It is clear that the work of the Puritans and the work of
Cooper and Irving view nature in very different ways. To the Puritans like
Rowlandson, it is cold, dark, and unforgiving. In the works of Cooper and
Irving, one gets a feeling of warmth and belonging when nature is described.
For example, in chapter seven of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow Washington Irving writes, “Around him nature wore
that rich and golden livery which we always associate with the idea of
abundance. As he jogged slowly on his way, his eye ranged with delight over the
treasures of jolly autumn.” The mood changes from the morose depiction of the
ragged horse to the calm and comfort of nature. Ichabod is at ease in nature.
Not only does the mood change in this passage, but Iriving says outright,
“nature…which we always associate with the idea of abundance.” Rowlandson most certainly associated nature with deprivation and pain, not abundance.
Natty Bumppo in The Pioneers is very concerned with preserving wildlife, and it is clear that James
Fenimore Cooper thinks it is just as beautiful as Irving. Chapter 22 ends with
the passage, “Judge Temple retired toward his dwelling with that kind of
feeling that many a man has experienced before him, who discovers, after the
excitement of the moment has passed, that he has purchased pleasure at the
price of misery to others. Horses were loaded with the dead…the shooting of
pigeons became a business…Richard, however, boasted for many a year of his shot
with the "cricket;" and Benjamin gravely asserted that he thought
they had killed nearly as many pigeons on that day as there were Frenchmen
destroyed on the memorable occasion of Rodney’s victory.” The comparison of war
to the hunting makes the characters on the pigeon hunt into monsters. In
Rowlandson’s work, her depiction of the various characters would have been very
different. For example, since Natty Bumppo feels most comfortable in nature, is
a friend to American Indians, and is distrustful of European-Americans, he
would not be the hero character in a story by Rowlandson. The killing of the
pigeons would most be likened to conquering nature with god’s overwhelming
power. However, in this work, as in the others by Irving and Cooper, nature is
good, spiritual, and likely where god resides.
Yes, you are right that about how differently, the Puritans such as Rowlandson and future narrators such as Cooper and Irving view nature. Did you know that Rowlandson makes a clear distinction between good versus evil and nature verses civilization? Her views on nature appear to be strongly rooted in religious beliefs based on passages from the bible text. I liked your interpretation of Cooper in The Pioneers finding warmth and belonging in nature, especially the character of Natty Bumppo who is very protective of nature and against civilization trying to destroy it through their rapacious behavior. Your comparison of war to hunting was very interesting as it appears that animals were killed with the same rapacious appetite as humans being killed during war. In Rip Van Winkle, I was a bit skeptical about how Cooper described nature first as a welcome escape from civilization especially for Rip Van Winkle, but at the end appeared to be wary of nature as a lost world that cannot be trusted.
ReplyDelete"...one gets a feeling of warmth and belonging when nature is described." This quote is appropriate in describing the ornate imagery described in Cooper and Irving's writings. Noting the emotions of warmth and belonging show why writings such as these easily translate into lighthearted animated adaptations for children (especially Irving's writings). You make a good point by highlighting Irving's quote about nature representing abundance (otherwise representing good, as Engineer noted); this point is in perfect opposition to Rowlandson's opinion of nature-the descriptions were more looming/suffocating in Rowlandson's narrative than the rolling happy or mysterious/fantastic settings of Cooper and Irving. The fact that at the end of the story Rip seems to be wary of nature adds to the mysterious air about nature; it shows that nature is larger than Rip himself and definitely something to be reckoned with. The fact that nature is "likely where God resides" is what made me think of transcendentalist writings. Great blog, and great comment by classmate Engineer.
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