype or ideal conjures an image of independent, honest, hard working, and self-sufficient cowboys portrayed against a backdrop of an unspoiled western wilderness.  This image portrays the archetypical American cowboy who is fiercely individualistic and relies entirely upon his own abilities and devices to survive in an oftentimes-hostile environment.  In his introduction, Schlosser draws a parallel between the rugged, go-it-alone cowboy and the mentality and attitude of the founders of fast-food corporations.  Notice, though, that Cheyenne Mountain, the backdrop that Schlosser uses, is actually a façade or “front”—underneath the beautiful, natural mountain lies a human-made military technological complex which has the ability to forever alter or destroy the clean, pristine, natural outside environment.  Throughout his book, Schlosser uses this notion of the façade.  Ironically, for Schlosser, fast food restaurants are also an appealing, shiny façade behind which lurks potential danger or harm.  Look for this notion of the “façade” throughout Schlosser’s book. 

 

     (3.) “Mid-1950s…”(p.1) The mid-1950s were an extremely tense time in American history.  Americans were very fearful of a nuclear attack from the Soviet Union and therefore the “Pentagon”(the famous building located in Foggy Bottom, Virginia, next to Washington D.C., which houses the brains behind the U.S. military complex) decided to build many installations, mostly in the mid-west and western portions of the United States, for the purpose of unleashing retaliatory nuclear strikes against the Soviet Union.  The complex at Cheyenne Mountain, Schlosser remarks, feels like the “set of an early James Bond movie”; James Bond being a fictional British secret agent who usually finds himself in the middle of some evil genius’ huge technological complex designed to destroy a major portion of the world.

 

 

     (4.) “Domino’s Deliveryman”(p.2) a person who delivers fast food pizza, usually in his or her own vehicle, with the Dominos logo attached to the roof.  Notice how Schlosser mentions that old Dominos boxes and wrappers of other fast food restaurants would provide clues to the “nature of our civilization” for future archeologists.  The connection between fast food and American culture or civilization is a major theme explored throughout Schlosser’s book. 

 

 

     (5.) “Armageddon”(p.2) Literally, the site mentioned in the Bible’s Book of Revelation where the final battle is fought between “the Beast”, i.e., Satan, and the heavenly hosts of God.  The term signifies a period of great destruction and death, such as would occur in a nuclear war. 

 

 

     (6.) “nook and cranny” (p.3) a colloquialism meaning “everywhere possible” or “all over the place referred to.”

    

    

     (7.) “…buying fast food…has become a social custom as American as a small, rectangular, hand-held, frozen, and reheated apple pie.”(p.3) Are you familiar with the phrase, “as American as apple pie?”  Apple pie is a common American dessert.  The image and message given by the phrase means in part that American culture is pure and fresh as the apple pie made from “scratch”(that is, using natural, fresh ingredients and made by one’s own hand, not impersonally by a machine or with artificial flavors or ingredients).  Notice Schlosser’s clever use of irony (refers to an understanding of reality different from the façade or surface meaning and appearance—the expression of words carry the opposite meaning of the reality); Schlosser’s point is that this symbol of American culture, the apple pie, has been altered or replaced by artificial, mass-produced fast food.  The change in the texture and composition of the apple pie is reflective of significant changes within American culture and society.  Fast food has come to represent what it means to be an American:  “A nation’s diet can be more revealing than its art or literature...on any given day in the United States about one-quarter of he adult population visits a fast food restaurant.”  A major theme throughout the book is that fast food has not only changed the American diet, but has produced a revolutionary alteration in the American “landscape, economy, workforce, and popular culture.”  Indeed, the purpose of the book is to expose these changes and the consequences thereof.    

 

 

     (8.) “America’s service economy.”  (p.4) Beginning in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s, America’s economy was no longer based primarily upon producing and exporting products, e.g., textiles, cars, steel, agricultural commodities, etc.; rather, the providing of “services” and “experiences” became the driving force of the economy.  For example, the fast food industry, our nation’s largest employer, provides a “service”(fast food) for the customer along with a particular “experience”(prompt service with a set script—‘Do you want fries with that?,’ a familiar clean and shiny environment in which to eat, prizes or treats packaged along with the food, friendly, uniformed employees, etc.).

 

 

     (9.) “Coca-Cola.”  (p.4) The Coca-Cola logo was initially spread worldwide by the American military forces during World War II—American soldiers drank it and passed it along to locals who developed a taste for it.  More recently, McDonald’s marketing efforts have made the “Golden Arches” and Ronald McDonald the world’s most recognized symbol or logo.

 

 

     (10.) “…iconoclasts and self-made men.”(p.6) Schlosser repeatedly emphasizes the irony that the huge fast food conglomerates, along with their preference and push for corporate uniformity and conformism, were founded by men who were by nature individualists and innovators.  Moreover, though usually not formally educated themselves, fast food founders would often create their own “universities” (Hamburger U) to train their managers.  Think more about these ironies.

 

 

     (11.) “Better living through chemistry”; “our friend the atom.”  (p.6) These sentiments or mindset underlie and drive the fast food industry.  Remember that fast food corporations emerged during that time in our history where Americans almost worshipped new technology, slick machinery, and automation.  Science and technology was considered the solution to all of our problems whether it be feeding the American people, producing a new, wondrous, and unlimited source of energy (nuclear or atomic energy), or protecting America against the looming Soviet Threat (Cheyenne Mountain).

 

 

     (12.) “…hardy, independent farmers whom Thomas Jefferson considered the bedrock of American democracy are truly a vanishing breed.” (p.8) A strong and persistent image Americans hold of themselves is that reflected by the “Jeffersonian (Thomas Jefferson was the writer of the Declaration of Independence and third president of the United States) yeoman farmer.”  The hardy, independent, and self-sufficient yeoman farmer, free from the corruptions and complexities of city life, possess the virtues of resourcefulness, hard work, honesty, and self-reliance.  These virtues supposedly make our democracy strong.  Throughout the book, Schlosser stresses the irony that fast food corporations, though founded by independent, freethinking entrepreneurs, nevertheless promote the large, uniform agricultural conglomerates that make independent family farms unable to compete economically.

 

 

     (13.)  “By tracing the diverse influences of fast food I hope to shed light not only on the workings of an important industry, but also on a distinctively American way of viewing the world.”  (p.9) The foundation of Schlosser’s book lies in his linking of the fast food industry and the distinctively American way of life.  What is the “way of life” or “view of the world” that the fast food industry provides for Americans (and indeed, the world)?  What are the consequences, good and/or bad, that follow from this view?

 

 

 

The Founding Fathers

 

 

     (1.)  “founding fathers.”  (p.13) This title of the first chapter refers to those men who first originated and developed the fast food industry.  By terming the originators of fast food corporations “founding fathers,” Schlosser cleverly brings to the reader’s mind the image of the Founding Fathers—those 55 men who in the summer of 1787 drafted the Constitution of the United States thus creating and ordering American government and society and instituting a “novo ordo seclorum”, a new order of the ages.  The question is:  “Have the founding fathers of fast food influenced American culture and society to a comparable degree as that the real Founding Fathers?”

 

 

     (2.) “Horatio Alger.”  (p.13) Schlosser refers to Horatio Alger, who between 1868 and his death in 1900, published a number of formulaic stories depicting how individual poor boys could move from “rags to riches and respectability” through “pluck and luck.”  Alger’s stories relate the classic American ideology of success—the view that anyone can become successful given the right amount of luck and a healthy dose of individual incentive and hard work.  Many of the founding fathers of fast food seem to fit this model.  Is the “Horatio Alger” model realistic or a myth?  How is this model or myth part of the “American dream?”

 

 

     (3.)  “At the heart of the story is southern California….”  (p.13) Southern California, for good or ill, has become since World War 2 a leading source for social, cultural, and economic innovation in American society, e.g., the dominance of the automobile in American life, Hollywood, Disneyland, and fast food.

 

 

     (4.)  “Prototype.”  (p.13) A prototype is a model or pattern used for later duplication or imitation; a first of a kind.  As Schlosser points out, the sprawling suburban freeways, strip malls, and fast food restaurants of southern California (Los Angeles in particular) replaced the sort of centralized business districts and commuter rail lines which linked older cities of the east and became the mold after which other American cities patterned themselves.

 

 

     (5.) “…revolved around cars.” (p.15) The new, futuristic lifestyle originating in southern California was automobile based.  This automobile-centered lifestyle arose largely from the American affection for novelty, technology, independence (“the wide-open road”), and conspicuous consumption.

 

 

     (6). “carhops.” (p.17) Carhops are servers (almost exclusively female) at a drive-in restaurant who would carry food to waiting patrons parked in cars; servers would “hop” from parked car to parked car taking and delivering orders of food.

 

     (7.)  “Soda jerk.”  (p.23) Soda jerk is an old term for a person who works behind the counter at a drugstore/restaurant.  He or she would “jerk” or pull the lever on a spigot dispensing soda into a glass; hence, “soda jerk.”

 

 

     (8.) I believe in Progress.”  Carl Karcher, one of the “founding fathers” of fast food, made this statement.  In the context of making this statement, Karcher thinks it perverse to miss the trees and the sweet smell of produce that used to characterize Orange County, California.  Instead, his view reflects a blind faith in the technological progress that gave rise to the fast food industry and which lies at the heart of American culture. 

 

 

 

 

Your Trusted Friends

 

 

     (1.) “Three flagpoles stand in front of McDonald’s Plaza, the heart of the hamburger empire…the Stars and Stripes…the Illinois State flag, and…a bright red flag with golden arches.”  (p.32) Why do you think that Schlosser mentions these three flags flying in McDonalds Square?  What is their symbolic significance?

 

 

     (2.) “…latter-day Newton.”  (p.32) Schlosser quotes Ray Kroc, the founding father of McDonalds, that he thought of himself as a “latter-day Newton” when a “potato” (instead of an apple!) hit his head and he thought of the idea of putting a McDonalds Restaurant on every corner.  Isaac Newton, of course, was the 17^th century scientist noted for his discovery and thinking through of the existence of gravity after being hit on the head by a falling apple while sitting under an apple tree.  Notice how Kroc’s description of himself supports the theme of faith in technology.

 

 

     (3.) “synergy.” (p.40) Synergy is a marketing concept or strategy pioneered by Walt Disney and McDonalds where different business interests combine, and thus energize, advertising and marketing ploys.  Here,  Schlosser mentions that many firms paid Disney money to use his popular character Mickey Mouse in their own advertising campaigns. “Synergy” refers to the combined energy (synthesis + energy = synergy) produced by the coming together of two or more business interests so that the profits of each are multiplied.

 

 

     (4.) “Baby-Boom” (p.41) “Baby-Boom” refers to the period in American history after World War II (1946-1964), when the United States experienced an explosion in their birthrate.  Recognizing this boom, McDonald’s and other fast food restaurants began to aim their advertising and promotions particularly at children (e.g. “happy meals”).

 

 

     (5.) “Madison Avenue” (p.43) Madison Avenue is literally an avenue in downtown Manhattan, New York City.  “Madison Avenue,” however, has come to symbolically represent the whole of the marketing and advertising agencies of businesses and corporations.

 

 

     (6.) “down to brass tacks” (p.47) This is a phrase that means “fundamentally,” or “when it comes to the end and matters most.”

 

 

    

     (7.) “McTeachers” (   ) Notice that the adding of the prefix “Mc-“ to another word, e.g., “McUniversity,” “Mcschool,” “Mcjob,” etc.,  means that the term itself is a poor facimile of, or an inferior substitute for, the term or word to which it is affixed.  For example, a “McUniversity” is one where academic degrees are not earned; they are “made to order” for the customer, or student, and given in an assembly-like fashion (just like a fast food order placed at McDonald’s).  “Mcjobs” are low paying, short-term, mentally dulling, manual-labor or service-oriented jobs the existence of which are dependent upon the whim of the hiring corporation.  (See p.68)

 

 

 

Behind the Counter

 

 

 

     (1.) “Leave it to Beaver era” (p.60) This phrase refers to a popular an influential American television program of the mid-to-late 1950’s that portrayed an idealistic view of the American family and of American culture—e.g. the affable, breadwinner father in a suit, the stay-at-home mother in an expensive dress and a string of white pearls happily doing housework, and two adorable brothers.  This term is sometimes used to describe something that is on the surface seemingly perfect, yet not real, or genuine:  e.g. “The Smith’s are a ‘Leave it to Beaver’ family.”; meaning they are outwardly a perfect family, yet have concealed problems.

 

 

     (2.) “Star Wars antimissile defense system” (    ) This term brings to mind the very popular science fiction movie, Star Wars.    “Star Wars” refers to the satellite-based antimissile defense system first proposed under the Regan administration (early 1980’s) and taken up again by President George W. Bush.  The rationale and design for this system is in part to protect the US against a possible terrorist attack, much like that of September 11, 2001.  Again, notice the parallels that Schlosser subtlety draws—there exists that same strong belief in technology that is embedded in American culture; technology, if properly directed, will service and provide for all of our wants and needs.

 

 

     (3.) “the new white flight” (p.64) “White flight” is a general term for the movement of whites from cities to suburbs after World War Two, presumably in part to escape the influx of African-Americans from the South seeking new jobs and opportunities in the northern cities.  Is there any relationship between suburban sprawl and development and fast food restaurants?  Here, Schlosser uses the term to refer to the many white suburban middle class people who migrated from southern California to the Rocky Mountain Western States and the political consequences that arose. 

 

 

    (4.) “Cold war” (p.66) The “cold war” is that period in American history between roughly 1947 and the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991.  During this period, there was not an active, direct, outright, or “hot” war between the two superpowers, but rather a largely clandestine competition or a contest using “client states,” or allies—e.g. the Korean War, Vietnam.   A large part of the Cold War, too, was the Arms Race—that is, who could mass the bigger, more effective military force?  Who could gain the edge in military technology and the capacity to destroy?  It was a period in which the CIA  (Central Intelligence Agency) figured prominently in American foreign affairs using spies, foreign operatives, and a plethora of technological spy devices, e.g., sophisticated spy satellites and cameras, etc.  Again, we see the massive importance of technology in American culture; Schlosser likens corporations to global superpowers (US, USSR) vying for supremacy, spying on each other and their customers in order to gain a competitive edge.

 

 

     (5.) “Scientific Management” (p.69) this term is also known as “Taylorism” because Frederick Taylor coined it.  It pertains to a particular approach to studying and analyzing the mechanics of work along with the proper managing of humans and technology within the structure of organizations and corporations to obtain maximum efficiency and output.  Taylor, who had been a company foreman at a steel company, closely analyzed every job in the mill, and then worked out a detailed division of labor along with increased mechanization in order to increase profits.  Now, based upon his system, management could control every detail of the worker’s time and energy spent in the workplace.  As Howard Zinn states,  “…the purpose of Taylorism was to make workers interchangeable, able to do the simple tasks that the new division of labor required—like standard parts divested of individuality and humanity, bought and sold as commodities.”  (A People’s History of the United States:  1492-Present, Perennial Classics Edition, 2001, p.324.).  Have the fast food corporations achieved this goal?  Does Schlosser give any evidence of Taylorism and its dire consequences for workers throughout his book?

 

 

     (6.) “The ethos of the assembly line remains at its core.”  (p.69) First, “ethos” is a Greek word meaning “character”:  the prevailing or characteristic tone, mood, or sentiment of a people, community, or organization.  The “ethos” of scientific management and of the fast food industry remains, according to Schlosser, the assembly line.  Workers do repetitive tasks that, as Schlosser puts it, any “moron” could perform, so that any worker is interchangeable (or expendable) and maximum efficiency results.  What are some of the consequences for the workers of this ethos?

  

 

     (7.) “The Bible” (p.69) This name is often given to any book or manual that is highly thought of or of great importance, e.g., the 4-pound McDonald’s operations manual.

 

 

     (8.) Zero-training” (p.72) “Zero-training” is the fast-food corporation’s ideal regarding the worker, in keeping with the ethos of scientific management, which holds that the worker is merely an interchangeable cog in the assembly line.  

 

 

     (9.) “Great Depression” (p.73) The “Great Depression” was a worldwide economic, political, and social phenomenon (lasting from 1929 until the end of World War Two) caused chiefly by economic imbalances resulting from the chaos of World War 1.  Simply put, in the U.S., too much wealth had fallen into too few hands, with the result that consumers were unable to buy the goods produced.

 

 

     (10.) “a ‘rough school’, a ‘gang school’ (p.79) These are terms used for problem schools, usually located within a lower class, minority dominated area.  Low funding, low-test scores, drugs, high teen birth rates, and gang activity characterize such schools.

 

 

    

Success

 

     (1.) “Welcome to my office.”  (p.91) Humorous phrase meaning not literally his office; rather, it is the place where he works—his cab.

 

 

     (2.) “…this big Nigerian bringing pizza….” (p.91) Again, many immigrants, and foreign students first find employment in the United States by working for fast food restaurants.  Understanding what lies behind the shiny façade of fast food, then, is important for immigrants and ESL students.

 

 

     (3.) “sharp guy.” (p.93) In English, the word “sharp” denotes a person who is intelligent, aware of both self and surroundings, and confident.

 

 

     (4.) “Bruce Springsteen” (p.93) Bruce Springsteen is a famous American rock musician, also known as “the Boss.”  It is interesting that Schlosser mentions this detail because Springsteen’s music is especially known for its portrayal of, and commentary about, American working life and culture.  Schlosser relates Feamster’s story in a way tht is reminicient of a character in a Springsteen song—a sharp, hard working guy who is down on his luck an trying very hard to better himself in a difficult and confusing situation.

 

 

     (5.) “Chariots of Fire” (p.106) “Chariots of Fire” is a movie about a British Olympic athlete who works very hard to overcome obstacles and win a gold medal.  The theme song of the movie is often used to accompany any story of struggle, such as that of Christopher Reeve, a famous actor (ironically, he played superman in a popular TV series) who fell off a horse and broke his neck.  Reeves message, ironically enough, contradicts and cuts through the materialistic, adopt the attitude of a superstar message that Lowe was giving before Reeve’s coming on the stage.

 

 

      (6.) “snake oil.” (p.107) “Snake oil” refers to a worthless liquid, supposedly possessing a medicinal or healing property that is sold to unsuspecting and gullible people for profit.  Whatever is described as “snake oil” is a sham, a deceit, and even possibly harmful.

 

 

     (7.) “pitch” (p.107) A “sales pitch”, i.e., a script or set speech someone uses to sell something.  Notice that the next speaker after Reeve, oblivious to Reeve’s message, launches right into his “pitch” about his new method for success.  How is this attitude of “giving the sales pitch” and following models of behavior that lead to success and riches reflective of the fast food industry?  Of American culture in general?

 

 

II.                  Meat and Potatoes
Why the fries taste good

 

 

     (1.) “sacrosanct” (p.114) When something is described as “sacrosanct,” it means that it is held to be sacred and valued to the highest degree.

 

 

     (2.) “Mr. Spud” (p.116) “Spud” is a slang term for potato.

 

 

     (3.) “Spudnick” (p.117) “Spudnick” is a funny and humorous play-on-words comparing or linking their potato machinery to the Soviet’s Sputnik rockets and expeditions, one of which was the first to orbit the earth.

 

 

     (4.) “sharecroppers” (p.119) Literally, the term “sharecropper” is a reference to a system of agriculture set up in the southern states after the American Civil War (1861-65).  In this system, a landowner (often the former slave plantation owner) allows his tenants (often the former slaves) to live and farm on his land in return for a percentage of the crops grown (often 50% if the landowner supplied the necessary farm implements and tools as well as land).  In Fast Food Nation, the potato farmers are worried that they will be put out of business by the large agricultural conglomerates that buy up huge tracts of land and then divide them up to poor farmers, who are then charged with managing the land.  In these “joint ventures,” processing companies and conglomerates provide farmers with potato seeds and the necessary financing for their crop.  In return, the farmers give up a large portion of their crop and/or pay rent for the land.  Is Schlosser’s comparison of the plight of present day potato farmers with that of the sharecroppers reasonable?  What version of the American Dream do the processing companies and conglomerates hold?  What version of the American Dream do the potato farmers hold?

 

 

     (4.) “Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory.”  (p.121) “Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory” is a movie, released in the early 1970’s, where Willy invites those kids who win a prize into his mysterious and wondrous chocolate factory.

 

 

     (5.) “1992 Christopher Columbus” (p.123) Christopher Columbus did in fact make his voyage for the purpose of making money by obtaining the spices of the Far East.  Unfortunately for him, America was in the way.  Still, he did manage to make money despite his misfortune.  This is another example of how food (Columbus’ search for spices) is able to influence history and culture. 

 

 

 

On the Range

 

     (1.) “Stock-car racing” (p.135) A sport, popular in the Midwest and Rocky Mountain west, where stock cars (often financed by local businesses so that they may advertise on the sides of the cars) race noisily around an oval strip of track.

 

 

     (2.) “new range war” (p.137) Here, Schlosser refers to the economic struggle between big meat packing companies and private ranchers.  The ranchers accuse the companies of using unfair tactics to control the market for cattle and driving down the price of beef.  Private ranchers are thus being put out of business by the large conglomerate agricultural businesses.  Notice that, as Schlosser points out, the symbol of the strong, independent, and self-reliant rancher/cowboy (and his version of the American Dream) no longer exists in reality—it has been replaced by that of the big, technologically-driven, monopolistic corporation.

 

 

     (3.) “amicus brief” (p.144) Technically, an “amicus curiae” brief is a legal phrase (from Latin) which means literally “friend of the court.”  Such briefs allow groups or individuals who are not parties to the litigation, but have an interest in it, to attempt to influence the outcome of a case.  For example, in a case involving a proposed feedlot an environmental group, though not at all a party in the litigation itself, may file a “friend of the court” brief outlining the environmental dangers of the feedlot and therefore perhaps influence the minds of the litigants or the judges.

 

 

Cogs in the Great Machine

 

 

     (1.) “Ghettos” (p.   ) “Ghettos” generally refer to a particular section of a city, or in this case a more rural area, where members of a national, cultural, or racial group live or are restricted.

 

 

     (2.) “IBP Revolution” (p.154) This term refers to the “Iowa Beef Packers,” a large meatpacking conglomerate that effectively took away the power of the worker unions. Notice who the IPBP is driven by and implements the same management principles as McDonald’s – it establishes a production line with technology so as to eliminate the need for skilled (and highly-paid workers).  The company wanted cheap labor.

 

(3) “La Cosa Nostra”  (154) This term refers to the Sicilian Mafia--IBP, in its efforts to break and stiflele unionized labor, stooped to consorting with the mob, a criminal element.

 

 

(4)          “Archeological site” (157) – a place where excavations and study of old artifacts of past cultures and civilizations are conducted.  The abandoned industrial park, for Schlosser, is a remnant and symbol of a bygone culture – the companies left Chicago and the large industrial parks and moved west in their search for cheap labor and profits.  Consider, again, how food (beef) has changed the landscape and culture of the west.

 

(5)          “scabs” (??) -- A derogatory term for people hired by a company to replace unionized employees who are on strike.

 

(6) “real costs” (162) –Be aware of this important phrase of Schlosser’s.  There are always hidden costs to the migrant workforce for taking the available “McJobs” provided by the meatpacking companies.  In what sense is Fast Food Nation really about the “real costs” of the American love of technology, material success, and fast food?

 

Chapter 8:  The Most Dangerous Job

 

(1)  “crank” (174) --  The drug met amphetamine.  It is argued that there is a high demand for this drug in rural areas in order for workers to better perform their high-speed assembly line jobs in meatpacking and other food processing plants.

 

(2)  “Simon Legree” (175) -- a character from Harriet Beecher  Stowe’s book, Uncle Tom’s Cabin , who is the plantation’s very cruel supervisor of the slaves. 

 

How have labor practices improved (or not) since Fast Food corporations have emerged?

 

(3)  “truly biblical proportions” (190) -- A phrase used to compare something to those events of a grand and wondrous scale that occurred in the Bible.  For example, Moses plagues upon the Egyptians, God’s destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, the Babylonian’s sack of Jerusalem and dispersal of the Jewish tribes, the resurrection from the dead of Jesus, etc.

 

Chapter 9:  What’s in the Meat

 

(1)  “shit” (197) -- excrement or feces of mammals.  Also used to swear.

 

(2)  “the bug” (201) --another term for a virus.  For example, the “flu bug” refers to having “caught” the flu virus.

 

(3)  “Upton Sinclair” (204) -- American novelist and social activitist.  Schlosser refers many times to Sinclair and his most famous novel, The Jungle, a book about the horrible struggles of workers in a turn of the century meat-packing plant.  Schlosser keeps drawing a parallel between present day working conditions and those of Sinclair’s time. 

 

How much have the working conditions changed?

 

(4)  “The Antichrist” (208) -- Literally, in Christian theology, a “false prophet” and power that, at the end of history, appears like Christ pretending to bring ultimate redemption, when in fact he intends to destroy Christ’s work (anti/against or opposed to Christ).  The antichrist will draw a portion of Christ’s followers to abandon the true faith.  Here, in the book, Schlosser wants to stress the antipathy and stress between the workers and the meatpacking industry.

 

How has the author created “devil” and “savior” entities in this text?

 

(5)  “He has an optimistic faith in the power of science and reason” (210) -- Notice this theme throughout the book -- this is an attitude shared by both Fast Food corporations and their opponents and critics.  

 

How have you seen this argument in today’s version of the  American Dream?   Has technology been a magic answer to social problems much the same way as westward land expansion once was?  How are other countries in the world looking toward technology as an answer to the social, economic and other problems they face?

 

(6)  “Irradiation” (217) -- Again, another example of Americans turning to science and technology to control the effects of a problem, yet not addressing the cause of the problem.

 

Is this a common tactic in protest politics or is it an exception?  Perhaps go the extra mile and research how local Southern Minnesota activists have opposed the proposed feedlot in Dodge County.  Similarly, how have Preston community members opposed tire burning?

Ch. 10: Global Realization

(1)  “Hermann Goering and Joseph Goebbels” (226) -- These are two of the most powerful nazis in Hitler’s Germany (1933-1945).  Goebbels was Hitler’s Minister of Propaganda and proposed Germany’s Total War Plan.  Goering was the founder of the German  Luftwaffe,  or air force, and as Reichsmarshall, was party to the carrying out of Hitler’s Final  Solution, the extermination of Jews and the other “undesirables” (mentally ill and disabled, etc.) in concentration camps.

 

(2)  Kristallnacht (226) -- literally, “night of [broken] glass,” where Jews were systematically arrested and Jewish businesses were vandalized (i.e., shop windows broken).

 

(3) “Glasnost and perestroika” (228) -- Refers to the Soviet Union‘s “openness “ to the west and “reform” or movement towards capitalism -- the twin pillars (an expression meaning base) upon which Gorbachev’s regime was based.  These reforms led to the eventual downfall of the Soviet regime and the end of communism in Russia.

 

(4)  “Global Realization” (229) -- This is McDonald’s term for their efforts to place their franchises all over the world.  It reflects McDonald’s effort to create a  homogenized “McWorld,” spreading American culture all over the globe.  Indeed, Schlosser points out that such franchising is very much encouraged by American foreign policy--why do you believe this is so?