Pink Plastic Flamingo

             1950s was an era of “rebirth” for Americans. Miraculously overcoming the hard time of the Great Depression, the United States was filled with the atmosphere of prosperity and abundance. Pink Flamingo, which Price effectively elaborated on her essay “The Plastic Pink Flamingo: A Natural History”, symbolized such optimistic mood. In other words, Price used plastic pink flamingo in order to scrutinize the American culture in 1950s, by using strong dictions, listing, and symbolic image.

             First of all, Price cleverly employed conspicuous dictions for the sake of efficiently depict the equally conspicuous culture of America at that time. For instance, when the pink flamingo “splashed” into the United States, its effect was so “emphatic” that it acquired “an extra fillip of boldness”. Such “flashy” appearance of pink flamingo was largely attributed to American’s fondness for noticeable figures – pink flamingos could be found even in desert, where flamingo could really stand out from its surroundings. The use of such strong wording implies that the influence of pink flamingo was enormous to that extent. Also, it indicates Price’s notion of the sudden, but profound invasion of pink flamingos into America in fifties.

             Furthermore, Price enumerated the use of the word “pink” and “flamingo”. Flamingo gained literally a national support; there were countless flamingo hotels, motels, restaurants, and lounges. In addition, popularity of pink across the country deserved to be named as a syndrome. Pink washing machines, pink cars, and pink kitchen counters tempted consumers. The pink syndrome was also found in pink Cadillac of Elvis Presley, one of the most famous celebrities in 1950s. By pointing out those nation-wide uses of “pink” and “flamingo”, Price explained how impressive the effect of the “sassy pink” flamingo was in 1950s America and why Americans love the lively color of pink so much: the “sassy pink” symbolizes the American’s power to overcome the Great Depression.

             Lastly, Price focused on the historical images of pink flamingo. Pink flamingo was regarded as a red phoenix by early Christians, symbolized the sun god Ra in ancient Egypt, and still remains as the ultimate sources of art, dance, and literature in Mexico and the Caribbean. Those symbolic images of pink flamingo have one thing in common – they are “special”. According to Price, Americans viewed themselves as special ones, just like the pink flamingo - special enough to revive from the Great Depression and achieved a national prosperity.

             In conclusion, Jennifer Price used strong diction, listing and symbolic images in her essay to vividly described the lively atmosphere of America in 1950s. Certainly, as Price explained in her essay, Americans at that time indulged themselves in the joy of overcoming stressful hardship and achieving unprecedented economic and political success. Simply, they were “pink”.