Man vs Nature

Mans relationship with nature is constantly evolving

While Man and nature are inextricably linked, the contemporary world has transformed man’s interaction with nature. In Kenneth Slessor’s poem “North Country”, he explores man’s exploitation of nature in pursuit of industrial progress, an idea reflected in Charles Purcell’s feature article, “Into those arms no more”. Meanwhile, William Wordsworth’s poem, “Lines Written In Early Spring,” explores the supremacy of nature, while Thomas Cole’s artwork “Destruction” gives insight to man’s overconfidence and vanity fixated in nature’s supremeness.

Man and industrialization poses a significant threat to guileless nature, as progress has come at the expense of the landscape. Slessor’s “North Country” foregrounds his pessimistic view of the damaging effect of man’s exploitation through a lamenting and sorrowful tone, “The flanks of hidden valleys, where nothings left to hide.” This reinforces nature’s vulnerability, which is juxtaposed with the vivid macabre imagery of man’s actions as the trees are left, “Dripping red with blood.” This highlights the pain and suffering that the industry imposes on nature, deepening the solemn and plaintive mood of the poem. Furthermore, man’s environmental abuse as a result of ‘progress’ is conveyed through the metaphor, “Trunks of pewter, bangled by greedy death, stuck with black stag horns, quietly sucking.”, The parasitical imagery illustrates the suffocating impacts on the environment, with a pervasive sense of decay a characteristic of industrialization. The use of personification, “Boughs go seeking” emphasizes the loss of hope where nothing’s left. Hence, man’s disregard of the natural world in accordance with nature’s guilelessness ultimately leads to unnecessary misuse and manipulation.

Comparatively, Charles Purcell’s feature article, “Into those arms no more,” emphatically expresses the devastating impact on nature. While the article is a personal recount of Purcell’s experience, his sustained personification of nature emphasizes the devastating impact of development on nature, “The Old Man,” which forces the responder to emotionally react to the innocence of the tree. The use of first person, “I knew something was wrong…” allows the responder to empathize with the persona and his grief at the loss of the tree. Descriptive adjectives, “Most impressive, the most majestic,” portray the tree as regal and this is reinforced with the simile, “Lounging like a Cheshire cat,” highlighting the comfort that nature offered the boy. This is juxtaposed with the image of, “Men armed with chainsaws,” which “lashed” the tree alluding to the fact that man is a torturer of nature.

Both Slessor and Purcell identify the results of industrialization on nature. Slessor does it through the repetition of the word “broken,” emphasizing the irreparable chink in the link between man and nature. Comparatively, Purcell’s use of the powerful paradox, “Ugly hole in the sky,” exemplifies the desolation that resulted from cutting down the tree. Furthermore, Purcell’s sarcastic rhetorical question, “Who could stop “progress”?,” implies that no one could stop the relentless march of urbanization in the ironic pursuit of advancement, which is reflected in Slessor’s personification of the industrialized land as a “gaunt country,” because the life has been sucked out of it. Therefore both texts caution man’s foolish pursuit of advancement to the detriment of helpless, generous nature.

Nature can be viewed as sublime and omnipotent against perverse self-destructive humanity. William Wordsworth’s poem “Lines Written in Early Spring” personifies nature as a benevolent goddess to reinforce the perversion of man. Through Wordsworth’s sustained iambic pentameter, the poet suggests a harmony that exists between the persona as he,, “heard a thousand blended notes, while in a grove I sat reclined.” This tranquil opening image foregrounds Wordsworth’s Romantic perspective of the environment, whereby being immersed in nature is to be close to G-d. By personifying nature as a female character, “To her fair works did Nature link,” Wordsworth implies that nature has the ability to emote and restore because of her femininity, as well as implying a nurturing, maternal influence over humanity. A sublime relationship exists and is conveyed through visions of purity and innocence, with the organic imagery in, “The birds around me hopped and played, their thoughts I cannot measure,” suggestive of the secretive aspects of nature that man cannot reach. As the poem progresses, Wordsworth’s pantheist exultation presents a religious godly presence in nature, “If such be Nature’s holy plan,” explaining that the closest you’ll be to heaven is by sitting with nature. Through repetition, Wordsworth identifies man’s personal corruption, “What man has made of man,” highlighting that any destruction is a result of man. The simplicity of this three beat refrain line contains the essence of the danger for man when he uproots himself from the natural world.

Comparatively, Thomas Cole’s artwork “Destruction” explores how man, although embedded in omnipotent nature, risks his own extinction through arrogance and egotism. A large boulder rests precariously on top of a crag overlooking the valley, representing the mutability of the earth. In contrast, the man made bridge is broken and the temporary crossing struggles under the weight of soldiers and refugees which is a metaphor implying that man will never be able to conquer nature. Comparably, Wordsworth evokes tension through juxtaposition, “In that sweet mood when pleasant thoughts bring sad thoughts to my mind,” which by transforming the mood from positive to negative is symbolic of the authors lamentation whereby nature becomes industry. The sky with its ominous clouds foregrounds the impending doom of civilization and reinforces the underlying intrinsic relationship between man and nature. While nature is painted in sweeping, wide brush strokes, the humans and civilization are complex, multi-figured compositions full of realistic human forms. This emphasizes that while man’s creations appear to be detailed and explicit, they are in fact vulnerable yet nature in its simplicity remains indestructible. Comparatively, Wordsworth utilizes aural imagery to evoke the euphonic sounds of the natural world, “Thousand blended notes,” which concurrently describes the unity of nature and its straightforwardness that allows you to appreciate its beauty. The artist’s monstrous and frantic lettering on the base of the statue almost dominates the composition, warning against pride and the excess of human ambition thereby highlighting the intrinsic limit of all things man made against the limitlessness of nature.

Henceforth, it is clear and identifiable that the omnipotence of nature is unquestionable and that’s man’s obdurate progression is the premise for man’s destruction of himself. Undoubtedly, no matter how hard man’s quest is to conquer nature, the texts offer insight that they will always fail.