I can't decide. I've been mulling over it all day and I can't quite make up my mind. What have I been debating upon all day you may ask, well let me tell you. Plastic plants. Now, you might say that that is a silly thing to be pondering about all day. However, allow me to explain the basis of my indecision.
See, we have this faux, plastic plant in the restroom at work. It sits upon the top shelf and adds an air of charm and homeliness to the otherwise bland, glorified closet. At least, that's what I think was the point. Being plastic, it of course can't freshen the air (a huge downside given some of its regular occupants) and does little more than sit there badly imitating a real plant. It, like most plastic plants, has thick stems and rough cut leaf patterns that make it hard to mistake it for its namesake if you are looking directly at it. So what is the point of having it? Well, I guess because it offers enough of an impression of the real thing without any of the work in keeping the living alternative.
So here is my dilemma; are plastic plants artistic representations or cheap, close approximations for a lazy post industrial society? Both possibility seems equally valid. Lets examine each in turn.
We could look at plastic plants in the same way we would sculptures, i.e. near identical artistic representations rendered from crude materials. As an artistic homage, faux plants offer a splash of color and a hint of nature in even the most sterile of environments. Like most art, they have little requirement for maintenance save a good occasional dusting. They don't attract pests or insects as real plants do and as such fit in better in some places than the real thing would. They last year round with no loss of leaves or change in color.
Conversely, plastic plants do not command much respect. When someone discovers a fake, it is usually followed by "Oh, it's fake." As far as lifeforms go, a potted plant is hardly among the more labor intensive or difficult to care for pets one can keep. Granted real plants are not always easy, yet there are people who find themselves too busy to maintain them and prefer false plants. Not just in the office either, but in their home as well. In this post industrial society of ours it seems we have an easy imitation for just about everything: digital pets, automated answering services, and even more risque things. Plastic plants are barely the tip of the sword, but how suggestive their preference and use must be to other societies.
So maybe you can see my difficulty. I don't know, what do you think?
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