Berry and Fasenfest

Berry

Wendell Berry truly values agriculture, but thinks that it's talked about as a business when in reality it isn't. He describes how people explain the agriculture business as a free market. However, Berry sees agriculture as far from business as do other farmers apparently. Wendell was a farmer himself along with being an author, and a cultural and economic critic. He grew up in a family of farmers. Also, he seemed to be quite the activist. He seemed to be interested in pollution, the land, and anti-war activism as well. I think he wants the reader to see the text and himself as lovers of the land and advocates for farming. He's trying to get the reader to see that there is something wrong with how this country is running. A lot of the sources of agriculture are being ruined and economics are making farming impossible for some people. I think he wants the readers of this text to think about this essay and then think towards the future. Like he says, everything is okay now while we still have the sources of agriculture but eventually they'll run out because we are a nation that like to consume and not take care of the earth and resources that we ruin on the way. He's trying to show the true grim reality of this situation for farmers themselves and the people that live in this country. He's mostly interested in environmental and economic issues.

Fasenfest

Harriet Fasenfest lives in Portland, Oregon and is attempting to make home economics more modern. She teaches classes on food preservation, she is an urban gardener, and a writer too. The businesses on Main Street that she refers to in her Intro are two cafes that she used to own. I think Fasenfest wants the readers of her book to understand that she started out probably in the place where they are; trusting the economic system, using big business, etc. Also, she wants to show how she grew into an urban gardener and why she gardens. It's obviously an important part of her life. Instead of owning cafes, she now uses her backyard for produce. She uses something natural and is connected to natural things. She also makes it clear that this thinking didn't happen overnight; I think that part is important too. It's a process. The people she probably has in mind as readers are people who may be feeling the same way she did in the beginning or possibly people just looking to produce their own food as opposed to buying from big businesses like Wal-Mart. Fasenfest is most interested in the Globalization of America I think. She describes that conference that was part of her change.

Like craft activism, gardening or farming is going against consumer America in a way. By producing food for yourself and your family (or maybe for the region you live in if you have a farm) you no longer have to rely on other sources. Creating food is still creating something in some sense, so it could loosely be seen as a craft. Also, we talked about how craft is used in every day life and certainly food is used in every day life and if you had a farm or garden producing that food it would be a sort of craft. Depending on the intentions of the gardener or farmer, I definitely think that there could be an activist side to farming/gardening.