The book has been through many anniversaries already, and each time the world press has marked the occasion. In the wake of the book's thirtieth anniversary, PBS produced a documentary on Carson; the book's fiftieth anniversary there was a new, expanded edition (though anti-environmental forces also seized the day with a misleadingly-titled book, Silent Spring at 50 -- though the book's subtitle ("the False Crises of Rachel Carson") hints at its hostility. Most of the press, though acknowledged its invaluable message, as with this article in The Guardian, and it's a sure bet that every decade to follow will be remarked on as a milestone.
But there's also a secondary legacy, one that arises not so much from the content of the book itself, but the new kind of consciousness it made possible. When we read about "forever chemicals" in our food and water, when we discover that our toothpaste, face cream, and soap contain microplastics, when we choose canned food because it is "BPA free" -- we reflect on the constant and ongoing relationship between us, our life choices, and the environment around us. It's a relationship that, before Carson's book, we were scarcely aware of.
And of course we face a far wider threat today, a greater one perhaps than even Carson could have imagined, in the form of global warming. Just today, in fact, the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (the IPCC) released its latest report, which indicates that unless the nations of the world take drastic action now, we may be passing the point at which it will be possible to avoid cataclysmic shifts in every aspect of our biosphere, from continued rise in sea level (the Marshall Islands may be doomed, and Florida isn't far behind), increasingly frequent and severe weather events (think of the atmospheric "rivers" which have flooded California, or the "Arctic Vortex" which has made in colder in Providence than in northern Greenland), and long-term drought conditions in other parts of the planet.
When Carson testified to Congress, Congress -- and even then- President Nixon -- listened, and created the Environmental Protection Agency as a response. Today, alas, that kind of bipartisan political will seems a thing of the past, and any actions -- let along drastic ones -- feel permanently out of reach.
In considering the political dimensions of Carson’s project, it’s worth noting that at times she has a tendency to undersell the ferocity of the opposition to her proposals, even if they would be contradictory to the overall effective, matter-of-fact approach she has to the well researched and time appropriate material. Bu that’s not to say that it’s not present. One of the passages that very subtlety but realistically acknowledges the struggle of taking on these issues is in her account of saving the citrus groves in California from rebounding insect swarms after a round of insecticide. Almost as an aside, she notes that most of the farmers could understand their situation, and embraced the solution of introducing other predatory insects to rebalance the population of the most harmful species, while ultimately having to rely on the wisdom of their neighbors to do the same and not spray their groves, undoing the entire project. It is in this simple exchange that the seemingly most insurmountable obstacles of the entire movement exist, but in some ways also it’s solution.
ReplyDelete-Daniel Grothaus
A thoughtful comment, Daniel. It seems that one thing hasn't changed since Carson's time -- the human proclivity for avoiding any problems -- and their solutions -- that require them to pause and question their settled view of the world. One of my favorite editorial cartoonists, David Horsey, commented on this just today.
DeleteThe amount of the obvious lack of care and interest from the government towards the earth and those that populate it has been made proven by Carson's book, Silent Springs. Due to Carson's book the population became aware and there have been improvements towards regulations but enough hasn't been done. As a consumeristic population, we have enhanced our problems beyond pesticides and have pushed our ecosystem into incomprehensible boundaries that hopefully, one day, we can return from. Damage is continuously being caused by our lack of unification to better the circumstances of our earth, and for some odd reason it's not on the forefront of most political conversation. Reading through Silent Spring brings a morbid nostalgic feeling that creates an interest to discover the wrongdoings we are inflicting now that will continuously effect future generations. We are now living in a time, referenced in Carson's book, "when it was supposed that nature exists for the convenience of man". History can help us learn from our mistakes if we choose to take action.
ReplyDelete-Hannah D
I completely agree with you, Hannah. I think the government doesn’t give care to our environment due to the fact that truly protecting the environment would cause the economy to collapse in on itself. Everything we do with technology and anything that requires using resources makes money and it seems in this capitalist
Deletesociety, the environment does not take precedent over other issues such as the recession
Isabella Santoro
DeleteI agree with both of you! Many think the government has never properly cared for our environment because if they had, global warming and climate change would not be as devastating as it is today. Parts of our country and the world are sinking underwater and the government is still not stepping in.
DeleteCelia Suraski
Sixty-years on, it's hard not to bear the sense that all the environmental issues of which Carson wrote are essentially intractable. Sixty years, and exactly what is there to show for it but an ever-declining, ever-contaminated biosphere? On any reflection, all the effort certainly seems a failure, which leads then to a dim view of future prospects.
ReplyDeleteThis book definitely made me think differently about the chemicals we use. It's amazing how quickly these chemicals can jump from creature to creature. Before reading this book, I knew that most pesticides are pretty much ineffective, partly because bugs develop resistance to the chemicals over time, but mostly because nothing controls pests better than natural predators. I find it interesting that even though these chemicals are clearly hurting the environment, the government still encourages our use of them and doesn't pay much attention to people's concerns. Also, I find it somewhat amusing that when these concerns do arise, rather than taking on a more natural approach, corporations just make another chemical. Clearly these people never learn from their mistakes. I hope that one day people will come up with a simpler and more natural solution to pest control that doesn't involve innocent plants and animals dying.
ReplyDelete- Elliot Varone
This book truly opened my eyes to how dangerous pesticides are. You don't really realize how dangerous they are because you only see them in a small light of going into the ground only. You would never imagine that the chemicals you put on your grass can make your own children sick. They end up climbing in the food latter and can get into the food that we eat. It's truly sad how Rachel says in the book that every human will be subjected to dangerous chemicals from the moment they are born until they die. This makes me wonder why the government doesn't take a huge stand against these harmful chemicals and if everything is for profit regardless of how toxic it can be to humans and living organisms.
ReplyDelete-Mirna Soto Razo
It’s been 60 years since Silent Spring’s original publication and there seems to be so little change. The lack of care for the Earth that the government continuously shows us, proves that saving the planet is not on their priority list. The environmental impact that the micro plastics, oil spills, and pollution has in the world and the people living in it is causing significant damage, possibly irreversible. Reading Carson’s book made me hope that at some point we can force a change for the future.
ReplyDelete