Class 12 English Unit 8: Human Culture Reading: Land of Plenty by James Fallows

Unit 8: Human Culture Reading: Land of Plenty by James Fallows

Click for Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrwSVeDkqtg

Reflection of the Essay

Sodaigomi, which rhymes with "oh my homey,” means "bulky garbage.” It’s sometimes used colloquially to describe husbands who have retired from the salaryman life. Three nights a week, the residents of our neighborhood in Yokohama deposit their household trash at specified areas on the street corners. It's wrapped in neat bundles, it looks like gifts, and it disappears at dawn. Big garbage can be big. Sodaigomi exists for two reasons: first is the small size of the house and the other is the Japanese desire for freshness and purity. There is a "recycle shop" in our neighborhood that sells used clothes and toys at cut rates. The American soldiers are unusual not just because they have garages so can sell their old possession rather than throw them out.

It was the first night of Sodaigomi since they moved to Japan. They did not have any furniture as they left in Malaysia where they had a different approach in using the goods. They had sold everything there even the shirts used by his son. They could not buy new items there because of expense but they saw heaps of clean, new-looking goods kept in the street. They spent the time in difficulty as their ship came late that carried their luggage. One evening while they were going to their home from the train station at twilight, they saw the piles of sodaigomi. There were a new plastic chair and a tea table. At first, they hesitated to take these items because of the crowd. At night, the writer peered through the kitchen and it was around 12:30 when he went and brought the table and the chair. Next few days, he saw many useful items such as wrenches, wooden cupboards, and tape cassettes taken by the collectors.

After a while, they knew that sodaigomi is a part of a larger cycle, in which it’s important to give as well as receive useful items.  He also met an American writer who had carried a second-hand leather note-book. He knew that the best items from the piles of sodaigomi would disappear in the early morning. Late one night, he was returning from the station and saw the two wooden bookcases near the lamppost, he looked around quickly and picked one for him.

Working with words

A.   Complete the given sentences with the suitable words from the box.

 wrapped                    embarrassment      abundance             ordinary

teetering           outskirts                dragging

a.      The annual report has caused acute embarrassment to the government.

b.     Ellen has worn high-heels. She is teetering.

c.      Look! The poor horse is dragging a heavy load.

d.     As they approached the outskirts of the city, Ella's mood visibly lightened.

e.      The parcel was wrapped in plain brown paper. It still looks attractive.

f.       Fruits and vegetables grow in abundance in the Terai region.

g.     They can abstract precious medicines from ordinary substances.

B.    Word formation is a process in which new words are formed from base or root words by adding prefixes or suffixes. A root word can be a verb, noun, adjective, or adverb. See the following examples.

Root words             Suffixes                          New words

govern (v.)            -ment                             government (n.)

perfect (adj.)           -ion                              perfection (n.)

service (v.)            -able                              serviceable (adj.)

beauty (n.)             -full                              beautiful (adj.)

warm (adj.)           -ly                                 warmly (adv.)

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aET7ax8UM3w&t=39s

C.    Add suitable suffixes to the root words given and write the parts of speech of each newly formed word.

Root words	Suffixes	New words
neighbor, comfort, shop, husk, squeamish, change, shine, colloquial, collect, embarrass, persuade, type, differ, ship, tropic, drive, reside, brother, fresh	ment, ly, ion, hood, ness, er, ical, ic, able, y, ive	Neighborhood (n.) Comfortable ( adj.) Shopper ( N.) Husky ( adj.) Squeamishly ( adv.) Changeable ( adj) Differentiable ( adj.) Shipment ( n.)  Collection (n.)
Shiny ( Adj)               embarrassment ( n.) persuasive ( adj.)       typical ( n.) tropical ( adj.)           driver ( n.) Colloquially ( adv.)  residential (adj.)

D.   Look for the following words related to waste management in an English dictionary. Make sentences of your own using them.

sewage, sludge, organic waste, inorganic waste, methane, waste reduction,

monofil, market waste, incineration, hazardous waste

a.      Sewage: The city needs a new system of sewage disposal system.

b.     Sludge: There was some sludge at the bottom of the tank.

c.      Organic waste: we can use organic waste as a soil conditioner.

d.     Inorganic waste: Inorganic waste remains free from decay.

e.      Methane: The ignition of methane gas killed ten persons.

f.       Waste reduction: Waste reduction optimizes environmental pollution.

g.     Monofil: The 10g monofilament is convenient to use in primary care.

h.     Market waste: Priority must be given to managing the market waste.

i.    Incineration: Waste incineration is a developed waste management option at this time.

j.   Hazardous waste: Batteries, brake fluid, and fire extinguishers are hazardous wastes.

Comprehension

Answer the following questions.

a.      How does the author describe the Japanese waste management system?

The author describes the Japanese waste management system, saying that three nights a week, the residents of his neighborhood deposit their household trash at specified areas on the street corners, wrapped in neat bundles, like gifts, and it disappears at dawn.

b.     What are the two reasons behind the existence of sodaigomi in Japanese culture?

The two reasons behind the existence of sodaigomi in Japanese culture are: one is the small size of the typical Japanese house, and the other is the Japanese desire for freshness and purity.

c.      What, according to the author, do the Japanese feel at the thought of buying second-hand items?

According to the author, the Japanese feel embarrassed at the thought of buying second-hand items.

d.     How is Malaysian culture different from Japanese culture concerning the use of items?

In Malaysian culture, no one throws anything away, whereas in Japanese culture, heaps of clean, new-looking merchandise are thrown on the street. Several customers bid enthusiastically for second handed small to small things in Malaysia, whereas shoppers seem to feel embarrassed at the thought of buying second-hand items in Japan.

e.      Why did the author feel awkward at the sodaigomi pile?

The author felt awkward at the sodaigomi pile because he never believed that everything looing perfectly clean, whole, and serviceable is thrown out in Japanese culture.

f.       How many articles did the author bring to his house one after another?

The author laid in as many provisions as he decently could. At first he grabbed an ordinary low Japanese tea table. He then brought a shiny new bell for one son’s bicycle, a small but attractive wooden cupboard, a complete set of wrenches and screwdrivers in a metal toolbox, a Naugahyde-covered barstool and a lacquer serving tray.

g.     Why do most people try to find things in trash pile ‘in the dead of the night’?

Most people try to find things in a trash pile ‘in the dead of the night’ because everyone can pretend not to notice and they can bring no shame upon their kind.

h.     How did the author’s family assimilate Japanese culture in using consumer goods?

The author’s family assimilated Japanese culture in using consumer goods by operating in the dead of night to collect the essential materials or goods thrown out in the sodaigomi pile. 

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