Silent Spring

Carson begins developing a broader argument in Chapter 7, arguing that widespread use of chemical insecticides is a “relentless war on life” (99) that could signal the destruction of civilization. In many cases where spraying has been performed aerially, many forms of life besides the targeted organism were affected. Carson illustrates this using examples of cases where spraying was performed over large swaths of land to control the population of Japanese beetles. In all of these cases, the result was a “desolate picture of wildlife loss” (93). Yet in each case, a more effective method would have been available. Carson asks whether or not it is moral to participate in “an act that can cause such suffering to a living creature” (100) in the quest to limit the population of one specific insect.

One of the most devastating impacts of widespread pesticide and insecticide use is the loss of bird populations, who are one of the first living things impacted by these chemicals. Carson describes the case of the robin, which relies on the American elm. When Dutch elm disease entered the United States, “intensive spraying […] [became] a routine procedure” (106) to limit the disease. After these sprayings, evidence began coming to light that robins were being poisoned as a result of the introduction of the chemicals to their environment.