"Death of a Pig"

In “Death of a Pig” E.B. White begins by saying how he spent numerous hours trying to save his sickly pig. In the beginning, White never knew the value of life and how fragile it could be; he simply thought about pigs as a source of meat, providing plentiful ham and bacon. Throughout the story White personifies the pig, continually comparing it to a child. As the story progresses, we see that White keeps getting more and more attached to this pig, doing everything in his power to keep him alive; he even admits that it became a “strong obsession” to help lift the pig from his misery. White visited the pig several times a day to nurse it back to help with no luck. When he had learned of the pig’s death, White went back to him room very distraught. I found this story hit home a little because growing up in rural Wisconsin, many of my friends and neighbors raise beef cattle. From my standpoint, these farmers can’t get attached to their animals because they will eventually be led to a slaughterhouse and I’m sure getting attached can be emotionally exhausting. I find it this essay interesting because it makes it seem like the death of this pig made White reevaluate his situation, but who wouldn’t after the disheartening few days he went through? What would you do if you were in his shoes?