Summary Of The Plastic Pink Flamingo A Natural History

In her essay “The Plastic Pink Flamingo: A Natural History”, Jennifer Price examines the implication s of the pink flamingos’ ascension in American culture. The image of a bold pink flamingo seemed to appear on lawns across the nation seemingly overnight. Price’s consideration of the flamingo’s role in American history and in contemporary times, alongside its flashy colors paints a clear picture of the American mindset. Price initiates her essay by bringing attention to the significance of America’s favorite lawn adornment specifically being a flamingo. Interestingly, the flamingos past treatment at the hands of American did not seem to indicate fondness for the bird. Price mentions how in the late 1800s, flamingos had been hunted to extinction in Florida for their plumes and meat. The bird’s sudden resurgence (albeit in plastic form) could be attributed to the fact that it had become tantamount to wealth. Bringing back a pink flamingo flamboyantly poised in “a sea of grass” gave people a way to flaunt their ability to vacation in Florida. …show more content…
She alludes to cultures who for years had regarded the flamingo as special: “Early Christians associated it with the red phoenix…in Egypt, it symbolized the sun god Ra…in Mexico and the Caribbean, and it remains a major motif in art, dance, and literature”. The flamingo already had an established reputation, and it was only a matter of time until its visage finally made an impression on the American people in in the 1950s. Eventually, the flamingo and its bright pink plumage would be recognized as a mascot of