+
Pop Culture

Author is causing debate over theory that we've 'tricked' ourselves into loving lobster

"Lobsters are like diamonds. Bad product, great marketing."

lobster, scarcity, jason pargin

Jason K. Pargin shares his controversial theory on lobster.

This article was previously published on 3.20.2023.

Novelist Jason K. Pargin has inspired an online food fight after his video about lobster received over 500,000 views on Tiktok and nearly 6 million on Twitter. Pargin believes that we’ve all been tricked into liking lobster and that people only like it because it’s considered high class.

Pargin is the author of the “John Dies at the End” and “Zoey Ashe” series and the former editor of Cracked.com.

"I don't think anyone actually enjoys eating lobster. I think they've just been convinced that it's a high-class food for a really specific reason,” Pargin says in his controversial video. He then describes how just a few centuries ago lobster was once used as prisoners' food and ground into fertilizer.


But after the food developed a reputation for being hard to transport from the coastal areas inland and that it spoils quickly after being cooked, it began to be seen as a delicacy.

"So because it was difficult to mess with and because it had to be shipped live inside the country, away from the coast, it became known that lobster was difficult to obtain," Pargin says in his video. "And because it's difficult to obtain, it had to be expensive, and because it was expensive, we decided it was good.”

"You were eating lobster not because you enjoyed it but because you wanted it to be known to all who were watching you that you could afford lobster," Pargin continues.

His final point was a real blow to those who only eat lobster if it’s drowned in butter. "You know what also tastes good when you dump it into a bucket of butter? Anything," Pargin says.

The viral video sparked a hot debate on Twitter, where it appears that most people disagreed with Pargin—especially those who live in the northeast and enjoy lobster no matter how it’s prepared. Many had a problem with Pargin framing the argument from the limited American perspective.

Lobster is eaten worldwide and has been enjoyed by countless cultures since the prehistoric era . People enjoy lobster in places where it’s affordable and where it’s considered a delicacy. So that kills his argument that we’ve been duped into enjoying lobster simply because it’s expensive.

But Pargin is entirely correct when he claims that we value things more when they are scarce. In psychology, the concept is known as the scarcity effect.

"Scarcity is a pervasive condition of human existence," Shahram Heshmat, Ph.D., writes in Psychology Today. "Everyday circumstances of limited resources (money and time) can make individuals experience a sense of scarcity. Scarcity functions like an obstacle to goal pursuit, which intensify the value of goal."

Here’s what people are saying about Pargin’s videos on Twitter.

Sorry, Jason, history goes way past the 1800s.

Some swear they do not need to drown a lobster in butter to enjoy its flavor.

Many disagreed and shared why they love the cockroach of the seas.

Is lobster really just a butter-delivery system?

Some agree with Pargin that people only like lobster because it's expensive.

Pargin’s argument makes sense. We value things harder to get, and anything dunked in butter tastes fantastic. But that doesn't cover the fact that people enjoy lobster around the globe, regardless of its perceived scarcity. In the end, the real winners of this debate are those who don’t like lobster. Right now, a pound of Maine lobster goes for up to $80 a pound. That’s an expensive night out at the local fish joint.


This article originally appeared on 3.18.23

True

Implementing simple energy- and water-efficiency upgrades in US households would save nearly $200B per year in residential utility bills.

Unfortunately, these upgrades are often unaffordable or inaccessible for the average US home.

Growing up in West Virginia, my community was largely part of the 1/3 of Americans who can’t afford their energy bills, let alone the efficient home tech upgrades that would make these bills affordable.

This is why Kaitlin Highstreet and I founded Scope Zero , where we created the Carbon Savings Account™, or CSA. The CSA is similar to a health savings account, where employers and employees both contribute funds to the account. With the CSA, the employees use the money for home technology and personal transportation upgrades that reduce their utility bills, fuel spend, and carbon footprint.

CSA-eligible upgrades include everything from Energy Star refrigerators, low-flow showerheads, smart thermostats, and LEDs, to home solar and EVs.

Keep Reading Show less

This 4-year-old's reaction is all of us after a long day

There's one thing you can say about little kids that's pretty consistent no matter who the kid is, and it's that they're brutally honest. Whether you have something stuck in your teeth or you've gained weight, a small child will inform you - loudly, and usually in front of others. But one preschooler's moment of honesty is going viral for how relatable it is.

An exhausted and cranky 4-year-old named Jude has had enough. The little boy had just gotten home from school when he must've been asked something before the camera started rolling because his response was a #same moment.

"Listen. No, do you hear me? I'm cranky, I'm tired, I worked hard at school," Jude says to his dad.

Jude's mom, Amber Tinker uploaded the video to TikTok where it went viral with over 14 million views and over 1.5 million likes. The tiny grumpy human was clearly not interested in whatever shenanigans his dad was up to and he let him know it.

Keep Reading Show less

Marcos Alberti's "3 Glasses" project began with a joke and a few drinks with his friends.

The photo project originally depicted Alberti's friends drinking, first immediately after work and then after one, two, and three glasses of wine.

But after Imgur user minabear circulated the story, "3 Glasses" became more than just a joke. In fact, it went viral, garnering more than 1 million views and nearly 1,800 comments in its first week. So Alberti started taking more pictures and not just of his friends.

Keep Reading Show less
Canva

Unique baby names are definitely trendy. But it can backfire.

There’s a fine line between a unique name and one that sets kids up for a lifetime of ridicule.

On the one hand, maybe it shouldn’t matter what other people think, and parents should pick a name that suits their preferences, consequences be damned. On the other hand, their kid might not appreciate that kind of bravery after enduring years of bullying during childhood, followed constant confusion at Starbucks and truly unenviable work emails once they’re adults.

And this chapter of parenting can be a little stressful—even more stressful if neither partner can agree on a name they both like.

Keep Reading Show less
via Wait But Why and used with permission

The ten types of friends

When you're a kid, or in high school or college, you usually don't work too hard on your friend situations. Friends just kind of happen.

For a bunch of years, you're in a certain life your parents chose for you, and so are other people, and none of you have that much on your plates, so friendships inevitably form. Then in college, you're in the perfect friend-making environment, one that hits all three ingredients sociologists consider necessary for close friendships to develop: “proximity; repeated, unplanned interactions; and a setting that encourages people to let their guard down and confide in each other." More friendships happen.

Keep Reading Show less

Using the FORD method to make small talk.

There are many reasons why people are nervous about entering social situations where they have to make small talk , such as a work event, a party where they don’t know many people, or at school.

Some people don’t enjoy small talk because they get frustrated talking about seemingly unimportant topics. At the same time, others are shy and afraid they’ll say the wrong thing or run out of topics of conversation.

Psychologists suggest those who are uncomfortable knowing what to say should use the FORD method. It’s an acronym that’s an easy way to remember four different topics of conversation that work with just about anyone.

Keep Reading Show less
Joy

10 things that made us smile this week

Upworthy's weekly roundup of joy

10 reasons to smile, from hip-hop grannies to creepy doll-loving babies

I've been thinking a lot lately about hope . What it is. Where it comes from. How we hold onto it. Where we look for it when it feels lost.

People talk about hope as if it's something that you either have or you don't, but I think hope is a choice. We decide to look for the positive , we choose to believe that things will improve, we consciously create a world in our imagination that's better than the one we are currently living in.

One of our goals at Upworthy is to make it easier to for people to choose hope. Sometimes we do that by sharing stories of inspiring people , sometimes we do it through exploring solutions to tough challenges the world faces and sometimes we do it by making people smile or laugh because joy is good for us.

It can be hard to choose hope when the world feels dark, but without it, things only get darker.

Keep Reading Show less