Few books can be said to have changed the world, but when Rachel Carson's Silent Spring was published in 1962, it launched an environmental revolution, the effects of which are still being felt today. Narrated by Oliver Platt, filmmaker Michelle Ferrari's PBS-aired American Experience documentary examines Carson's relatively short life (1907-1964), mostly spent out of the public spotlight. Carson, who was always close to her mother, inherited her love of nature. She grew up in a time when people had faith that science would make life better with "miracle substances" while humankind mastered and subdued the natural world. DDT, a pesticide used during World War II and in the 1950s, was hailed for its role in eradicating diseases such as typhus and malaria, as well as killing pests that destroyed or limited crop yields needed to feed a hungry world. Unfortunately, there was little testing on the side effects of these chemicals. Carson felt that nature, animals, and humans were all interconnected. After graduating from college, she landed a job as a government wildlife biologist, but her passion was always for writing. She submitted freelance pieces to Reader's Digest and other magazines, winning a National Book Award for her 1951 bestseller The Sea Around Us, which was praised for its poetic language. After realizing her dream of buying a home on Maine's coast, she became lifelong friends and soulmates with teacher Dorothy Freeman and her husband. Against the advice of Dorothy and others, Carson became consumed by the "indiscriminate" use of pesticides, and began writing Silent Spring, during which she was diagnosed with breast cancer and struggled to finish the book as her health declined. Following publication, many called Carson an anti-business Communist, but the book led to important legislation and reforms. A stirring tribute to Carson as a prescient critic of the hidden costs of progress, this is highly recommended. Aud: H, C, P. (S. Rees)
Rachel Carson
(2017) 120 min. DVD: $24.99 ($54.99 w/PPR). PBS Video. ISBN: 978-1-62789-781-5. Volume 32, Issue 4
Rachel Carson
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