The story “Indian Horse” by Richard Wagamese has a huge connection to nature. The storyteller ‘Saul Indian Horse’, is Ojibway and a big part of his culture is nature. His family, which consisted of his mother, father, brother, and grandmother, were very close and connected to each other. They all lived together at God’s Lake and had a huge connection with the land. Even just 2 chapters into the book, we see the connection Saul's family has with nature and their land, especially his grandmother.
The novel Alandra’s Lilacs, by Tressa Bowers, tells the story of a Deaf woman, Alandra, and her mother Tressa. The story begins before Alandra was born and tells Tressa’s narative up to Alandra’s adulthood. Throughout the book, the reader sees the challenges that come with having a deaf child. We see both the achievements and setbacks faced by Alandra and her mother. Although being deaf may seem like a misfortune to most, Tressa reveals her experiences with Deaf culture and seeing deafness in a new light.
The author Richard Louv wrote an essay on the connection of nature to humans in the modern world. He expands on the fact that technology has taken away our abilities to appreciate nature for it’s true beauty. Children growing up in today’s world aren’t having the resources to appreciate nature and it’s beauty because of technology, according to him. He gives examples of the changing technology in the world: cars, mobile devices, advertisements, you name it. In Last Child in the Woods, Louv uses rhetorical devices to display his thoughts through examples and evidence.
In his passage from “Last Child in the Woods,” Richard Louv uses various rhetorical strategies in order to make his audience more supportive of his argument. The passage discusses the connection, or really the separation, between people and nature. On this subject, Louv argues the necessity for people to redevelop their connection with nature. His use of tone, anecdotes, rhetorical questions, and factual examples all help develop the pathos and logos of his piece.
In the 1980’s, many Indio’s were sexually assaulted, tortured and killed during the Guatemalan civil war. Gabriela, the main character in “Tree Girl” by Ben Mikaelsen, is a survivor of the Guatemalan civil war. Gabriela, a 15-year-old girl living in a small Guatemalan canton, experienced unspeakable things such as the deaths of the people in her canton, the witnessing of the pueblo massacre, and the fear of being caught by soldiers on her journey to Mexico. There are many important lessons to learn from this book, including how hope allows you to see past hatred. As you read through the book you learn similar lessons to the extent of what Gabriela had learned.
But, nature does not exclude humans, human excludes themselves from nature. Within the “mists of [the] chopping sea of civilized life, such are the clouds and storms and quicksands and thousand and one items to be allowed for”(277). He uses clouds and storms and quicksands to convey that civilized life includes the same negativity included in the connotation of those conditions, but nonetheless, those too are apart of nature. The purpose of utilizing imagery is so evoke images people already have to connect with them on that level to make them understand that they must find a harmony and balance in the world. So, in order to restore order within one’s individual life, one must defy the social norms that distance themselves from nature to find harmony with it.
In Cloudstreet, Tim Winton relays the various struggles of the Pickle and Lamb family who have had little moments worth celebrating; however, the beginning of the chapter Wax Harry is about the birth of Rose’s son, who Fish wants to name Wax Harry, due to the waxy appearance of the newborn baby. The arrival of the baby brings the two families together and leaves them all in merriment. Diction, figurative language, imagery, point of view, and sentence structure- these are elements that contribute to the last paragraphs mood of celebration and relief. The first lines of the last paragraph of Wax Harry personify the house by stating that “the room sighs, the house breathes its first painless breath in half a century,” marking the beginnings of
In “The Black Walnut Tree,” Mary Oliver’s use of metaphor, hyperbole, and personification conveys the walnut tree to be an integral symbol of the family's history that's worth is being challenged in a time of financial struggle to underscore the importance of preserving family values. Caught in a moral dilemma, a woman and her mother must raise enough money to pay their mortgage and turn to their sacred family landmark, a black walnut tree, that threatens their property while also holding sentimental significance. A metaphor in the form of a simile provides insight into how the tree signifies the family’s work ethic and trade. When considering selling the tree, the daughter reminds herself that “something brighter than money / moves in [her] blood- an edge / sharp and quick as a trowel / that wants [her] to dig and sow'' (lines 17-19).
Barry Lopez Takes Readers On Date With Nature In the essay, A Literature of place, Barry Lopez discusses the topic of relationships in nature. He proposes that everyone should pay attention to their surroundings. Lopez claims that he has a certain “intimacy” with nature, and he also says everyone should feel that connection. He also explains that places we love outside can tell alot about who we are as a person, and that we should spend more time observing our surroundings, he feels as if no one appreciates nature and no one appreciates the art that nature actually portrays, they don’t see all of the odd ends, and miss out on the little things that we don't look deep enough for.
Does the weight of the world shape how we see ourselves? In 1969, there was racial conflict between Malaysian and Chinese people, the reason for this tension was the general election. (Sukumaran) There were more Chinese people than Malay and as a result they were requesting to have more seats in the election. Consequently, more ethnic conflict with the Malays was instigated.
Many people who go into nature always see it as something beautiful and aesthetic, but they never see the other side to nature. Humankind’s connection with nature isn’t a real one. They always look at the bright side of nature but are blind to the true dark side of nature. JB MacKinnon’s article “False Idyll” (2012), reveals that nature is not just flowers in a field but can also be the survival of the fittest. He backs up his claim by talking about nature through anecdotes and expert’s research.
Lemon Tree by Eran Riklis is an Israeli feature film that tells a story of two women; a Palestinian one and a Jewish one. Salma is a widow and owns some lemon trees which are growing on the border of a Jewish settlement. Mira is the wife of the minister of defense and they recently moved into their new home in this Jewish community. The two women know of each other, yet their lives are split due to political and gender issues, as well as a fence. Salma, the Palestinian woman, is weak in a political and social manner but is still strong, determined and courageous.
We should value nature and its animals much more (Becker, 1971). In today’s world we have what Becker calls a “power-saw mentality” (Becker, 1971, p. 114). Instead we’re greedy with what nature has to offer us. “Man takes what nature offers us, but usually only what he needs” (Becker, 1971, p. 114). There is a psychological difference in today’s world of what we enjoy out of nature (Becker, 1971).
Recently I have discovered the novel Catch a Falling Star by Kim Culbertson. This novel is a charming love story that holds new beginnings for Adam Jakes, movie star, and Carter Moon, small town girl. Carter Moon has a big passion for astrology and the comfort of her hometown, but not too much of Hollywood. Carter has two best friends, who happen to be dating, Chloe and Alien Drake. Although her best friend Chloe, has an obsession over any celebrity, including Adam Jakes.
Nature is easily projected onto, as it allows for a sense of peacefulness and escapism. Due to its ability to evoke an emotional reaction from the masses, many writers have glorified it through various methods, including describing its endless beauty and utilizing it as a symbol for spirituality. Along with authors, artists also show great respect and admiration for nature through paintings of grandiose landscapes. These tributes disseminate a fixed interpretation of the natural world, one full of meaning and other worldly connections. In “Against Nature,” Joyce Carol Oates strips away this guise given to the environment and replaces it with a harsher reality.
