American Disposability: Educating a Throwaway Society

Open Access
- Author:
- Udell, Lucy
- Area of Honors:
- Secondary Education
- Degree:
- Bachelor of Science
- Document Type:
- Thesis
- Thesis Supervisors:
- Brandi J. Robinson, Thesis Supervisor
Scott Metzger, Thesis Honors Advisor - Keywords:
- Social Studies Education
garbage
waste
disposable
throwaway culture
interdisciplinary
single-use - Abstract:
- American society is incredibly dependent on, even addicted to, disposable and single-use products. Despite growing awareness of the waste problem from plastic straws to e-waste, the throwaway culture remains largely unchallenged. This paper seeks to trace the development of the throwaway culture in America in order to understand how disposability has evolved into a desirable quality so pervasive in our modern world. From the very first waste management systems to the power of advertisements throughout the 20th century and the introduction of planned obsolescence, people have been trained to value disposability and developed a powerful addiction to the convenient habit of throwing things away with little consideration of what that means or where “away” really is. Perhaps most importantly, this paper seeks to examine the implications of applying this habit to increasingly complex and costly goods. In examining this trend, the paper concludes that the value placed on materials goods and benefits reaped by consumption are declining while the costs of production and distribution continue to rise. As a result, society faces growing environmental consequences for questionable gains. In response, I suggest that public awareness and understanding of our waste and the impacts of our consumer choices as consumers must be prioritized in social studies education. Additionally, it is crucial that the topic is approached in an interdisciplinary manner through curriculum that focus on the environmental impacts, economic implications, geographical extent, historical background and civic responsibilities in a unified and holistic way.