As humans, we are forced to live in an overwhelming world, saturated with material things that distract us from the small wonders that life has to offer us. We are conditioned to value money and all the things we can buy with it. Our priorities are skewed, so much so that we forget what really matters. This idea is exemplified in the poem, "The World is Too Much with Us," by William Wordsworth. Wordsworth has a strong belief that humans are too caught up in buying and acquiring, that they do not appreciate the beauty of, specifically, nature. Similarly, in Lars Eighner's poem, "On Dumpster Diving," we see the detriment of materialism. Amidst Eighner's life of living from a dumpster, he voices his opinion about society as a whole. He believes
…show more content…
Carelessness is human nature. There are many things that we take for granted and do not take our time with. Eighner's theme of carelessness is prevalent in his essay. One of his main critiques involves a pizza parlor and the customers that go to it. "Such shops often get prank orders, called ‘bogus.' Because help seldom stays long at these places, pizzas are often made with the wrong topping, refused on delivery for being cold, or baked incorrectly" (2). Basically, he tells the reader that people – college students in particular – prank call the pizza shop and place false orders just to amuse themselves. However, what they are not aware of is their blatant rudeness. Food should not be taken for granted, as many people do. To do something like make a false order or to be so picky about the pizza is extremely rude. Eighner believes that society as a whole is dreadful and needs to care more. Much like Eighner, Wordsworth is also in favor of the idea that humans are careless. In his poem, he writes, "We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!" (4) and "we are out of tune" (8), meaning that we have lost all of our compassion and mindfulness. We no longer care about beautiful sights, such as "sleeping flowers" (7), the moon, and the sea, as mentioned by Wordsworth. Especially in today's era, we encounter many distractions that sway us away from things that we should care about. Peoples' priorities are …show more content…
Their similarities, surprisingly, also reveal their differences. Wordsworth aims more towards nature and obsessive buying habits, while Eighner, conversely, hints more at materialism. To start off, Wordsworth uses nature as a major aspect of his poem, while Eighner does not. As explained earlier, Wordsworth believes that we care so much about buying things and getting more, that we completely miss the beauty of nature. We see little "in Nature that is ours" (3). There is nothing to buy in nature, so we do not feel the need to interact with it. Apart from that, he also uses many examples of nature including "sleeping flowers" (7), the "sea that bares her bosom to the moon" (5), and "the winds that will be howling at all hours" (6). These descriptions show the immaculate beauty of the outdoors and make the reader question whether or not they fit this description. On the other hand, nature is nowhere to be found in "On Dumpster Diving." Eighner aims more towards materialism rather than nature. Yes, Wordsworth also does hint at materialism, but it is not his main focus. Eighner is critical towards the average human, almost too critical, being that he is a homeless person. His observance pays off, though, and he really convinces the reader that humans are too materialistic. At the end of his essay, he says, "I find my desire to
Carelessness is human nature. There are many things that we take for granted and do not take our time with. Eighner's theme of carelessness is prevalent in his essay. One of his main critiques involves a pizza parlor and the customers that go to it. "Such shops often get prank orders, called ‘bogus.' Because help seldom stays long at these places, pizzas are often made with the wrong topping, refused on delivery for being cold, or baked incorrectly" (2). Basically, he tells the reader that people – college students in particular – prank call the pizza shop and place false orders just to amuse themselves. However, what they are not aware of is their blatant rudeness. Food should not be taken for granted, as many people do. To do something like make a false order or to be so picky about the pizza is extremely rude. Eighner believes that society as a whole is dreadful and needs to care more. Much like Eighner, Wordsworth is also in favor of the idea that humans are careless. In his poem, he writes, "We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!" (4) and "we are out of tune" (8), meaning that we have lost all of our compassion and mindfulness. We no longer care about beautiful sights, such as "sleeping flowers" (7), the moon, and the sea, as mentioned by Wordsworth. Especially in today's era, we encounter many distractions that sway us away from things that we should care about. Peoples' priorities are …show more content…
Their similarities, surprisingly, also reveal their differences. Wordsworth aims more towards nature and obsessive buying habits, while Eighner, conversely, hints more at materialism. To start off, Wordsworth uses nature as a major aspect of his poem, while Eighner does not. As explained earlier, Wordsworth believes that we care so much about buying things and getting more, that we completely miss the beauty of nature. We see little "in Nature that is ours" (3). There is nothing to buy in nature, so we do not feel the need to interact with it. Apart from that, he also uses many examples of nature including "sleeping flowers" (7), the "sea that bares her bosom to the moon" (5), and "the winds that will be howling at all hours" (6). These descriptions show the immaculate beauty of the outdoors and make the reader question whether or not they fit this description. On the other hand, nature is nowhere to be found in "On Dumpster Diving." Eighner aims more towards materialism rather than nature. Yes, Wordsworth also does hint at materialism, but it is not his main focus. Eighner is critical towards the average human, almost too critical, being that he is a homeless person. His observance pays off, though, and he really convinces the reader that humans are too materialistic. At the end of his essay, he says, "I find my desire to