Throughout Marina Zurkow “Petroleum Manga” there is the focus on the theme of humanity’s dependence on plastics. The question is if that our dependency is based off the constant consumerist mindset that our society has developed and grown to become accustomed to or is it due to the capitalistic society that our world is based in and grown up in, constantly pushing business in the present day over the possible effects it will have on our environment in the future and what we will do once we cannot use petroleum anymore. The piece shows that we have an incredible dependency for plastics and are not given many realistic options as a replacement for plastics and petroleum. Especially if people need a cheap option due a limited budget it is very difficult to find as items not using petroleum as they tend to be harder to make and therefore more expensive with limited quantities. This inability to find more easily accessible products, not made of petroleum, is due to the development of, what is referred to Andreas Malm, as the capitalocene. The priority of money over the wellbeing of our environment has created the mindset of consumerism and disposability.
In “Petroleum Manga” the piece “IV Bags” by Nicole Walker, throughout the work she demonstrates that it is incredibly difficult for us to survive without the plastics we use everyday as they are involved in everything, even IV bags and the tubes attached to you while in the hospital, “Your whole life has been attended by plastic,”(122) it is unavoidable to use petroleum products. Even if someone is able to afford not to use petroleum products in daily life when it is out of their control and they do not have the option plastics while be used. Capitalism has pushed this agenda with the disregard for our environment, petroleum products are easily mass produced and extremely cheap. Therefore they can sell mass amounts of plastics to everybody no matter what their price point. Our lives are controlled by plastics whether we like it or not and even if we try our very best it is inevitable for us to use some sort of petroleum products throughout our life.
Because of the great development of Capitalism our society has because infatuated with plastics and petroleum. This is well displayed in Ruth Ozeki’s “Immortal” as the piece is about a girl who eats everything plastic so long as she considers them perfect. These items that she views as perfect and immortal are what she loves. She cannot stand the idea of eating something imperfect or recently killed. “Big living things are gross because they go rotten.”(118) This represents our society quite perfectly, we view plastics as the be all, end all and whenever something is imperfect or damaged we immediately do not want it. We are attracted to perfection and symmetry which is pushed by capitalism and the pushing of perfect petroleum products.
In the piece “What Does Calm Say” by Melissa Kwasny, it displays a more simple society without the need for plastics and petroleum. People are without a need for it as they are a society not at focused on capitalistic ideas. They are not forced into having petroleum products and have to use ones without. They live in a society without the focus on power and money that comes without capitalism.
In “Plexiglass Chair” by Timothy Morton the piece is asking people to stop using plastic chairs “Take a stand! A stand against the chair!”(56) This is referring to taking a stand against capitalism, there’s no need for the chairs so why should we still be using them. It likens owning a chair to being a citizen and that because you own a chair you are therefore apart of modern society whereas you should be able to not own a chair and fight this requirement as if to fight capitalism.
“Watering Can, High Density-Polyethylene” by K.A Hays shows that before capitalism humans had no need for items such as watering cans. With the ever-expanding reach of capitalism, people are given ease of access, making life easier and easier people take the opportunities as they are easier and cheaper than the options without using petroleum.
In “Pacifier” by Lydia Millet, she speaks about her love for her pacifier as a child, which used petroleum, it develops into an addiction at a young age and is quickly taken away, but as an adult, she finds it and “popped it in my mouth.”(38) She is immediately soothed by it and calmed. It is a representation that at no matter what age with the use petroleum, people are addicted to it and it is brought on by its constant use in capitalistic society.
Our society is forced into our use of petroleum by the control of capitalism. Its love of money has completely ignored and has no interest in saving our environment and therefore human civilization itself. “The Petroleum Manga” shows that society is under control of capitalism and is being forced into this unending cycle of petroleum. It is a mindset that is focused on the present and never looking forward. Without looking at our future capitalism will drive us into the ground and there will be nothing left for it to damage. Continuing on this path will leave the earth without petroleum for our plastics very soon and kill the basis of capitalism, their ability to make money.
Works Cited
- Walker. Nicole. “IV Bags.” The Petroleum Manga Edited by Marina Zurkow and Valerie Vorgain, Peanut Books, 2014, 122
- Ozeki. Ruth. “Immortal.” The Petroleum Manga Edited by Marina Zurkow and Valerie Vorgain, Peanut Books, 2014, 118
- Hays. K.A. “Watering Can, High-Density Polyethylene.” Petroleum Manga Edited by Marina Zurkow and Valerie Vorgain, Peanut Books, 2014, 56
- Millet. Lydia. “Pacifier.” Petroleum Manga Edited by Marina Zurkow and Valerie Vorgain, Peanut Books, 2014, 38