Seeing or Saving

Good morning, I hope my peers are as excited as me to answer Julie's midterm questions. I figured it best to get the weekly chores done first before climbing that mountain however, so here goes. After much thought, I have decided to compare and contrast some text from Thoreau's "Autumnal Tints" and Muir's "Wild Wool".


The essense of Thoreau's text has two focal points. The first being a descripitive commentary on the nature of the seasons and its effects on the indigenous botanical species of the New England area. "I have observed this tree for several autumnals invariably changing earlier than its fellows, just as one tree ripens its fruits earlier than another. It might mark the season, perhaps." Scientifically, fall is a period of cooling weather and shortend sunlight. Fall weather informs a tree to reduce chlorophyll production. This absence allows the colors from other pigments like carotenoids and anthocyanim to be viewed. It is actually the colors of these trapped sugars that produces the yellow, brown, orange, reds and purples to be visible. Although, Thoreau does not actually get into the chemistry of autumn, his text merely proposes the question and desire to understand this transformation, perhaps it could be benificial.

The second purpose of Thoreau's text is an attempt to inspire the eye of the soul to gaze upon the beauty of nature. "A simple tree becomes thus, the crowning beauty of some meadowy vale, and the expression of the whole surrounding forrest is at once more spirited for it." He goes to great lengths to capture this essence, and empties every descriptive word from his arsenal to captivate his audience. Unfortunately, he realizes that most people are to busy for this. "Objects are concealed from our view, not so much because they are out of the course of our visual ray as because we do not bring our minds and eyes to bear on them; for there is no power to see in the eye itself, any more than in any other jelly." Thoreau seems deeply saddened by this, yet acquiesces to mankind's utilization of nature for gain. It is in these sentiments that Thoreau's text drastically differs from Muir's.

Muir's "Wild Wool" is a bold statement against the destrucetion of nature's beauty. He begins by lambasting mankind's so called progress. "Moral improvers have calls to preach. I have a friend who has a call to plough, and woe to the daisy sod or azalea thicket that falls under the savage redemption of his keen steel shares." Muir's attitude has no inclination to applaud progress, in fact "Wild Wool" mocks industry and ingenuity.

Like a boxer, toying with his adversary, he throws a jab for wildness. His friends response, "Culture is an orchard apple; Nature is a crab." Gloves up, he plunges forward, distinguishing that his sentiments differ from his friends, "barbarous notion." Masterfully, he employs the qualities of the wool he discovers among the wild rams of the Shasta mountains. "My companions stooped down and examined the fleeces for themselves, pulling out tufts and ringlets, spinning them between their fingers, and measuring the length of staple, each in turn paying tribute to wildness." Muir establishes nature's superiority through his companions evaluation. Like Thoreau, Muir goes to great lenth to describe the essence of beauty in which the wool represents to the ram. He however, implores the divinity of creation in order to impede man's ridiculous assumption that his progress is an improvement. "Furthermore, it will be observed that these wild modifications are entirely distinct from those which are brought chancingly into existence through the accidents and caprices of culture; the former being inventions of God for the attainment of definite ends."

Muir is a pure fighter, and after toying with his humorous wool rhetoric, starts throwing haymakers. "No dogma taught by the present civilization seems to form so insuperable an obstacle in the way of right understanding of the relations which culture sustains to wildness as that which regards the world as made especially for the uses of man. Every animal, plant, and crystal controverts it in the plainest terms. Yet it is taught from century to century as something ever new and precious, and in the resulting darkness the enormous conceit is allowed to go unchalleged."

His adversary clearly bloodied, Muir goes in for the knockout finishing with science. "Desirable breeds blundered upon by long series of groping experiments are often found to be unstable and subject to disease--bots, foot rot, blind-staggers, etc. causing infinite trouble, both amony breeders and manufactures. Would it not be well, therefore for some one to go back as far as possible and take a fresh start." What a fight.

Clearly, both author's texts establish a need to understand and appreciate the Earth in which we live, there's no question as to the difference in lengths both are willing to go though as far a words are concerned.

John Ruskin certainly likes art. I apologize for any inconvenience, but I have no idea how to paste a picture into your blog. I solved the problem by using the painting I selected as my profile picture, it's a little small though. I think it is very beautiful.

Samuel Coleman painted this piece, Storm King On The River Hudson, in 1866, it is considered one of his best, and is on display in the Smithonian.

After perusing, Ruskin's Modern Painters, I decided to analyze this painting from the "Synopsis of Contents" Part 1 Of General Principles, Chapter 111, Of the Ideas of Power. Ruskin states in this chapter that excellence is an equation or sum of perception. I.E. each part, painting, picture, what it represents, what it is, the physical effort to produce it, the craftmanship, and man's ability of thought to be made reality or tangible can be designated a value.

Ruskin"The faculty of perceiving, what powers are required for the production of a thing, is the faculty of perceiving excellence. It is this faculty in which men, even of the most cultivated taste, must always be wanting, unless they have added practice to reflection; because none can estimate the power manifested in victory, unless they have personally measured the strength to be overcome." (Ch 3 Section 3)

Therefore, excellence, is a value relative to the level of perception each individual can see. For example, the actual physical existence of anything, the energy or effort it took to make it deserves value. Another, level of perception is what qualities can be gained from the initial object and so on and so forth. With this formula, each degree of perception then equates to more excellence or beauty. With consideration to art then, perhaps most significant is man's thoughts themselves, and our capability to create.

Simply, excellence or beauty is everthing. In relation to the painting, the significance of the Steam ships makes this concept vital. First, however it is critical to examine the setting and the proportion of excellence it is entitled. Clearly, if a person stops to consider the nature of geology and the work of the elements, such as wind, water, earth, and time, they will concede that for a hill to become a mountain or a river to cut a path to the ocean is an example of excellence. This figure by man is generally placed in value to earth's resources and usability. Therefore, the nature of our preception is proportional to the amount of beauty each individual attributes to it. In considering the picture, the earth of course, provides something to stand on, trees for wood, fires, building, materials, etc. To overlook the existence of the dirt itself, its mineral content and growing potential is essential in measuring its value based upon the notion of the work it can produce and the work it took to create it. The rivers life giving water and the organisms within it that sustain life are excellent. In the painting, the vessels, fishing nets, the harnessing of the wind. The very existience of the laws of nature are beautiful. Why do things float?

Indeed, on a molecular level, words become insufficient to place value on creation. With regards to Coleman's painting then, the representation of the earth, has nearly infinite layers of power or excellence relative to the capacity of each individuals ability to discriminate it contents.
Now then, disregarding the picture for a moment lets examine Coleman, the man. It is essential to consider the amount of energy each brush stroke used. How much energy did the cells of his body require to accomplish each brush stroke. Even if the painting would have been sloppy, it would have been estimated a certain measure of excellence just because of the energy behind the action and also the thought according to Ruskins value system.

The fact that Coleman's ability to reproduce an image, transmitted to the eye, then to the brain, and back again through his hands to canvas, with near perfection is extrordinary. By applying Ruskin's equation to calculate Coleman's painting it's excellence or beauty is infinite.

With regards to the contents of Coleman's painting, and comparitively using Ruskins excellence equation, the steam ship parallels creation itself. Man thinking and our capacity to alter our environment is the embodiment of the excellence or beauty of creation itself. Sencience, then must be valued as God within us. Whew, I feel dizzy.

The Veil Iniquity

There are certain characteristics of Dark romanticism that Hawthornes "The Ministers Black Veil" does an extrordinary job of illustrating. The story focuses first, on the belief that sin is evil. The preacher's veil creates an illusion of tangible iniquity. "Did he seek to hide it from the dread Being, whom he was addressing." Instantly, sin is no longer an action but substance, a vapor of midst and gloom that envelopes us, and permeates our fiber. The veil embodies that which in life that seperates us from knowing true peace.

The veil creates many illusions in the mind of both the reader and the characters. "Beloved and respected as you are, there may be whispers that you hide your face under the conscious of secret sin, for the sake of your holy office do away this scandal." Initially, the veil seems fitting, due to the sentiments created by the funeral of a women. Later, upon refusing to remove the veil it begins to cast further undesirable sentiments. "The instinctive dread caused him to feel more strongly than ought else, that a prenatural horror was interwoven with the threads of the black cape."

Self examination seems important here; if Dark Romanticism focus is to look inwardly for truth.
The preachers veil represents a sword thrust to the heart of everone's conscious. Simple questions arise as to whether or not some deed or supposition stains our aspect, reflecting like a mirror our true disdain. "At that instant, catching a glimpse of his figure in the looking-glass, the black veil involved his own spirit in the horror with which it overwhelmed all others. His frame shuddered, his lips grew white, he spilt the untasted wine upon the carpet, and rushed forth into the darkness. For the Earth, too, had on her Black Veil."

What devotion the preacher has to the his sentiments about sin. How wonderfully tragic is his commitment unto death, to wear the veil. The loneliness and seperation he must have endured: His only solace, faith in Gods immeasurable mercy.

Irrepairable, man is damaged goods, a stalwart theme in Dark Romanticism. "Dark old man! exclaimed the affrighted minister, "What horrible crime upon your soul are you now passing to judgement." A lifetime endeavored attempting to do God's work, yet still the preacher remains marred with imperfections.

What wonderful results the veil had on those who came to know the preacher. "His converts always regarded him with a dread peculiar to themselves, affirming, though but figuratively, that, before he brought them to celestial light, they had been with him behind the black veil." Truly, the preachers veil signified his own transgressions, thus establishing himself as no better than any of God's children. Its apparent that our differences may distinguish us, but in our willingness to recognize them in yourselves and everone else true peace and forgiveness can be attained.


John 3:19-21 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds where evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But however lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.

Circles

Hooray, I finally have the internet. Hopefully I will have more time to do a better job in my classes. I still can't figure out why assigment 3 is'nt up on my blog home page. Its of no matter now, so I shall procede to attempt to dicipher the epigraph which precedes Emerson's essay Circles.It is seems obvious that everything must start at a beginning. People, of course are confined to the limititations of our feeble brains, and the scope in which time and its duration are ever intertwined.
Therefore, prudence suggests that Emerson's epigraph begins with: "A new genesis was here." His essay merits this proposal by his insistance that he is merely a traveler, "No facts are to me sacred, none are profane, I simply experiment, an endless seeker with no past at my back." Paramount to the soul of a seeker is open-mindedness, without it there can be no change, no foresight, and no acceptance.
"Knew they what that signified" Well do you? Aldous Huxely said "when the doors of perception are cleansed, all will be seen as they truly are, infinite." A profound statement, yet its magnitude and import are of little consequence to the mind biased and set in its ways. In his essay Emerson states "The key to every man is his thought."
"Scan the profile of the sphere." The mind is the door to the kingdom, the eye the key to the mind, the heart knowing this realizes that there is no greater truth than love. Emerson clearly battled to understand his consciencenous. Sadly, I believe the person that realizes the futility of thinking, accepts life, on lifes terms will then be able to blossom and know peace.
"Fast to surface and outside" Much like a shooting star, events begin and end in the blink of an eye. Emerson's essay says "cause and effect are two sides one fact"
"And her proud ephemerals," Mayflies, nasty little bugs, they molt twice in a day, mate, lay their eggs, then die. Emerson's essay parallels this thought, "Each new step we take in thought reconciles twenty seemingly discordant facts, as expressions of one law." Fact: things live and die, where they go afterwards, well therein lies the real question. Does all life contain spirit, or only man.?
Lastly, "Nature centers into balls" Everything is cyclical, from flesh to molecule, everything is in orbit. It is the harmony of these orbits that brings continuity to the universe we know. However, does understanding matter, is knowledge power, or a curse? Do we sell ourselves short by living within the confines of the known, or can we be set free and live in hope and imagination. I believe Emerson thinks so. "We learn that God IS that he is in me; and that all things are shadows of him.