Margaret Atwood's Oryx And Crake

Is it worse to harm the animals or harm the Earth? But what if harming the animals harms the Earth as well? The idea of human impact on the earth is prominent in Margaret Atwood’s novel Oryx and Crake. The novel demonstrates that poor sustainability of the planet, such as deforestation, decreased biodiversity, increased greenhouse gas emissions, and the spread of disease harmful diseases, is due to unethical practices on animals, which include genetically modifying organisms, seen through spliced creatures like rakunks and pigoons, as well as raising and consuming animals, evident through ChickieNobs and soy-based meat replacements. Early on in Atwood’s novel, readers are given a clear picture of the world in which Jimmy, one of the main characters, …show more content…
Chicken-like organisms still need to be fed, which is what affects the poor environmental conditions in the novel. Atwood describes how food and nutrients are dumped into the mouth-like opening at the top of the organism (Atwood 461). As with the raising all organisms, it inevitably causes less food to be available. Even when animals are confined, much of the nutrition and energy of their food is lost in order to keep them warm and moving. According to Mason and Singer, “the entire operation [of animal consumption] is an inefficient way of feeding animals” (231). In fact, an acre of land used to grow cereals could produce five times as much protein as an acre devoted to meat production (Mason and Singer 232), so more resources are required to produce less food. Feeding animals also requires more transportation of feed, thus increasing greenhouse gas emissions. Raising animals additionaly requires great amounts of water, which causes rivers and aquifers to be depleted before they can be replenished. Therefore, in Oryx and Crake, the idea of ChickieNobs demonstrates that genetically modifying animals causes unsustainability of the environment because of how it increases pollution and decreases water