Consider and answer one of the following questions:
A. What does it mean to be a pilgrim in nature? In what ways does Dillard position herself as a pilgrim? What does being a pilgrim suggest about the way she views and communicates nature?
B. What does Dillard mean when she says: “If we are blinded by darkness, we are also blinded by light” and later “seeing is very much a matter of verbilization?” What does it mean to “see?” How can one “see?”
C. For a short time, Dillard considered submitting her manuscript to publishers under the name "A. Dillard" so the publishers would assume the author was a man. Do you think this would have fooled them? Is Pilgrim a feminine way of writing the environment? Is there a feminine or a masculine way to write the environment? If so, how do they differ?
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- Due by 9:00 PM Monday, February 2
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ReplyDeleteRegarding whether there is such a thing as a feminine or masculine way of writing the environment, I would most definitely say “no”. The social constructions we put on those two words, masculine and feminine, are just that, social constructions. Many people write in many different ways and it does not matter what gender you are. In fact, you could argue that so many female authors have gotten away with publishing as a male that there must obviously not always be a distinction (Aurore Dupin “George Sand M.W. Benson, the Bronte Sisters, Violet Page “Vernon Lee”, Janet Taylor Caldwell “Taylor Caldwell”). Therefore, with this argument in place, I would also argue that Dillard’s writing is not feminine, and even more especially not so for being in the Environmental field. Her writing is simply full of imagery, and imagery does not equal femininity. Classic examples of male environmental imagery writers are Henry David Thoreau, describing his walks along Walden Pond, and Aldo Leopold, describing living his life as one of simplicity. An example of Aldo Leopold’s writing is found in A Sand County Almanac here:
ReplyDeletehttp://books.google.com/books?id=Gxq72yz1z6EC&pg=PR15&lpg=PR15&dq=aldo+leopold+a+sand+county+almanac&source=web&ots=FDfUdelPhJ&sig=tMdYxFtVA3uBeOYfvVMHSDKmq8Q&hl=en&ei=bD2HSfqlM6SoNZXbydgD&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=10&ct=result
Regarding the question whether the author a man or woman, or writing about the environment was in a feminine or masculine way: I would not have known whether the author was a man or women if I had not read her name. Therefore, I would say when it comes to writing about the environment there is no feminine or masculine way. I believe that an environmentalist or any reader interested in the environment would not be concerned whether the author of the book would be a man or women. The more important aspect is whether you will learn something from the book or not. Any author of an environmental book would aware the readers of the beautiful environment we live in and how we could protect it. For those reasons I believe that there is no feminine or masculine way of writing the environment. By pilgrimage what is meant is special journey, and in this case Annie Dillard's pilgrimage at Tinker Creek where she saw all aspects of our beautiful environment. When writing about her pilgrimage you would not know whether it is a man or woman, the only way that might sound feminine is if she explains it by conversation. In general, I believe that there is no difference in writing in feminine or masculine on books with subjects such as science, business, history, politics, or environment.
ReplyDeleteAbout midway through the story, my friend looked up and asked if the writer was a man or a woman. I didn’t think anything of it until I saw this question and realized it’s a very possible reaction to the work. I am not surprised if her work was to first be assumed of coming from a male, however I actually think that Dillard’s writing is genderless. Her opening is strong, catchy, and shocking. It is gorey and gripping, but does not connect to a human; it makes me think of a nasty animal, one that could not be tamed and could not be associated with typical human life. She writes, “I’d half awaken. He’d stick his skull under my nose and purr, stinking of urine and blood.” I wouldn't imagine this sentence connecting to the human world, and if I was to follow typical gender stereotypes, it would be very difficult to argue that it has feminine undertones. By those standards, femininity in nature would most likely be associated with flowers, trees, “mother earth,” and all things bright and luxurious. By those standards it is a possibility that masculine nature could mean the powerful avalanches or tidal waves. Not to associate destruction with men, but looking at it with a connection to strength, it has more validity. The film "Koyannisqatsi" came to mind when I was reading this, and I think it is a good example of how nature cannot be described as having a gender. It is heavy and too profound and cannot be summed up by a simple stereotype.
ReplyDeleteHere is the link for the trailer of Koyannisqatsi. Do you think the images could be described by gender? The music really scares me, but the pictures are intense. Enjoy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PirH8PADDgQ
A. What does it mean to be a pilgrim in nature? In what ways does Dillard position herself as a pilgrim? What does being a pilgrim suggest about the way she views and communicates nature?
ReplyDeleteWhen I first read the word pilgrim, I thought of something pure and untouched. This is the exact picture Annie painted for me when she described her tear shaped island. The way she talked about this place it seemed as if nobody else came there and she could enjoy the bugs, animals, and scenery all to herself. I felt that if I were to visit this place, time would stop and the only thing I would have to worry about would be what frogs were going to jump in my path and how many birds I could find in a certain tree- I think this is what certain pilgrims felt too. Dillard very much communicates nature through seeing. She takes it all in and watches nature happen, as well as reflecting on her own life and memories. Watching becomes so much more important when you realize that nature never stops, there are so many things that go unseen and that can't be changed so if nobody opens their eyes they will pass by unseen. I really enjoyed how interested the author was in so many different creatures; it made me feel sorry for myself and everyone around me who is so wrapped up in technology and doesn't spend enough time pioneering and just looking. Something that I discovered that was really important in my life this year was the ability to be spontaneous. One of my favorite lines in this reading was how Annie described the mockingbird's decision to fly as being spontaneous. I thought that was an interesting observation that an animal could be spontaneous too. The last connection I wish to make about pilgrimage and this reading is the ability to keep your eyes open. In order to learn and discover new things, one must open their eyes and take in everything surrounding them. I thoroughly enjoyed this: "The answer must be, i think, that beauty and grace are performed whether or not we will or sense them. The least we can do is try to be there".
I thought this song related, it's called pilgrim by Enya and the video reminded me of the story:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GlsA0G7Dg8g&feature=related
Answer to question C. I believe that if it was submitted under a falso name, some would believe that it was female and other would believe that it was a male writing the peace. Writing about the environment is a way of writing and there are different forms. We experience the environment as humans not as a specific gender. I believe in the wilderness we are stripped to our basic forms, gender is no longer important. I feel that writing in and about our experiences in the environment follow the same rules.
ReplyDelete