--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: For an American like me, growing up…" description: "\"“For an American like me, growing up linked to a very different food chain, yet one that is also rooted in a field of corn, not to think of himself as ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f4/michael-pollan-408_corn_for-an-american-like-me-growing-up-linke_964872.jpg" --- # For an American like me, growing up linked to a very… ![“For an American like me, growing up linked to a very different food chain, yet one that is also rooted in a field of corn, not to think of himself as a corn person suggests either a failure of imagination or a triumph of capitalism.” quote by Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f4/michael-pollan-408_corn_for-an-american-like-me-growing-up-linke_964872.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f4/michael-pollan-408_corn_for-an-american-like-me-growing-up-linke_964872.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f4/michael-pollan-408_corn_for-an-american-like-me-growing-up-linke_964872.jpg) > ““For an American like me, growing up linked to a very different food chain, yet one that is also rooted in a field of corn, not to think of himself as a corn person suggests either a failure of imagination or a triumph of capitalism.”” [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Our food identity shapes how we view ourselves and the economy; seeing ourselves as “corn people” reveals cultural limits or market power. **In simple terms:** Food identity reflects imagination or capitalism. Key Takeaway Question your food narratives. Themes culture food identity capitalism Mood reflective critical Type philosophical analytical When to use this quote - dietary choices - agricultural policy - personal identity - marketing strategies Key Concepts anthropology economics Questions to Reflect On - How does your food background influence your worldview? - Can you imagine alternatives beyond corn? A Different Perspective Simplifying identity to a single crop can ignore diversity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Corn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/corn/) [Corn Person](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/corn-person-1812437/) [Corn Think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/corn-think-1812435/) [Failure Of Imagination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure-of-imagination/) [Food](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/food/) [Food chain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/food-chain/) [Food industry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/food-industry/) [Think Corn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think-corn-1812436/) ## Related quotes > [In corn, I think I've found the key to the American food chain. If you look at a fast-food meal, a McDonald's meal, virtually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/in-corn-i-think-i-ve-found-the-key-to-the-american-food-chain-if-you/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [“Eating is an agricultural act," Wendell Berry famously wrote, by which he meant that we are not just passive consumers of food but cocreators…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/eating-is-an-agricultural-act-wendell-berry-famously-wrote-by-which/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [“Depending on how we spend them, our food dollars can either go to support a food industry devoted to quantity and convenience and “value”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/depending-on-how-we-spend-them-our-food-dollars-can-either-go-to/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [“Much of our food system depends on our not knowing much about it, beyond the price disclosed by the checkout scanner; cheapness and ignorance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/much-of-our-food-system-depends-on-our-not-knowing-much-about-it/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [But I do nothing that I don't like, such as "inventing" up to the arty or "down" to the corny. I happen to relish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-astaire/but-i-do-nothing-that-i-don-t-like-such-as-inventing-up-to-the-arty/) [Fred Astaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-astaire/) > [“Why does Lewis Black have so much hatred for goodness? I do not know. 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It is only the decline over time of the minimum wage in real dollars that's made the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/those-externalized-costs-have-always-included-labor-it-is-only-the/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [“The shared meal is no small thing. It is a foundation of family life, the place where our children learn the art of conversation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/the-shared-meal-is-no-small-thing-it-is-a-foundation-of-family-life-2/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [The astounding variety of foods on offer in the modern supermarket obscures the fact that the actual number of species in the modern diet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/the-astounding-variety-of-foods-on-offer-in-the-modern-supermarket/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [The growth of the American food industry will always bump up against this troublesome biological fact: Try as we might, each of us can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/the-growth-of-the-american-food-industry-will-always-bump-up-against/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [To a very great extent, it's the fast-food industry that really industrialized our agriculture - that drove the system to one variety of chicken…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/to-a-very-great-extent-it-s-the-fast-food-industry-that-really/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) ## More by Michael Pollan > [“In the same way that the picturesque designers were always careful to include some reminder of our mortality in their gardens -- a ruin,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/in-the-same-way-that-the-picturesque-designers-were-always-careful-to/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [My hope is that if people have the knowledge, and if they actually see where their food comes from and have access to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/my-hope-is-that-if-people-have-the-knowledge-and-if-they-actually-see/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [The problem is that we let special-occasion food become everyday food. That goes for soda and french fries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/the-problem-is-that-we-let-special-occasion-food-become-everyday-food/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [Every peasant cuisine has incredible ingenious tricks for getting a lot of nutrition out of a small amount of ingredients. There are people who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/every-peasant-cuisine-has-incredible-ingenious-tricks-for-getting-a/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [“In ancient Greece, the word for “cook,” “butcher,” and “priest” was the same—mageiros—and the word shares an etymological root with “magic.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/in-ancient-greece-the-word-for-cook-butcher-and-priest-was-the-same/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [In the end I'm still a writer. I'm still a journalist, and my first responsibility is to my readers. That's where I have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/in-the-end-i-m-still-a-writer-i-m-still-a-journalist-and-my-first/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [Seeds have the power to preserve species, to enhance cultural as well as genetic diversity, to counter economic monopoly and to check the advance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/seeds-have-the-power-to-preserve-species-to-enhance-cultural-as-well/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [“The bubble logic driving tulipomania has since acquired a name: “the greater fool theory.” Although by any conventional measure it is folly to pay…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/the-bubble-logic-driving-tulipomania-has-since-acquired-a-name-the/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [“Of the seven deadly sins, surely it is pride that most afflicts the gardener.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/of-the-seven-deadly-sins-surely-it-is-pride-that-most-afflicts-the/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [Growing corn, which from a biological perspective had always been a process of capturing sunlight to turn into food, has in no small measure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/growing-corn-which-from-a-biological-perspective-had-always-been-a/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [Eat with consciousness. When you eat with consciousness, and you know what you're eating, and you eat it in full appreciation of what it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/eat-with-consciousness-when-you-eat-with-consciousness-and-you-know/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [This is part of human nature, the desire to change consciousness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/this-is-part-of-human-nature-the-desire-to-change-consciousness/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [“...whenever I hear people say clean food is expensive, I tell them it's actually the cheapest food you can buy. That always gets their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/whenever-i-hear-people-say-clean-food-is-expensive-i-tell-them-it-s/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [“Imagine if we had a food system that actually produced wholesome food. Imagine if it produced that food in a way that restored the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/imagine-if-we-had-a-food-system-that-actually-produced-wholesome-food/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [“CONSULT YOUR GUT.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/consult-your-gut/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) [Explore all 584 Michael Pollan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) ## More Corn quotes > [My father kept me busy from dawn to dusk when I was a kid. When I wasn't pitching hay, hauling corn or running a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-feller/my-father-kept-me-busy-from-dawn-to-dusk-when-i-was-a-kid-when-i-wasn/) [Bob Feller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-feller/) > [Before the world was made, when it was only darkness and mist and waters, God was well aware of Lake Wobegon, my family, our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrison-keillor/before-the-world-was-made-when-it-was-only-darkness-and-mist-and/) [Garrison Keillor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrison-keillor/) > [Believe it or not, Mexican cooking, for those of you who have not gone farther south than Taco Bell, uses a lot of vegetables.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/believe-it-or-not-mexican-cooking-for-those-of-you-who-have-not-gone/) [Sandra Cisneros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-cisneros/) > [Growing corn, which from a biological perspective had always been a process of capturing sunlight to turn into food, has in no small measure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/growing-corn-which-from-a-biological-perspective-had-always-been-a/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [She may be lying in bed reading a book, she may be making love with a prize fighter, or she may be running like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/she-may-be-lying-in-bed-reading-a-book-she-may-be-making-love-with-a/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [From cheesecake on a stick to meat skewers to deep-fried bananas on a stick - there are no plates anymore. In Los Angeles, everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-carell/from-cheesecake-on-a-stick-to-meat-skewers-to-deep-fried-bananas-on-a/) [Steve Carell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-carell/) > [“...is it really true that we can't afford one attack helicopter's worth of seed corn to listen to the stars?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/is-it-really-true-that-we-can-t-afford-one-attack-helicopter-s-worth/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [Hunger makes you restless. you dream about food - not just any food, but perfect food, the best food, magical meals, famous and awe-inspiring,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-allison/hunger-makes-you-restless-you-dream-about-food-not-just-any-food-but/) [Dorothy Allison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-allison/) > [...Mr. Wodehouse is a prose stylist of such startling talent that Frankie nearly skipped around with glee when she first read some of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-lockhart/mr-wodehouse-is-a-prose-stylist-of-such-startling-talent-that-frankie/) [E. Lockhart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-lockhart/) > [Heaven above was blue, and earth beneath was green; the river glistened like a path of diamonds in the sun; the birds poured forth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/heaven-above-was-blue-and-earth-beneath-was-green-the-river-glistened/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [I give boring people something to discuss over corn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aimee-bender/i-give-boring-people-something-to-discuss-over-corn/) [Aimee Bender](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aimee-bender/) > [Written in support of abolishing the Corn Laws, it became Elliott's most famous poem. 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