36 pages • 1 hour read
The Botany of Desire: A Plant’s-Eye View of the World
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In writing this book, Pollan hopes to restore us to a more humbled place in evolution, in which we share the story with the plants. Does he succeed? Why or why not?
Why do you think the settlers were so eager to plant apple orchards on the frontier? In addition to offering them seeds for cider and fruit, what did the trees symbolize?
How did John Chapman’s Swedenborgian philosophy inform the way he regarded nature?
Why do you think Chapman’s life has been so sanitized through the years?
What do you think the Dutch found so irresistible in tulips?
Do you think the relationship of flowers to beauty is universal? Why or why not?
Do you think that religions have incorporated hallucinogens or feared them? Why?
Pollan writes that “[w]ithout flowers, we would not be” (109). Why is this the case?
Do you support the use of genetically engineered crops? Why or why not? Does Pollan express a support of genetically engineered crops?
Do you think Pollan’s use of himself as a gardener in the book is effective to drive home his points? Why or why not?
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By Michael Pollan
