We are about half way through the quarter right now — a good time to review some of the major themes in the class so far. Thus “compass bearings.” I think it is useful to consider the course in relationship to where we are today — where we are in terms of public and personal appreciation of wilderness experiences, policy, and media.
Notice that we move back and forth chronologically: Roderick Nash is, of course, our chief historical source, telling us about the many individuals and movements in the past that have contributed to our modern engagement with our environment. Also in terms of history, there are lots of historical “digressions” in Bryson’s Walk in the Woods. We see also the past of the wilderness story in the writings of John Muir — although he certainly speaks to us today. Additionally, I try to blend past and present in my “Fireside Talks.” And we can see most of our films on two levels: as 1) ways of learning about the actual past and 2) ways in which our modern culture engages with recurrent themes in our relationship to the natural world. And our friend, Patrick McManus, accentuates in humorous essays many of the actual themes and generalizable experiences in our encounters with nature.
— important lessons learned thus far and likely to be encountered some more:
1. We are heirs of a long evolution of wilderness appreciation — on aesthetic grounds
— Those who taught us to appreciate the wilderness include figures like Henry David Thoreau, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and John Muir
— The appreciation has led to the formation of many wilderness preserves in the form of national parks, forest reserves, state parks, wildlife refuges, and many more.
— Wilderness preservation focused originally on geological wonders such as the Yellowstone geysers and Yosemite Canyon; then increasingly surrounding mountains and forests were included; then many “safe” animal species, such as buffalo, were protected; and more recently predator species such as wolves and grizzlies.
— We have developed a wide variety behaviors and accoutrerments for an outdoor life including clothing, shelters (tents, RVs, lodges), trails and trail vehicles, trail guide books and stories, paintings and photographs, wilderness-related films, and a cluster of wilderness-focused attitudes and expectations. (Think Patrick McManus!)
2. We are heirs also of a long tradition of wilderness understanding — on utilitarian grounds
— As men and women came to appreciate the wilderness more on aesthetic grounds, they developed also a greater understanding of the practical importance of humans nurturing planet earth.
— New Yorkers, for example, recognized that without the ample forests in the Adirondack Mountains north of the city, the water supply would be endangered. In his classic Man and Nature (1864) George Perkins Marsh documented the huge and often harmful impacts of human beings on the natural world. Marsh is often credited with being the father of modern ecology.
— Gifford Pinchot, the “villain” in some ways in his clashes with John Muir over such matters as allowing sheep to graze in mountain meadows or damming Hetch Hetchy, was none the less a pioneer in implementing careful planning in forest management — in recognizing what prospered and what damaged our forests.
— Aldo Leopold advocated a “land ethic” taking the recognition of our interdependence with other living creatures — fauna and flora — to a higher level of regard.
— Other environmentalists realized the utility of seeking pure water and air. No, Virginia, a river does not “cleanse itself of all impurities in five miles.” (Many or most folks used to believe that!)
— Nowadays the vast majority of climate scientists in this country and around the globe claim that we are at the point of poisoning not just rivers and urban air but oceans and the entire atmosphere. To be continued!
— There are of course other major themes in History 453 — such as wilderness hardships, equipment, and adventures, as well as the fundamental question, “What do we mean by wilderness anyway?” Again, to be continued!