A reading and viewing comprehension handout personally created by myself regarding the material viewed in Annie Leonard's "The Story Stuff".

1. Name:______ ENG 10 Date:_______
The Story of Stuff
Vocabulary
Match the words with the correct explanations as they are discussed in the video.
a) Exploitation ___ When items are thrown away for removal
b) Extraction ___ Things that we use in our everyday lives which come from the planet
c) Natural Resources ___ Parts of the world that are underdeveloped
d) Third World ___ A person who is using or taking in something
e) Refined ___ The action of something being used or taken
f) Toxin ___ When technology advances too quickly and the item is more of a burden
g) Employee ___ When something or someone creates a profit but are not paid for their efforts
h) Consumption ___ When items are burned as a way of removing them
i) Consumer ___ A hole in the ground that holds the garbage when it has no place else to go
j) Obsolete ___ Another way of saying poison
k) Disposal ___ When something is changed chemically or physically for purpose of production
l) Incineration ___ Someone who works for a company
m) Landfill ___ Removal of something (in the film this was mining, hunting, or logging
The System
Match the words with the correct part of the diagram
Disposal Retail Consumption Refinement Extraction
Bonus _______________
1)______________
3)_________________ 4) _____________
2)_________________________ 5)__________________

2. Name:______ ENG 10 Date:_______
Making Connections
Write down some of your thoughts regarding the categories below
Things you Need Things you Buy Things you can Live Without
Short Answer
1. What is the cycle that people go through everyday which makes them constantly buy new
products?
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2. Where do governments get their natural resources once their country runs out of certain
resources?
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3. How are people exploited in this linear system?

3. Name:______ ENG 10 Date:_______
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4. Why is it extremely problematic that this is a linear system?
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Research (using Yahoo search engine) three companies that are exploiting their employees and how
they are doing this. Please list your resources underneath the chart as well (DO NOT USE WIKIPEDIA or
JUST WRITE “YAHOO/BAIDU”)
Company/Corporation Are they Exploiting Employees How are they mistreating their
Employees?