Reading these words tonight, I am remembering the awe and wonder I felt as a child the first time I saw the ocean, witnessed a spider monkey in it's natural habitat, or recently as I watched my son ride a horse for the first time. Thoreau had it right when he wrote that "...the most important requisite in describing an animal, is to be sure and give its character and spirit....You must tell what it is to man [woman]." A horse is not merely a horse anymore by those words- it is a creature of enormous strength, stature, capable of exciting a small child and also his mother. We must look at the natural world as we do the people in our lives- as a sum of multiple parts, having multiple facets, not just a name or even a photograph.
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Thoreau/Kingsley Response
It is difficult for me to not read these words and have vivid pictures of the species both of these authors are describing run rampant through my mind. In a time before most people had access to photographs of the natural world (i.e. Ansel Adams), these two men's descriptive writing feels more real to me than what any photograph now could capture.
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that line spoke to me too, the anima/spirit of every sentient being is who is before us. Seeing beyond what the mind rationalizes and letting heart consciousness hold a picture to be captivated, grateful, and inspired. we're crafting a path...
ReplyDeleteI think the way that you have compared Thoreau's writing with photography makes perfect sense! I had never thought of that as I was reading, but purely on what poetic devices he was using while describing each thing. Photography makes great sense because it shows what other people see. Two people can take a picture of the exact same thing and it will turn out completely different. It just shows how individual each of our "lenses" are.
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