In his essay “The Trouble with Wilderness”, William Cronon highlights the irony of the modern idea of wilderness. Something I thought was exciting was his take on how the wilderness is stolen land, something that was taken and demestocated by modern government and cultures. Cronon writes, “Once set aside within the fixed and carefully policed boundaries of the modern bureaucratic state, the wilderness lost its savage image and became safe: a place more of reverie than of revulsion or fear” (Cronon 15).

I thought this was very interesting because of his use of the word “bureaucratic”; sometimes I forget this word exists, and when I remember it, it always hits me like a truck. It shows how the government has turned the wilderness into something more manageable and less wild. The idea that the wilderness has been taken and turned into something to either profit from or control is wild to me. (see what I did there XD ) The irony of this idea is that the wilderness has become something worth putting time into because of the control the world has over it. No control = not worth the time.

Cronon’s saying “carefully policed boundaries” shows the irony of controlling the wild. He argues that we have turned the wild into something controllable, a mirror of our ideals as humans, rather than something of true wildness. By saying that the wilderness “lost its savage image,” it shows just that. The wild is not the wild anymore, but merely a copy of the wild through the eyes of humans rather than nature. This quote highlights Cronon’s idea that to gather true ecological ethics, we must remove the idea of separate human and natural worlds. The wilderness is not supposed to be something that is controlled, but something that we as humans live with and in. Something we inhabit and enter every day, and not just when we feel like it.

Song of the Week: The Shadow of Love by Stomu Yamash’ta (this one is a bit different than the rest, but I still heard it and instantly thought “Mermaidcore”, it’s very peaceful and it gives more “the peace of the ocean” than anything else!)