The Pink Plastic Flamingo A Natural History Summary

Jennifer Price’s essay “The Pink Plastic Flamingo: A Natural History” draws upon a cornucopia of historical evidence, both of the United States and other world cultures, to reveal to the audience--readers in America who may harbor an affinity for pop culture history--that the seemingly innocuous American flamingo, perched calmly on the lawns of Americans both North and South, is actually the product of a rich, flamboyant cultural tradition in the United States and in other civilizations. By giving such a varied and in-depth treatment of the origins of the pink flamingo--through a long, insightful narrative and figures of speech--Price reveals her respect for the eclectic and rich heritage that the United States has acquired.

Price’s vivid

diction, immediately evident from the beginning of the piece, adds clarity and color to her piece and perfectly captures the interesting pop culture icons--including the flamingo--that ‘50s America was inundated with. Just as how ‘50’s and ‘60’s culture suddenly hit the younger generation, making them take on a set of values that they had barely known previously, the “pink flamingo splashed into the fifties market.” The word “splashed” is particularly vivid and fitting, as it implies the out-of-the-blue character in which the pink flamingo emerged, as well as conjuring up images of a pink flamingo splashing through water. Other words that appear throughout Price’s essay echoes the vivid, positive connotation that the word “splashed” evokes, and indicates the author’s attitude: she is particularly favorable of the rich culture from which the pink flamingo emerged. For example, the “leisure” and “extravagance” that became associated with the flamingo in Florida implies a positive impression of the flamingo, while the words “semiotic sprouts”--an alliteration--convey a mood of positivity and growth that so dominated America’s baby-boomer, reconstructionist era, with its rapid construction and commercialization.
Price’s purpose in the last paragraph is to reveal the history and influence behind the flamingo that occurred because of ancient cultures and traditions. Essentially, she wants us to know that the flamingo was not a spontaneous invention by profit-hungry American corporations, but rather grounded in historical traditions. In describing the cultural background that the flamingo emerged from, Price conveys to us that there is something below the surface that leads to the appeal of the pink flamingo--in Egypt, it “symbolized the ancient sun god, Ra,” while in Mexico it was a major motif in art, dance and literature. Price thus catapults the status of the flamingo above that of petty everyday American consumerism.
In the third paragraph, Price perfectly captures the bright, neon colors of the fifties through her panoply of words--“tangerine, broiling magenta, vivid pink, incarnadine...methyl green” leading to a forward-looking, inspired description of American culture. Her inclusion of popular celebrities, such as Elvis Presley, serves further to illustrate the popularity of the American flamingo symbol, as well as to illustrate that the symbol of the flamingo carried mass appeal. In including new, forward-looking words, such as never-before-heard-of colors as well as the espousal of a popular cultural figure--Elvis--Price indicates that the American flamingo, far from being an obsolete cultural icon, has a rich and perhaps ancient history.