Name _____________________________ Class _________________ Date __________________
The New Frontier and the Great Society
Biography
Rachel Carson
1907–1964
WHY SHE MADE HISTORY Rachel
Time Life Pictures/Getty Images
Carson was a scientist and writer whose
work informed people of the dangers of
pesticides and led to bans on certain
chemicals. She is considered by many the
inspiration for modern environmentalism.
As you read the biography below, think about
the effect Rachel Carson’s research and
writings had on the environment. How did she
help protect the natural world?
Rachel Carson was born in 1907 in Springdale, Pennsylvania. Her mother
had a great interest in nature and shared that with her daughter. As a child,
Carson enjoyed reading and writing stories about birds and other animals.
At a time when few women studied science, Carson’s passion for the
natural world inspired her to earn a bachelor’s degree in biology from the
Pennsylvania College for Women and then a master’s degree in zoology
from Johns Hopkins University in Maryland.
After graduation, Carson worked for the Commerce Department’s
Bureau of Fisheries. To supplement her income she wrote articles about
natural history for newspapers and magazines. Later she became editor of
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service publications.
In the 1940s, in addition to her government work, Carson began writing
books. Her first three books described life in the ocean and were praised
for Carson’s thorough research and beautiful prose. The Sea Around Us
won a National Book Award in 1952 and sold more than 200,000 copies.
The Edge of the Sea, published in 1955, was also a bestseller.
It is for her fourth and final book that Carson is most remembered. Silent
Spring, published in 1962, described the effects and dangers of pesticide
use, including the widely used chemical DDT. Used to eliminate diseasecarrying insects, DDT was credited with ending a typhus epidemic during
World War II and wiping out mosquitoes that carried malaria in the South.
On farms DDT appeared to kill crop-damaging pests without harming
humans. Other, more powerful chemicals had come into widespread use as
well, raising crop yields and stopping outbreaks of diseases by killing off
insects that carried them.
In Silent Spring Carson reported the negative effects of those powerful
chemicals, such as incidents in which hundreds of birds and other wildlife
Copyright © by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. All rights reserved.
8
The New Frontier and the Great Society
Name _____________________________ Class _________________ Date __________________
The New Frontier and the Great Society
Biography
died after an area was sprayed with pesticide. Carson’s research showed
that chemical pesticides could kill other creatures in addition to their
intended victims, stayed in the soil or groundwater, and were potentially
dangerous to humans. She criticized the government for allowing pesticide
use when the chemicals’ long-term effects to humans were unknown.
Public reaction to Silent Spring was swift and powerful. A group of
chemical companies spent about $250,000 on a publicity campaign to
discredit Carson and her work and on promoting the benefits of chemical
pesticides. Carson was threatened with lawsuits. The New Yorker
magazine, which printed chapters of the book, received more mail about
Silent Spring than about any other article up to that time. Noted scientists
wrote reviews praising the book and its careful documentation. The book
attracted the attention of President John F. Kennedy. He ordered an
investigation into the dangers outlined in the book by the President’s
Science Advisory Committee. That panel’s report verified many of
Carson’s conclusions. Congressional hearings followed in 1963, in which
Carson challenged government policy and called for regulation of
pesticides.
It was not until 1970, after many other people had demanded pesticide
regulation, that Congress created the Environmental Protection Agency,
which banned the use of DDT in the United States. Carson, credited with
inspiring today’s environmental movement, died 18 months after Silent
Spring was published.
WHAT DID YOU LEARN?
1. Describe What impact did Rachel Carson’s research and writings have on the
environment?
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
2. Elaborate Is pesticide and chemical regulation important? Explain your opinion.
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
ACTIVITY
What environmental issues are important to your community today? Do
some research to identify an issue and write a short essay about what steps
can be taken to protect your local environment.
Copyright © by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. All rights reserved.
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The New Frontier and the Great Society