Verified Document

Fast Food Nation -- Chapter 2 America Term Paper

Fast Food Nation -- Chapter 2 America without McDonald's, Burger King, Wendy's and other fast food restaurants is difficult to imagine these days, but before Ray Kroc bought the franchise rights to McDonald's in the mid-twentieth century, fast food was not an entrenched part of our culture. In Fast Food Nation,' Eric Schlosser spends the second chapter of his book describing how Ray Kroc paralleled the work of Walt Disney and filled a cultural void in America. Because America was a relatively young country, there was no established food culture like there was in older countries such as France, Italy and Spain. Until Ray Kroc's innovations, there was no food that could be described as "American," and in the ironically titled chapter "Your Trusted Friends," Schlosser described exactly how Kroc helped create America's fast food culture.

Schlosser begins chapter two of Fast Food Nation by describing McDonald's as it exists today and demonstrating how ingrained it is in our society. He describes his visit to the Ray A. Kroc museum, walking through the McStore, it's close proximity to Hamburger University and the degree received by its students: a degree in "Hambergerology." He describes the merchandise available in the McStore: bean bag McBurglar dolls, telephones shaped like French friends, key chains, golf bags, jewelry, baby clothes, leather jackets and more. This is all to demonstrate how one man created a food culture where there was none in America, and how artificial and commercial that culture really is.

Schlosser argues that McDonald's, influenced by the success of Disney, has become an entrenched part of American culture and that its influence extends far beyond food. McDonald's is a cultural symbol, recognized by children as young as two, and now exported around the world as a symbol of America. Schlosser believes that...

Schlosser says that Ray Kroc sought to create a utopia that doesn't exist n reality, a place where cleanliness and control are maintained by strictly adhering to a set of standards that are non-negotiable.
In "Your Trusted Friends," Schlosser outlines Ray Kroc's rise to fame and fortune and points out that, more than someone who cared about food and culture, Kroc was a masterful salesman. His ability to market McDonald's, particularly to children, was the way in which the restaurant has come to be the food culture that America lacked.

Kroc initially bought the franchise rights to McDonald's from the original owners of a single McDonald's restaurant in California. He had the vision and understanding of America to know that fast food could be the innovation that would create a food culture where there was none. In this ability, according to Schlosser, Kroc was very similar to Walt Disney, who created an entertainment culture from scratch. Schlosser chronicles Disney's rise to power in order to demonstrate how Kroc followed in his footsteps, specifically in courting young consumers. Disneyland, like McDonalds later, created a seemingly perfect escape, where everything was orderly, clean and predictable. This, Disney knew, was the wave of the future in an increasingly unpredictable and volatile reality. The same can be said of McDonald's -- every restaurant offers the same basic menu, the golden arches never change and the food tastes the same no matter which McDonald's restaurant you go to. According to Schlosser, Kroc understood that how the food was delivered was just as important (if not more important) than how the food tasted, which is a very American concept. One can't…

Sources used in this document:
Another way in which McDonald's has made itself a part of American culture is by linking with manufacturers of toys and giving away prizes in Happy Meals. Again, Kroc's idea that fast food is not just about the food is demonstrated with the success of the Happy Meal; Schlosser writes that when McDonald's gave away Beenie Babies in its Happy Meals, they sold about 10 million Happy Meals in a typical week. In 1996, McDonald's finally connected with its inspiration, Disney, and signed a ten-year marketing agreement with the Walt Disney Company. This connection between Disney and McDonald's seemed to ensure that both would remain significant parts of American culture, food and otherwise, and as Schlosser says, the work of Walt Disney and Ray Kroc "had come full circle."

Schlosser ends his chapter by pointing out how McDonald's role in American food culture is creating problems, particularly for children. By convincing families that McDonald's is a "trusted friend," a partner in life, they implied that McDonald's cared about the health and well-being of its customers. In fact, the phrase, found in confidential marketing materials never meant for public consumption, implied that McDonald's was primarily about food, which Schlosser contends it is not. He goes on to point out that McDonald's uses corporate sponsorship to gets its products in schools and influence students to eat its products, and this has a detrimental effect on the health of Americans, especially children.

Schlosser does not deny the impressive level of influence that companies like McDonald's and Disney have had on Americans, but he seems to be cautioning that America's lack of a true food culture has led us down a road toward poor health and obesity. It's important to understand just how deeply McDonald's is ingrained in our everyday lives; this understanding goes hand in hand with making better choices about what we eat. We also need to understand that choosing to eat fast food isn't usually a fully conscious choice at all thanks to Ray Kroc; instead, eating burgers, shakes and fries feels normal to Americans thanks to McDonald's extensive marketing efforts. If we had an established food culture at the time of Kroc's rise, McDonald's might just be another novelty, secondary to real American food. Instead, McDonald's has become synonymous with American food and the company helps shape our tastes and desires through marketing.
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Fast Food
Words: 1247 Length: 4 Document Type: Essay

Fast Food Industry In recent times, the fast food industry has grown by leaps and bounds. Today, one can confidently say that the industry, whose background is relatively modest, has in a big way affected the way of life in America. In this text, I concern myself with the impact the fast food industry has had on both the health of the American society and the environment. I also give a

Fast Food in the United States Right
Words: 1183 Length: 3 Document Type: Essay

Fast Food In the United States right now the country is facing an epidemic of obesity which means that too many people are overweight to an unhealthy level which is very bad. More and more people are becoming unhealthy because they do not eat the right things. People live a very hectic lifestyle in the current time and this makes them want to get things fast. Instead of going home and

Fast Food Nation: Beefing Up
Words: 970 Length: 3 Document Type: Thesis

Therefore from the results of this study alone it would be quite easy to conclude that access to fast food is responsible for increased obesity. Other evidence may however dispute this conclusion though. A very recent study by Morland & Evenson found examined the relationship between the presence of different types of food establishments and a number of different diet-related health outcomes, including obesity, in the southern region of the

Fast Food Channels the Foundations
Words: 714 Length: 2 Document Type: Term Paper

The industry leaders often attempt to utilize the standards of this and other associations, as well as their literature and logos to associate their own food offerings with health consciousness, a claim that is occasionally challenged by the anti-fast food movement. Sweet 8) Industry leaders such as McDonalds as well as many others even offer pamphlets that are meant to guide the consumer to healthier choices, these offerings are also

Fast Food- Effects on General
Words: 1021 Length: 3 Document Type: Term Paper

These firms are now multinationals with strong presence in almost every major country of the world. The consumption of this food can only be limited by individual action where each person decided to resort to healthier food and thus avoid this kind of non-nutritional meals. The frightening side of fast food consumption has created awareness in some sections of the society and people are making an effort to resort

Fast Food Business Advisory for Fast Food
Words: 3531 Length: 10 Document Type: Essay

Fast Food Business Advisory for Fast Food Business and Takeaway Here, we will give a brief intro on fast food business, explain what it is and its pros and cons. We will also look at some facts surrounding fast foods just to give an amateur reader the idea of the whole business. "The Fast Food is the type of food which is fast (in avail), more convenient and in many cases inexpensive."

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now