Dilsavor 1

Aidan Dilsavor

Dr. Freeland

English Composition II

1 December 2020

Literature Review

In the most recent few decades, vegetarianism has become an increasingly prominent

practice and topic of discussion. Whether it be for religious, health, or moral reasons, more and

more Americans have made the conscious effort to ditch the typical American diet for one that

involves a lack of meat. With vegetarianism on the rise, the question arises: What incentives

make vegetarianism so appealing? As vegetarianism is a complex topic, there is certainly more

to this question than meets the eye; however, the various different reasons and intricacies

towards this question makes it a great topic of discussion. Combined with the fact that

vegetarianism is proved to be sustainable and healthy for the human body, vegetarianism is

typically appealing for various different religious, moral, and economic reasons.

Vegetarianism can be dated all the way back to ancient India and Greece. Back then, the

incentives for vegetarianism varied from population to population, with some people avoiding

meat because they could not afford it, and some avoiding meat for moral reasons. In the

nineteenth century, vegetarianism began its rise in the Americas and Europe. At the time, the

practice was seen as radical, and it was relatively unpopular during the time. Towards the latter

half of the twentieth century, however, vegetarianism rose drastically as a result of some popular

icons advocating its existence, such as Albert Einstein and Mohandas Gandhi (“Vegetarianism”).

Although the sources for this research essay do vary greatly in content, their layout is

quite similar, particularly in the sources’ introductions. All the sources begin with a sort of
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overview of vegetarianism as a whole, giving various statistics relating to the amount of current

vegetarians in the world, the different types of vegetarians, or the history of vegetarianism. For

example, the credible and relevant source from Harvard Health Medical School gives the various

different types of vegetarianism and their descriptions, from ovo vegetarians to lacto vegetarians

(“Becoming a Vegetarian”). An example of the history of vegetarianism can be seen in a credible

and relevant article from the Opposing Viewpoints scholarly database. This particular article,

from the Environmental Encyclopedia, states that Buddhists and Hindus are common advocates

of vegetarianism (“Vegetarianism”). As the layout of the articles’ introductions are similar, the

same can be said about the latter half of every article. The latter half of each article contains the

various effects of vegetarianism and reasons for becoming vegetarian. Another article from the

Opposing Viewpoint scholarly database, an excerpt from the Encyclopedia of Environmental

Ethics and Society, explains a reason for becoming vegetarian, similar to the other articles. This

article says that the livestock industry “is a major cause of air pollution, soil erosion,

desertification, water pollution, and acid rain” (Best). The articles are also similar in their

audience and purpose. All of the articles’ audiences are simply people who are interested in

vegetarianism or people who are interested in its history. Their purposes are to educate these

people on the history and idea of vegetarianism, and some of these sources even tend to persuade

the audience into becoming a vegetarian. While these sources obviously have a lot in common,

their differences are also important to take into consideration.

Although the sources have similar layouts, their actual contents are quite different. Their

contents are different primarily in the latter half of each source, where they talk about the effects

and reasons to become vegetarian. “The Plant-Based Revolution”, a news article found in the

credible Opposing Viewpoints database, talks about how vegetarians have a fibre-rich diet,
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meaning they have a lower cancer risk than people who eat meat (“The Plant-Based

Revolution”). This effect, explained by this news article, is simply not listed in any of the other

articles. The same can be said about much of the content presented in the sources’ introductions.

For example, “Vegetarianism”, from the Gale Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection, gives this

statistic in its introduction: “46 percent of US adults indicated that they always or sometimes eat

vegetarian meals when they go out to eat” (“Vegetarianism”). A statistic like this is simply not

present in any of the other sources.

There is certainly more research to be done towards the topic of vegetarianism for this

research essay. While this is a good start, there are still some topics that need some further

insight and development. Nearly all of the basic incentives, from religion to health benefits, will

end up needing more research into the sources. Some topics, such as religion, will probably need

even more articles and sources so that a solid foundation can be formed. Although there is still

plenty of work to be done, this literature review is certainly a good start for the upcoming huge

research essay.

I included four more sources for the final of my research paper. First, Lauren Davis’s

valid news article from the Atlantic served as a useful resource for the economic portion of my

research essay. I also used an article called “What 6 World Religions Have To Say About

Vegetarianism” by Joel Kahn. From the website Mind Body Green, this credible source had

essential information for the religion argument in my vegetarianism incentives essay. Next, Kells

McPhillips provided me with a very useful article from the website Well and Good. I primarily

used her information in the portion of my essay where I talked about the various types of

vegetarianism and how they differ from one another. The last source that I originally did not

include in this literature review is Marco Springmann’s “Analysis and Valuation of the Health
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and Climate Change Cobenefits of Dietary Change.” I did not include any quotes or worded

information from this article. This article was actually used for the sole purpose of its visual.

There was a visual on this article that provided me with a representation of the impact

vegetarianism would have on the environment and economy.

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Works Cited

“Becoming a Vegetarian.” Harvard Health, Harvard Health Publishing, 15 Apr. 2020,

www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/becoming-a-vegetarian.

Best, Steven. "Vegetarianism." Encyclopedia of Environmental Ethics and Philosophy,

edited by J. Baird Callicott and Robert Frodeman, vol. 2, Macmillan Reference

USA, 2009, pp. 371-375. Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints,

https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3234100298/OVIC

Davis, Lauren C. “The Economic Case for Worldwide Vegetarianism.” The Atlantic,

Atlantic Media Company, 30 Mar. 2016,

www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2016/03/the- economic-case-for-

worldwide-vegetarianism/475524/.

Kahn, Joel. “What 6 World Religions Have To Say About Vegetarianism.”

Mindbodygreen, 22 Sept. 2020, www.mindbodygreen.com/0-11240/what-6-

world-religions- have-to-say-about -vegetarianism.html.

McPhillips, Kells. “The 8 Types of Vegetarians All Get Down With Plant-Based Eating

in Different Ways.” Well+Good, 12 Aug. 2020, www.wellandgood.com/types-of-

vegetarians/.

Springmann, Marco, et al. “Analysis and Valuation of the Health and Climate Change

Cobenefits of Dietary Change.” PNAS, National Academy of Sciences, 18 Mar.

2016, www.pnas.org/content/early/2016/03/16/1523119113.
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"The plant-based revolution." Age [Melbourne, Australia], 17 Apr. 2018, p. 8. Gale In

Context: Opposing Viewpoints,

https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A534847130/OVIC?

u=dayt30401&sid=OVIC&xid=7fa85590. Accessed 18 Oct. 2020.

"Vegetarianism." Gale Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection, Gale, 2019. Gale In

Context: Opposing Viewpoints,

https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/PC3010999016/OVIC?

u=dayt30401&sid=OVIC&xid=15491118. Accessed 15 Oct. 2020.

"Vegetarianism." Environmental Encyclopedia, edited by Deirdre S. Blanchfield, Gale,

2011. Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints,

https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/CV2644151452/OVIC?

u=dayt30401&sid=OVIC&xid=b0f06e7d. Accessed 15 Oct. 2020.