"The Trouble with Wilderness"

Paper Summary:

The paper reviews the book "The Trouble with Wilderness" by William Cronon. The paper illustrates the cultural biases inherent in the term, "wilderness". The paper illustrates how wilderness was considered a barren and scary place, but by the end of the 19th century, due to shifts in cultural ideology and the effects of industrialism, the American concept of wilderness changed dramatically. The paper further examines how the Bible presents two dualistically opposed views of wilderness: the Garden of Eden and the dangerous wasteland of the desert and how this dualistic worldview is at the root of the conflicts within the environmental movement. The paper concludes with Cronon's wish that all environmentalists pay attention to the cultural and historical context of wilderness.

From the Paper:

"Cronon's main motive in writing "The Trouble with Wilderness" is not to criticize the environmental or conservation movements but to "abandon the dualism that sees the tree in the garden as artificial," (387). All nature is sacred and sublime, including the grasses on the prairies and the marshlands in Florida. Labeling some parts of the natural world as "wilderness" makes those parts valuable in the public consciousness and consequentially, the public may ignore the beauty outside their bedroom window."

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