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Earth Odyssey
(Mark Hertsgaard)

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Peyton Dallam May 31, 2007 Reflection Paper When reflecting on Mark Hertsgaard?s eye opening novel, Earth Odyssey, it really made me aware of how much better life is in America. With this, I am not trying to say that our country does not face problems; instead I am noticing, especially after reading this novel that we are a lot better off than most countries. Mark Hetsgaard helps illustrate this point specifically when discussing his many journeys throughout the world. While in Africa for example, he shows how the devastating surroundings affect all the people around him. Specifically, he details the conditions of the many malnourished people in Africa by sharing different stories related to a majority of them. For example, he describes seeing a very malnourished baby girl brought into the local ?hospital? (set up by the Red Cross) by his mother. He shares ?Only then did the village woman unfold the tattered cloth she had slung from her neck. Inside was a nine-month-old baby girl, a tiny, doomed creature with a hideously large skull protruding from a wrinkled body with sagging skin and legs no thicker than a man?s finger.? Then, once on the ?makeshift examination table? the baby ?opened its mouth to cry, but no sound came out.? Sadly however, Hetsgaard learns that this is ?normal? for so many children in Africa and ?like one out of every eleven African children, this unfortunate youngster would not live long enough to see her first birthday? and that ?the child had a slim chance of surviving.? Hetsgaard goes on to illustrate the many differences between life in Africa and the United States in a very eye opening passage by stating that ?the pace of life in Africa was especially hard to leave behind. Despite some modernizing on the surface, most of Africa remained a preindustrial society whose pace and social patterns still reflected its rural foundations; in the nicest possible way, time seems to pass more slowly there. To hurry is foolish not just because of the heat but because life in Africa is less crowded with events, possibilities, and commitments. People take the time to speak with one another like human beings instead of machines; work is a part of life, but only a part.? In contrast to this, he describes how Thailand was ?a country in rapid transition, dangling somewhere between the unhurried rhythms of impoverished Africa and the hyperspeed materialism of American homeland.? To better illustrate this point, he brings up the point that ?the car greatly expanded human?s control over the national world, providing those able to afford one with unprecedented mobility, speed, and a special kind of freedom.? However, it is the car that is also causing so many problems throughout the world as well. While vacationing in Bangkok for example, Hetsgaard reflects on how ??the pollution of Bangkok?s air had been so extreme it seemed to have a tactile quality? as well as a ??foul chemical odor that caught in the throat and used to give a headache within two minutes of stepping onto the sidewalk.? Yet despite this fact, as well as the many environmental problems related with the automobile, everyone is still unable to resist them to the point where they have become a symbol of status as well. In fact, Hetsgaard states that ?in the Third World, you?re rich if you have a car; in the United States, you rank among the very poor if you do not have a car.? In contrast however, in the movie Guns, Germs and Steel, we saw how people live with out such modern advancements, like the automobile, and perform everyday tasks by hand. This was interesting for me to see, because I know it would be hard for me, as well as a lot of people today, to not rely on such modern advancements. It was also interesting for me to learn that there are still people in the world who live in such a humble manner, and appreciate the little things they have. Seeing this not only helped me realize how I should not take anything for granted but to appreciate everything I do have. Not only that, but after reading Earth Odyssey, and viewing the film Guns, Germs and Steel, it helped me get a better insight to how others are living throughout the world, and how lucky I am to live in the United States and have access to many different modern advancements as well.



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