Lars Eighner On Dumpster Diving

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“On Dumpster Diving,” is a descriptive essay written by Lars Eighner in which he describes some aspects of his life rummaging through the dumpsters in a small town, in search of food and basic necessities. Throughout his essay, Eighner constantly reminds the reader that most people view dumpster diving with disgust, and yet his tone indicates that he feels proud of his scavenging skills, how he can get perfectly good things that are thrown out. Furthermore, he goes on to explain in detail this lifestyle, which he refers to as“scavenging” and when doing so he makes it seem as if it were a just profession.
Such a “profession” of dumpster diving is comprised of three types of scavengers. First there is the novice scavenger, the one who is “filled with disgust and self loathing. …show more content…

He discusses how people put in long days, and yet are unfulfilled, while he himself is satisfied with all he has. In a ironic moment he states that he feels bad for those people. It seems like a paradox, the homeless man pitying those who are "successful" by society's standards.
Although much of what he says praises his way of life for all its benefits, Eighner makes it clear that his life is not easy, and definitely has bad parts to it. It may seem surprising to the reader that he can be happy and satisfied with his life, while he claims that many people with homes and all they need, are in a worse position than him, and he pities them. Tone: Not ashamed of what he does, he is proud that he can survive, that he can get a lot of good things, all for free. In a paradoxical ending he pities the people who live in homes and can buy anything, but can’t truly find what they want, and be

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