Ulrich Beck: "poverty is hierarchic, smog is democratic'' (This quote is from Lawrence Buell's 'Toxic Discourse, pg. 651)
Although we have already talked about this a bit a class, this quote from Beck lingers with me as I continue to think about how toxic disasters impact humanity. Pollution continues to impact people of race and class differently, but as technology advances there are more toxic substances that impact everyone equally. Nuclear meltdowns and chemicals seeping into ground water supplies are only two examples of toxic disasters that will not choose its victims according to social standing or race.
You will see how toxicity often transcends racial and social categories in WHITE NOISE. In it, our protagonist Jack Gladney believes that he can't--as a privileged professor--be touched by the toxic leak that envelops his town.
ReplyDeletePart of the power of toxic discourse, too, is this ability to persuade people from all social stata and racial backgrounds. It's a strangely unifying threat, isn't it?