To Eat or Not to Eat: A History and Questioning of the Vegetarian Lifestyle

1239 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: vegetarianism a for and against argument research project

“What do vegetarian zombies say? - Graaaaaains! Graaaaaaains”
Though vegetarianism was never a taboo subject as are some other controversial topics, The question of whether or not human beings should live off meat still is highly discussed amongst all types of people. Spiritual leaders, activists, scientists, and doctors have spoken up on behalf of their group’s opinion. Amongst the arguments of what is right when it comes to the food chain, resonating on many a mind is where the concept of vegetarian came from. Was it started as a religious virtue or a moral decision? Perhaps it was a forced lifestyle or a diet trend gone wrong (or right depending). Health wise, which is better for us? Educating ourselves by answering these questions helps us answer the, perhaps, most important question of all. Which lifestyle will we, as individuals, choose?
Vegetarianism finds its origins in numerous different cultures. Most prominent of these are the Native American and Indian backgrounds. Though the image resigning in all our brains of the Native American ancestors is that of carnivorous men adorned out in buffalo skinned loincloths. Conversely, very rarely were Native Americans privy to the luxury of meat or “game”. They were the earliest recollection of human beings surviving without meat. The regular diet for Choctaw Indians consisted of a stew with the main ingredients being corn, pumpkin, and beans eaten from an earthen pot. Also among their favorites were bread, roasted corn, and corn porridge. The reasoning behind their lifestyle mainly all that they could find amongst their land were fruits and vegetables. George Catlin, a famous 19th century historian, described the Choctaw land as grounds covered literally with lines. Grapes ...

... middle of paper ...

...p://www.ivu.org/history/native_americans.html>.

L.D., Kristin Kirkpatrick M.S. R.D. "5 Risky Diet Mistakes Vegetarians Make -- And How You Can Avoid Them." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 08 May 2013. Web. 27 Feb. 2014.

mistakes_b_3226388.html>.

"PCRM | The Cancer Project." PCRM | The Cancer Project. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Feb. 2014.
.

"Top 5 Health Reasons To Go Veggie." Down to Earth Organic and Natural. Down to Earth Organic and
Natural, n.d. Web. 21 Feb. 2014.
.
"Yes, It’s True: Humans Aren’t Meant to Eat Meat." PETA Prime Yes Its True Humans Arent Meant to Eat Meat Comments. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Feb. 2014.
.

Show More
Related

  • More Pros Than Cons In A Meat-Free Life Analysis

    125 Words  | 1 Pages

    The argumentative article “More Pros than Cons in a Meat-Free Life” authored by Marjorie Lee Garretson was published in the student newspaper of the University of Mississippi in April 2010. In Garretson’s article, she said that a vegetarian lifestyle is the healthy life choice and how many people don’t know how the environment is affected by their eating habits. She argues how the animal factory farms mistreat the animals in an inhumane way in order to be sources of food. Although, she did not really achieve the aim she wants it for this article, she did not do a good job in trying to convince most of the readers to become vegetarian because of her writing style and the lack of information of vegetarian

    Read More

  • For Environmental Balance, Pick up a Rifle by Nickolas Kristof

    1243 Words  | 3 Pages

    McBroom, Patricia, “Meat-eating Was Essential for Human Evolution.” UC Berkeley. University of California at Berkeley. CA. Jun 14, 1999. Web. 28 Apr.

    Read More

  • Andrew Tardiff's Article: Simplifying The Case For Vegetarianism

    1081 Words  | 3 Pages

    Simplifying the Case for Vegetarianism is an article written by Andrew Tardiff as part of the academic journal Social Theory and Practice; published by Florida State University, Department of Philosophy in 1996. Tardiff was a part of the department of philosophy at Rhode Island College and wrote other articles, including A Catholic Case for Vegetarianism and Vegetarianism Virtue: Does Consequentialism Demand Too Little?

    Read More

  • Should We Be Vegetarians?

    1159 Words  | 3 Pages

    Rachels, J. (2013). The Moral Argument for Vegetarianism. In L. Vaughn, Contemporary Moral Arguments - Readings in Ethical Issues Second Edition (pp. 617-622). New York: Oxford University Press.

    Read More

  • Morality and Ethics in Vegetarianism

    717 Words  | 2 Pages

    “The assumption that animals are without rights and the illusion that our treatment of them has no moral significance is a positively outrageous example of Western crudity and barbarity. Universal compassion is the only guarantee of morality."( Schopenhauer). Vegetarianism and animal rights movement have been crossing each other since 70’s. The meeting point between two is veganism which means strict vegetarianism. Vegetarianism was firstly founded as being formed on ethical issues and then it became mostly based on health reasons. Even though vegetarianism has evolved drastically over time, some of its current forms have come back full circle to its early days, when vegetarianism was an ethical-philosophical choice, not a mere health choice.

    Read More

  • Negative Stereotypes of Vegetarianism

    2603 Words  | 6 Pages

    Years ago it would have been unheard of for anyone to not eat meat on a daily basis, since during one period of time it was considered a staple for some. However, meat eaters started to pay attention to what they were consuming once Upton Sinclair’s famous novel The Jungle was published in the early 1930’s. It drew so much attention that the Pure Food and Drug Act passed to prevent the unsanitary and hazardous practices mentioned in The Jungle from happening. However, before Upton Sinclair’s novel was published few were already recognizing the ethical and nutritional (in this time period) hazards that happened because of the commercial meat industry. The International Vegetarian Union was established in 1908 and was one of the first notable movements and the organization that brought the most publicity towards vegetarianism in the western world. This organization stood against the ethical, environmental, and economic effects the commercial meat industry had on our nation. Even with the founding of this organization many do not understand vegetarianism or veganism in Europe or the United States and thus discuss it negatively, but this is an event that should cease to happen. The negative discussion of vegetarianism has negative effects that should be avoided and will be discussed.

    Read More

  • Why I Gave Up Being A Vegetarianism

    1080 Words  | 3 Pages

    For me, the decision to remove meat from my diet stemmed solely from the belief that humans have no right to eat any living creature — period. In short, I believe all lives have equal value, even if they’re a non-human animal. An offshoot from this, which also helped fuel my vegetarianism, includes the horrendous treatment animals endure for the sake of consumption.

    Read More

  • Vegetarianism: The Characteristics And Types Of Vegetarians

    801 Words  | 2 Pages

    There are many factors to why some want be vegetarians. Many believe that it is more ethical to become vegetarian. That warm-blooded animals being slaughtered have emotions and connections and are sacrificed to satisfy the decedent meat eating lifestyle. Or let it be that we are supporting many genetically modified crops and feeding them to the animals we eat; only supporting an artificial lifecycle. Many vegetarians are born into the lifestyle; most people from India are vegetarians because of the animals they worship. It is called the Asian –Indian diets, which is predominantly lacto-vegetarian. Many choose the lifestyle because of health concerns and concerns of the environment; that we are a product of our environment. What ever we take from the world or put into it is the reason there are so many health problems, like a circle of life.

    Read More

  • Vegetarianism: The Argument For Vegetarianism

    1324 Words  | 3 Pages

    Every day across America millions of people wake up to start their morning. Throughout the day the vast majority of these people will consume meat, but 3% will replace the pig, cow, and chicken products for vegetable or fruit made meals (Harris). These vegetarians all have many different reasons to make this choice. This decision is a huge change in one’s life and is not without questions. Some people may wonder why would anyone abstain from the amazing food that contains meat. This essay will briefly explain the history of vegetarianism, the reasons for vegetarianism, and answer questions about vegetarianism. Vegetarian diets are all around better than diets containing meat because of three main reasons; the abuse of animals, the environmental damage, and the health benefits for humans.

    Read More

  • Summary Of Why I Stopped Being A Vegetarian By Laura Fraser

    971 Words  | 2 Pages

    In her Salon.com essay, “Why I Stopped Being a Vegetarian,” writer Laura Fraser uses her own life experiences to explain why she became a vegetarian, what it did to her, and why she decided to go back to being an omnivore. Fraser’s main idea was that even though being a vegetarian might be slightly healthier than a “usual diet”, and that people should not go against what they are made for. Fraser explains why being a vegetarian can be healthier for people in some places, why it is hard to be a full vegetarian, and why it is a good idea to not go against humans natural ways as a human being. By establishing her personal view and facts that she has researched, and appealing to emotions and logic in some ways, Fraser succeeds in writing an informal/argumentative essay about being an omnivore.

    Read More

  • Ethics and Morality in Vegetarianism

    1942 Words  | 4 Pages

    “The assumption that animals are without rights, and the illusion that their treatment has no moral significance is a positively outrageous example of Western crudity and barbarity. Universal compassion is the only guarantee of morality."(Schopenhauer). I always wondered why some people are not so drawn to the consumption of meat and fed up with only one thought about it. Why so many people loathe of blood, and why so few people can easily kill and be slaughter animal, until they just get used to it? This reaction should say something about the most important moments in the code, which was programmed in the human psyche. Realization the necessity of refraining from meat is especially difficult because people consume it for a long time, and in addition, there is a certain attitude to the meat as to the product that is useful, nourishing and even prestigious. On the other hand, the constant consumption of meat has made the vast majority of people completely emotionless towards it. However, there must be some real and strong reasons for refusal of consumption of meat and as I noticed they were always completely different. So, even though vegetarianism has evolved drastically over time, some of its current forms have come back full circle to resemble that of its roots, when vegetarianism was an ethical-philosophical choice, not merely a matter of personal health.

    Read More

  • I Am a Vegetarian

    2484 Words  | 5 Pages

    In October of last year I finally became a vegetarian, meaning that I chose to not eat meat products anymore. Technically, I am a lacto-ovo vegetarian because I do eat eggs (ovo-) and milk (lacto-) on occasion and not a vegan-one who doesn't eat any animal products. My first year as a vegetarian has been very revealing. Since adopting this new identity, I have learned a lot about myself as well as others.  Here I write about why I am a vegetarian and what I have learned since becoming one. In doing so, I hope to dispel some misunderstandings about vegetarians and to reveal some unappreciated aspects about what it takes to become and remain a vegetarian. Please understand that I speak for one vegetarian and not for vegetarians in general.

    Read More

  • It is Better to be a Vegetarian

    1128 Words  | 3 Pages

    For several years the issue of eating meat has been a great concern to all types of people all over the world. In many different societies controversy has began to arise over the morality of eating meat from animals. A lot of the reasons for not eating meat have to deal with religious affiliations, personal health, animal rights, and concern about the environment. Vegetarians have a greater way of expressing meats negative effects on the human body whereas meat eaters have close to no evidence of meat eating being a positive effect on the human body. Being a vegetarian is more beneficial for human beings because of health reasons, environmental issues, and animal rights.

    Read More

  • Should we all become vegetarians?

    796 Words  | 2 Pages

    Let me begin with the words by George Bernard Shaw: ‘Animals are my friends and I don’t eat my friends’. This indicates the ethic aspect of meat consumption. In fact, people often don’t realize how animals are treated, but they can see commercial spots in their TV showing smiling pigs, cows or chickens, happy and ready to be eaten. My impression is that there can’t be anything more cruel and senseless. It is no secret that animals suffer ...

    Read More

  • Being a Vegetarian is Better For the Planet

    896 Words  | 2 Pages

    Albert Einstein once said, "Nothing will benefit human health and increase chances of survival for life on earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet." As people move into a more health conscious society, vegetarianism is becoming a popular choice. While some people cannot imagine a day without meat, others are convinced that a vegetarian lifestyle is the better option. There are numerous benefits of being a vegetarian. Some of the reasons are as follows: vegetarianism has multiple health paybacks, is far better for the environment, and is morally sound. Most people believe that vegetarianism is unhealthy, goes against our natural diet, and unnecessary, however, a vegetarian diet offers many health benefits and is more ethical than an omnivorous existence.

    Read More

More about To Eat or Not to Eat: A History and Questioning of the Vegetarian Lifestyle

Open Document