Lecture 33: World War II and the Advent of Fast Food
closest fast-food outlet and come back with as many hamburgers as can be
bought with 10 dollars. Competitor two will go to the nearest grocery store
and will purchase ground beef, buns, ketchup, lettuce, and pickles. Then,
come home and cook hamburgers as quickly as possible, either inside in
a pan or outdoors on a grill. This is partly a competition to see which is
faster, but also compare how many hamburgers you could get for 10 dollars.
Compare the taste of the hamburgers, too. Which was the better option?
Which involved more time, labor, and forethought? Which ultimately “cost”
more, not merely in terms of money, but also in expenditure of labor? If the
competition was fairly close, why do people rely so much on fast food? Is it
merely good advertising and the idea of convenience?