Paraphrase Paragraph 1: Parties of travelers lodge in St. Louis as they prepare for their trips to Oregon and California Travelers heading towards California were generally wealthy and high ranking Workers in the city provided items to be bought by the westward travelers Paragraph 2: Parkman takes a trip to the Rocky Mountains to tour it The boat is filled with the supplies needed for life in the frontier From the current state of the supplies, it would be impossible to know that they would be used for a long journey throughout the western frontier Paragraph 3: A multitude of people are aboard the ship Range from land speculators to Kansa Indians Paragraph 4: The ship faced many obstacles as it sails through the river The Missouri river is …show more content…
Parkman incorporates enumeration in the second paragraph listing the items brought upon the steamboat by the travelers ranging from “piles of saddles and harness” to “an assortment of boxes and barrels.” That all the parties traveling have brought with them the same basic tools and supplies needed to make their journey possible on the frontier. Furthermore, the multitude of “large weapons” emphasizes the danger that is a part of the journey to the frontier that everyone will have to face. The overwhelming amount of provisions and supplies brought leaves Parkman with a sense of respect for the passengers who have all have a “long and arduous journey” ahead of them. In addition, visual imagery is employed to depict the “broad and turbid river” with the power to alter the environment that surrounds it. Over time, the river “form[s]” and “washes]” islands away being able to leave life as it is with “forests on one side” but can also create new life too with the “young growth” on the opposite side. Furthermore, as the river’s water level lowers, the “treacherous shallows” reveal broken trees similar to “military abatis.” These dead trees are ready to “impale any unhappy steamboat,” which displays the river’s ability to control the each passenger’s journey. Thus, nature as seen through the river contains an overwhelming amount of power which allows it to bring fear and awe to those who travel through it. Parkman crafts the rhetorics strategies of enumeration and visual imagery with a tone of wonderment to further depict his argument that the journey to the frontier brings equality and displays the power of