Journal 3: Yummy, Dog Food

 

1.  Cite three specific examples of Hodgman’s descriptive imagery that you find to be particularly effective. 

• “I gagged my way through can after can of stinky, white-flecked mush and bag after bag of stinky, fat-drenched nuggets.  And now I understand exactly why Shortie’s breath is so bad” (77)
• “Up close my Gaines-burger did not much resemble chopped beef. Rather it looked-and felt-like a single long, extruded piece of redness that had been chopped into segments and formed into a patty.” (78)
• “There were chunks in the can, certainly-big, purplish-brown chunks. I forked one chunk out (by now I was becoming more callous) and found that while it had no discernible chicken flavor, it wasn’t bad except for its textural-like meat loaf with ground-up chicken bones.” (79)

2.  What do you think Hodgman’s purpose was in writing this essay?  What overall message/meaning do you take from the essay?  

Hodgman was trying to tell the reader that dog food is not as appetizing as it is advertized. The author tells the story in a satirical way to give a sense of humor.  She is making fun about cook books and magazine reviews by writing a review for dog food, not human food. Just because a dog is able to enjoy eating our food, does not mean that we are able to savor the taste of their wet or dry food in a can.  She is trying to show that everyone is curious about the world we live it.  You are going to want to try crazy things that are not designed for man, but do not worry because it is human.  Another message the story conveys is that not everything looks as good as it tastes.  Numerous times throughout the story, the author would connect the dog food with its delicious looking advertisements.  Just as she said, “in the world of wet dog foods was this demonstrated better than in the fanciest I tried-Kal Kan’s Pedigree Select Dinners.”  Hodgeman was excited to eat this because if it tasted as good as it looked, she would have had a great meal; however, it did not end up that way.  All in all, you cannot just a book by itself cover because it never works out right.