Victor Hansen, author of “Natural Links in a Long Chain of Being,” believes that we are not alone mainly because all of us are natural links in a long chain of being. Hansen mentioned, “The physical world around us changes constantly; human nature does not.” Over thousands of years, the landscaping of earth has altered significantly; nevertheless, he mentioned that the farmers are always doing the same for generations. The principle of new things is the same as old things. Occasionally, human beings may create new problems; however, we should not panic. There is always an old answer to the problems. For example, our outfitting changes intermittently; likewise, our personalities and speech change. Nevertheless, our intellectual never changes.
Throughout history, humans have had a strong reliance on nature and their environment. As far back as historians can look, people have depended on elements of nature for their survival. In the past few decades, the increased advancement of technology has led to an unfortunate division between humans and nature, and this lack of respect is becoming a flaw in current day society. In Last Child in the Woods, Louv criticizes modern culture by arguing that humans increasing reliance on technology has led to their decreasing connection with nature through the use of relevant anecdotes, rhetorical questions and powerful imagery to appeal to ethos.
Since the beginning of time, mankind has depended on nature for survival. Although, throughout the years society has learned to manipulate nature for their own selfish advantages. In the passage written by Richard Louv, he utilizes rhetorical questions, repetition, and a tone of nostalgia to stress that sad truth about the separation of mankind and nature.
The interconnection between the human race and nature is complex, and can be interpreted an infinite amount of ways. Mark Jenkins’ ‘King of the Dirtbags’ and Wendell Berry’s ‘An Entrance to the Woods’ are both very similar in the ways they represent philosophical ideas regarding the relationship between the modern man and nature. Both literary pieces discuss the benefits of simplicity, and explain how mankind has a tendency to overcomplicate much of what they develop. The two authors also share the idea in their writings that the ability to adapt to different environments is a crucial trait in evolution and progression as a society. Another major concept that is prevalent in both of the author’s pieces is that man must be able to reach beyond his comfort zone to understand nature’s consistency throughout time.
It is clear that we are connected to nature; however, there are opposing opinions on whether we are always in harmony with the natural world. Some say that it is not important to be in harmony with nature. The text “Mississippi Solo” states, “The sky above grew serious and advanced in my direction with the speed of a hurricane.” This shows that it is not important to be in harmony with nature because, as he said, the hurricane grew in speed and went towards him, almost killing him. The other text, “The Drought,” states, “And, yet, because in years he’s learned that, oftentimes there is something left to save.”
We find it common that the same problem still accrues
Even though we separated ourselves from nature in the attempt to salvage some beauty in the world we still “began to alter places where we were not,” through by-products of our industrialized society. (Mckibben XX) Mckibben says “it is also true that we are apart of nature” (Mckibben XXI) while Cronon wants us to see that “wilderness is more a state of mind than a fact of nature.” (Cronon 493) While Cronon wants humans to separate themselves from the wild, Mckibben asks us to confront nature head on. We are apart of it and“we possess the possibility of self-restraint” so we still have the means to stop abusing the natural order. In order to do this “we would need to change the ways we move ourselves around, the spaces we live in, the jobs we perform.” (Mckibben XXII) We can start by thinking of practical ways to affect the environment positively, starting in the
Albert Einstein once said, “Look deep into nature, and you will understand everything better”. The Call of the Wild, a novel by Jack London, shows exactly this. People must live in harmony with nature, or it will destroy them.
How people survived to live in the modern day is because of past knowledge and an understanding and appreciation for the Earth. Thoughtful consideration of today’s issues will help people in the future because if society decides to change their ways for the better all of humanity will have an improved life. In “Technologies Toll” Vine Deloria Jr. comments on the importance of bringing people back to indigenous centeredness. If natives, and everyone, do not change their ways “technology has been the death of our species. I mean, we are going to become extinct” (Sacred Land Film…). Knowing that link and being able to see outside of an individual life into a collective body has allowed society to see this issue and have the potential to make the
Preserving led to farmers farming for their own family and others. Non farmers would exchange a good or service for food. The Agricultural Revolution pushed humans towards a different type of living. Tribes became nation-states, and states became empires. This crucial change in cultural evolution made the human race more powerful. People were ruling over ignoramus amounts of people, territory and starting to control Mother Nature herself. Over time, each person rarely notices evolution in his or her life. In each generation the world is changing. The human race is forming its own environment. Buildings are built everywhere, businesses and homes. Man made rivers and lakes are being placed where the man’s heart desires. Even in vacuum space, man is making it to where it is
Nature is the playground for every human. It is essential that we include nature in our lives; it keeps us on our correct path. However, if we dismiss ourselves from nature, we begin to stray from our correct path. We become engulfed in the distractions from the modern world . The only approach to appropriate this quandary is to break our pervicacious ways and return to peaceful serenity known as nature.
White’s thesis in The Historical Roots of our Ecological Crisis states that in order to confront the expanding environmental crises, humans must begin to analyze and alter their treatment and attitudes towards nature. The slow destruction of the environment derives from the Western scientific and technological advancements made since the Medieval time period. “What people do about their ecology depends on what they think about themselves in relation to things around them” (RON p.7). Technology and science alone will not be able to save humans until we adjust the way of thinking and suppress the old ideas of humans power above nature. Instead, we need to learn how to think of ourselves as being
Throughout today’s society there are several different cultural perspectives which form theoretical and practical understandings of natural environments, creating various human-nature relationship types. In this essay, I will describe and evaluate different ways of knowing nature and the impact of these views on human-nature relationships. From this, I will then explore my own human-nature relationship and reflect on how my personal experiences, beliefs and values has led me to this view, whilst highlighting the strengths and weaknesses of each and reflecting upon Martin’s (1996) continuum.
The world that we live in is constantly changing. There are numerous inventions and new
Nearly everything that a human does is in response to the environment. Our lives are defined by what is around us and what we find in front of us, whether this means accepting, dealing with or changing it. This has been the pattern since primates first stood up and became Homo erectus, and has continued until we considered ourselves doubly wise. The shape of the land affected where humans moved. Weather was something with which to contend. Fire affected humans until they conquered it – and herein lies the core of the relationship. The earth affects humans, and humans affect it back, viewing characteristics and patterns as problems and challenges, and finding a solution.
Change is a necessary way of life. It is all around people: in the seasons, in their social environment, and in their own biological processes .Beginning with the first few moments of life, a person learns to meet change by being adaptive. A person’s very first breath depends on ability to adapt from one environment to another. As indicated by the first quotation introducing this essay, each hour is different, offering people new experiences.