After Nature: A Literary Analysis

An appreciation for nature is instilled within a human being during their beginning years of life. Older generations teach younger generations what they have learned from their experiences in nature as a child despite the constant, ever-changing of the environment. Ever since the mid-twentieth century, the climate has been changing in ways that has the potential to one day threaten the lives of billions. Authors, such as Richard Louv, Jedediah Purdy, and Kalle Lasn, work to emphasize the downward fall that is occurring in society. Along with their opinions, my Mother also gave her input about the world today from a different point of view. She was born in Chandler’s Ford, United Kingdom in 1964 when climate change was beginning to be recognized.

In After Nature: A Politics for the Anthropocene, Jedediah Purdy introduces a new geological era: “the Anthropocene” (Purdy 2). Said Anthropocene is what Purdy terms “the age of climate change” (2) due to the Industrial Revolution and the extreme use of land and energy by humans. In discussions of geological era titles, one controversial topic is definitely whether humans are a reason for climate change. On the other hand, some question whether climate change is even reality. My own view is that climate change exists and is the result of human industrialization; however, I believe that the Anthropocene should not be associated with the destruction of the environment, but hopefully the maintenance of a piece of what previously mentioned author, Lasn, would see as “kin” (Lasn 170). If children were shaped in their early years to respect nature and feel a need to give back, then climate change could be counteracted. Unfortunately, in my mother’s opinion, despite individual efforts “we’re killing the planet” (Ross). Purdy’s views align with my Mother and I’s in that we all recognize the values that the world seems to be leaning towards, but wish it were not happening as it is. I believe that the three of us see the world with what Purdy would call “a Romantic vision” (8) because there is a strong appreciation for the beauty of nature. However, that is an idealistic approach because of the way that society has conditioned citizens to truly see the world. The more realistic lense is what Purdy calls “the ecological view” (8) in which everything is interrelated and works together, whether it be in nature or a part of industrialized society. This is the vision that the Anthropocene is leaning towards because no one in my generation or generations younger than me is being taught to see nature as a right. Returning to Louv’s argument on whether taking a walk in nature is a right or a