David Foster Wallace reads “Consider the Lobster“ (on the 2003 Maine Lobster Festival)
Originally published in the August 2004 issue of Gourmet magazine, this review of the 2003 Maine Lobster Festival generated some controversy among the readers of the culinary magazine. The essay is concerned with the ethics of boiling a creature alive in order to enhance the consumer’s pleasure, including a discussion of lobster sensory neurons.
Check out these David Foster Wallace books on Amazon!
A Life of David Foster Wallace:
Conversations with David Foster Wallace:
Infinite Jest:
Join us on Patreon!
Donate Crypto!
Share this video!
Get Two Books FREE with a Free Audible Trial:
“Is it all right to boil a sentient creature alive just for our gustatory pleasure?“ This was the question posed by the renowned late author David Foster Wallace in “Consider the Lobster.“ Wallace, who was hailed by critics as a literary genius, wrote this article “to work out and articulate some of the troubling questions that arise amid all the laughter and saltation and community pride of the Maine Lobster Festival.“ Gourmet editors may have gotten more than they bargained for, but Wallace’s words echoed the concerns of thinking people everywhere.
For Wallace, the Maine Lobster Festival inspired an unflinching inquiry into the ethics of boiling an animal alive. His article highlighted two specific coping mechanisms that people adopt when confronted with the reality of animal suffering--avoidance and denial. Wallace admitted that his “own main way of dealing with this conflict has been to avoid thinking about the whole unpleasant thing.“ However, upon arrival at the Maine Lobster Festival, he found that “there is no honest way to avoid certain moral questions.“
Wallace’s article explored the excruciating pain that lobsters feel when they are boiled alive, taking both scientific evidence and his own observations into account. He expands his analysis to consider the question of eating meat in general, as well as the deeper question of how humans relate to other animals. Read the full article here.
This essay was republished in Wallace’s eponymous collection of essays.
Checking out the affiliate links above helps me bring even more high quality videos to you by earning me a small commission on your purchase. If you have any suggestions for future content, make sure to subscribe on the Patreon page. Thank you for your support!
1 view
48
4
1 month ago 00:04:09 35
George Harrison - Be Here Now (2024 Mix) [Official Video]
2 months ago 00:20:56 1
BBC Presenter WRECKS Israel’s Spokesman, Video Goes Viral in Britain!
2 months ago 00:03:51 1
Moon River (From “Breakfast At Tiffany’s“)
2 months ago 00:05:48 1
David Foster: “When A Man Loves A Woman/It’s A Mans World“ (Seal/Michael Bolton)
2 months ago 00:05:44 1
Stranger in Moscow
2 months ago 01:21:38 1
Seal - Full Concert | Live at North Sea Jazz Festival 2009
2 months ago 00:21:56 1
This is Water
2 months ago 00:06:48 1
Slipknot - Yen [OFFICIAL VIDEO]
2 months ago 01:31:07 1
The Fall of England - Dr David Starkey
2 months ago 00:04:23 2
Квартет Сергея Тарусина feat. Ксения Марущенко - Through The Fire (D. Foster/T. Keane/C. Weil) | NAG
2 months ago 00:08:18 1
Les stars disparues pendant le tournage d’un film
2 months ago 00:04:27 1
Stand by Me (Live)
2 months ago 00:32:54 1
The Artist is Absent: Davey Wreden and The Beginner’s Guide
2 months ago 00:02:48 1
The Runaways - School Days (1977) • TopPop
2 months ago 00:25:28 1
“The Unwinding” - UK short film
2 months ago 00:04:41 1
I Will Always Love You - Lucy Thomas
2 months ago 00:02:32 2
Himmler’s Ring
2 months ago 00:54:13 1
Everest · The Death Zone · NOVA
2 months ago 00:06:46 1
Earth Song (KARAOKE) | Michael Jackson
2 months ago 00:02:37 1
I’d Rather Go Blind
2 months ago 00:03:37 1
EMIN, Alessandro Safina, David Foster - Blue Eternity (DREAM Fest 2024)