At the end of chapter one, Carson uses the metaphor of a “grim specter” that has “crept upon us” with a blight that is poisoning the environment and killing plant and animal life. In chapter two,…

What moral dilemma is Carson worried about? Do you share her view? Carson is worried about the pesticides killing more than pests itself. She says that it is too damaging for every organism.

Carson suggested that chemical insecticides and herbicides be called biocides because they cannot be used without destroying life. She expresses the idea that these toxins kill not only insects and plants, but humans as well.

Instead of spraying toxic chemicals to kill budworms, Carson proposes the method of natural parasitism, which is attributed to first being proposed by Erasmus Darwin in 1800.

Human health effects from DDT at low environmental doses are unknown. Following exposure to high doses, human symptoms can include vomiting, tremors or shakiness, and seizures. Laboratory animal studies showed effects on the liver and reproduction. DDT is considered a possible human carcinogen.

It also inspired a grassroots environmental movement that led to the creation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Carson was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Jimmy Carter….

DDT (dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane) was developed as the first of the modern synthetic insecticides in the 1940s. It was initially used with great effect to combat malaria, typhus, and the other insect-borne human diseases among both military and civilian populations.

Strained family finances forced her to forego pursuit of a doctorate and help support her mother and, later, two orphaned nieces. After outscoring all other applicants on the civil service exam, in 1936 Carson became the second woman hired by the US Bureau of Fisheries.

Carson never married and had no children. Her mother was always the most important person in her life, sharing her home and acting as her housekeeper and secretary. In their later years, they lived at the northern tip of Washington D.C in Silver Spring, Maryland.

Most of all, it was her determination that set her apart. In general, Carson has been described as “a mild-mannered biologist who was happiest standing knee-deep in a tide pool”. She is also “calm in spirit” and has a tendency to be fond of others.

Rachel Carson was a world-renowned marine biologist, author and environmentalist who served as an aquatic biologist and editor-in-chief for the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. She has been credited with launching the contemporary environmental movement and awakening the concern of Americans for the environment.

National Book Award for Nonfiction

Interesting Facts about Rachel Carson

• Carson didn’t call for a ban on all pesticides.
• The book Silent Spring came under attack by the chemical industry.
• In 1973, DDT was banned in the United States.
• She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1980.

Rachel Carson was an American biologist well known for her writings on environmental pollution and the natural history of the sea. Her book, Silent Spring (1962), became one of the most influential books in the modern environmental movement and provided the impetus for tighter control of pesticides, including DDT.

Johns Hopkins University1929–1932

Roger Christie

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The book was published on September 27, 1962, documenting the adverse environmental effects caused by the indiscriminate use of pesticides….Silent Spring.

A quiet child who kept to herself, she spent long hours learning about nature through her mother, a musician and schoolteacher. Carson’s mother also inspired her daughter’s interest in literature, and at a very young age Carson knew she wanted to become a writer.

Lack of funds during the Great Depression forces Carson to drop out of graduate school in the spring of 1934.