Green - 10/29/22

    When reading Can Wilderness Be Found on a Wilderness Trail? I could not help but compare the author's opinion on Thoreau to that of my classmate in English and Ecology classes. The author writes about Thoreau's opinions on the relationships between self and society with nature, and nature as a liminal space due to its inability to remain "natural" with mankind. The reading sums it up in saying "The journey on a “wilderness trail” happens only in name. Wilderness evades us, moving further to the West, just ahead of those who would go into it.". The piece goes further into liminality and what that means in terms of the West and our perfect version of nature, but I want to go back and talk about using Thoreau in a reference in this manner.

    Many of my classmates familiar with Thoreau and Emerson's works have a negative opinion of the former, as he wrote about living carefree when essentially being funded and housed by Emerson, his mentor, living on his land. They asked how this mentality, this ability to be philosophical about their surroundings, could be possible to the common man when they were not given his opportunities. Some provide the objection that nature is available to all in some form, whether in a great old-growth forest or in their own backyard. They say that criticizing him is unfair as we have advanced further as a society to provide greater standards of living to each citizen. I do agree that it is a bit strange to place any one person, especially one as comparatively well-off as Thoreau, on a pedestal, but when looking at the time period it makes sense. Thoreau lived and wrote in the mid 1800s, when one could not help but live around nature as the United States was not as choked with infrastructure as it is today. Though his writings may not resonate with readers in the U.S. today, the ideas of liminality are incredibly interesting to consider.

    When he lived and wrote, the United States, though explored, was still untouched by the common man. Only few ventured out that far West, and the internet did not exist to open the eyes of everyone to what lay out there. Nowadays, the West exists in every part of the planet that the media does not cover. This liminal space provides a sense of mystery and nakedness to these portions of our globe, that may very well be false, but exist regardless. The Amazon rainforest, inhabited by many and deeply explored at this point, still seems a far-off alien place to a suburban individual, but to those that live there it is as common as our backyards. It exists as a place in and out of society at the same time. This idea rings true, despite when it was first wrote about and despite the fact that our planet seemingly has no "West" anymore.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Jaidan Brass -- Cheryl Strayed's Wild (12/04)

    Wild is a memoir of Cheryl Strayed during her time on the Pacific Crest Trail, also known as the PCT. the PCT is a trail that goes along the pacific coast from the bottom of California to the top of Washington. One of the things I admired most about Strayed was her courage during her months on the trail. Cheryl Strayed needed to hike the trail alone to help find herself after feeling like she lost herself after her mother’s death. In one chapter Strayed states, “Being near Tom and Doug at night kept me from having to say to myself I am not afraid whenever I heard a branch snap in the dark or the wind shook so fiercely it seemed something bad was bound to happen. But I wasn’t out here to keep myself from having to say I am not afraid” ( p. 122). One of the reasons she did the trails was to prove that she was brave enough and determined enough to this by herself. Though she did meet friends and have help along the way, she spend a majority of her time on the trail by h...
Read more

Emily Anstett 11/20 Religion and Climate Change Article Reflection

  https://insideclimatenews.org/news/27062022/religion-climate-change/ This article describes how some Rabbis are beginning to advocate for climate action and bring the problem of climate change to their congregation’s attention.  They are trying to “bridge the gap” between faith and climate.  I am interested in how western religions can adapt to incorporate more ecologically conscious views and practices.  I also think it is important to reconsider how religions dictate interactions with the environment.  For instance, the way that people interpret God giving dominion over the earth can have important implications.  For instance, does that mean that people are free to exploit and do whatever they see fit with God’s dominion? Or should humans work to cultivate this? I think this may be a point of contention that has significant ramifications on human-nature interactions.  For instance, if humans view themselves as a part of the dominion God created, ...
Read more

Jaidan Brass - Ecology of Eden Ch. 13 & 14 (12/04)

      In these two chapter, Eisenberg talks about the ranges seen between the mountain and the tower--or between wilderness and civilization. These are in examples like pastoralism, suburbia, and arcadia. They are the middle ground of the two extremes with mountains having no civilization at all and towers having no wilderness. While middle grounds tend to start out alright, they usually start failing after awhile. It's  possibly because the lifestyle was not sustainable. Pastoralism is starts degrading the soils once it gets to populated or gets overgrazed. The mountain part of suburbs can easily be lost into ideals where the community loses the reasons on why suburban areas were made. The middle ground is a delicate balance, but one many want to live in to enjoy the benefits of both the wilderness and civilization. 
Read more