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The Santa Ana Winds Analysis

834 Words4 Pages

Earth, the home to humans, animals, and all of biological diversity, experiences changes every second of every day, and these changes are referred to as biological altercations. Biological altercations, like the Santa Ana winds, are commonly disputed among society due to both the positive and negative outcomes of the altercations. The Santa Ana winds are extremely dry winds that affect Southern California and are known to cause wildfires. Individuals like Joan Didion argue that a Santa Ana brings darkness and danger, whereas other individuals like Linda Thomas argue that it brings beauty and value. Each side of this dispute is discussed in Linda Thomas’ essay “Brush Fire”, and Joan Didion’s essay “The Santa Ana”. Despite each piece’s central idea being about the Santa Ana winds, the author of each …show more content…

Thomas’ perspective of the Santa Ana is more of a positive outlook compared to Didion. Thomas states in her essay, “As a native, I know that within six weeks of one of these brush fires, I can walk in the blackened path of the fire and find new shoots already pushing up from the burl of a chamise.” Thomas does not only demonstrate how being a native has taught her more about the Santa Ana winds, she also shows how being native and having impactful experiences formed her perspective. In Didion’s essay, she states, “I recall being told, when I first moved to Los Angeles and was living on an isolated beach, that the Indians would throw themselves into the sea when the bad wind blew.” Didon’s approach to her essay is different that that of Thomas. Unlike Thomas, Didon backs up her perspective by using information from different sources and people, while also using very few of her own memories. Didion may be a resident of Southern California, but she is most certainly not a native like Thomas, causing Thomas’ connection with the winds to be

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