Review of "The Prize"

In general, I guess we could say the Prize focuses on the oil industry from the first sight of oil many years ago, up until the very recently. Even though The Prize specifically goes through each chapter and describes how the oil industry evolved year to year, there is actually a more important topic than the broad outlook. I believe The Prize is more of a statement of how life has changed and developed since the first strike of oil, the people involved with starting and maintaining the oil industry, and the importance of oil for our survival in the future.
First of all, the book begins by talking about how oil was used solely for illuminating homes and businesses. As the book progresses, we see how the oil was then transferred into other uses such as gasoline for automobiles and for tankers while fighting in war. Due to oil, the entire world has changed, especially when it comes to working with varying countries and industries. As soon as the news of oil hit the newspapers, it spread like wildfires into nearly all walks of life. Also, oil has created friendships and enemies where they might have never been established if it weren’t for oil.
Secondly, the start of the oil industry was a new beginning for many individuals, personally. People such as Rockefeller and Teagle would be nobody today if it had not been for the invention of oil. There are so many household names being used today because of oil and these individuals have really shaped the world, especially in economics. Because a few people were willing to devote their entire lives to oil, the rest of the world now has so many advancements and luxuries because of their hard work.
Lastly, The Prize is known for tracking the overall importance of oil, in relationship to the future of the world. Although oil seems to be a huge pain for many people right now, it is also a need. Without oil, there are so many items that would not exist and would probably send people into more of a depression than they already are, because of oil prices. Even though it gets tiresome to talk about oil all the time, the fact is, it is a huge part of everyday life and something we will want to hang on to for many years from now.
I believe The Prize really just outlines this “monster” that so many depend on and complain about at the same time because it has become so well known and used over time. After reading through this book, the one thing that really stuck out to me was the filth involved in drilling for oil. Between watching the movie and reading about it in our books, I never really imagined the hard work, danger, and above all, the mess that went along with drilling for oil. Unless I was positive I was getting a huge chunk of money out of it, I do not think I would want to work on a drilling sight. Even above the filth, there are the obvious health issues that so many men were willing to risk, and I just do not think it is worth it.