The characterization of nature is detrimental in shift of 20th century modernist writing to impressionist truths of Canadian landscapes. Al Purdy and Archibald Lampman were two significant Canadian writers who both possessed similar impressionist ideals on Canada’s nature. Both Purdy’s “Trees of the Arctic Circle” and Lampman’s “Heat” display not only negative judgments on Canadian landscape but demonstrate a shift from a frustrated outlook to an appreciative perception on nature.
“Trees of the Arctic Circle” portray the experience of humans being judgmental and that it is only when we take the time to look closely at something we are obligated to see the truth. Purdy expresses his anger and disappointment towards the trees of the Baffin Islands personifying them as “Coward trees”, as well as describing the setting in a rough manner. He describes the setting as rugged using language such as “crawling under rocks” and “groveling among the lichens”(Purdy, 571). In other words the first half of the poem depicts this judgment and almost hatred towards the trees. It is almost as if Purdy has this expectation for nature as he compares the weak trees to
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“Douglas firs” and “oaks like autumn gold” (Purdy, 571). Purdy also draws in biased opinions such as “I am angry to see them” (Purdy, 571) which again draws into him having this high expectation of nature that is not met. What makes the poem all the more intriguing if Purdy’s shift in mindset, where he goes from disappointment and hatred to seeking the beauty the landscape has to offer. “And yet—And yet—their seed pods glow like delicate earrings”(Purdy, (572) Purdy writes letting out a feeling of appreciation that deep down he knows he has for nature. In general terms Purdy starts the poem my generalizing the setting and trees yet when he takes the time to wander and look closely at nature he shifts into remembering that it is beautiful. Not only does Purdy portray appreciation but expresses sympathy, as journey must undergo much to stay alive. By the end of the poem Purdy catches himself at a pause when he realizes he has taken his judgment too far as he writes “I see that I’ve been carried away in my scorn of the dwarf trees” (Purdy, 572). He realizes his judgments are foolish and he must not rob the dignity of any living thing that surrounds him. “Heat” by Archibald Lampman takes a similar approach to communicating with nature as Purdy did. “Heat” tells the story of an unnamed speaker who is frustrated with the hot weather to the point where they call out to the wind to flush in cool air, which does not seem to happen as Lampman writes “cut apart the heat” and “rend it to tatters”(Lampman, 237). Much of the language used reflects a not so appealing and more gloomy nature with words such as “white and bare, “clacking wheels” and “windless blur”(Lampman, 236). In comparison to Purdy again there is a judgment and expectation upon nature to be beautiful and almost understanding upon other living things. The speaker carries on this frustration and anger as Purdy also did, but showed a shift in perception. After walking through the hot and hazy environment clarity is found not only physically but internally as Lampman writes “Hath brought me wandering idly here; in the full furnace of this hour my thoughts grow keen and clear”(Lampman, 238). The general objective to take to away from Lampman’s heat is that one will always find clarity in nature although it may not be perfect. Both Purdy’s “Trees of the Arctic Circle” and Lampman’s “Heat” display a shift in perception on nature from undergoing its frustration in terms of its faults to appreciating its positive attributes.
“Trees of the Arctic Circle” and “Heat” depict nature as having its faults such as the trees being a disappointment in Purdy’s case and the weather being too intensely hot in Lampman’s case but by the end of each poem find clarity is almost essential not only physically but internally. The two works give nature characteristic views as well as personification that differ from 20th century modernist works to impressionist ideals upon nature. Both poems bring out realizations in ones self within coming to terms with shifting out of the negative to a positive and demonstrating that nature is always capable bring out
clarity.
Archibald Lampman’s “Winter Evening” and P.K. Page’s “Stories of Snow” both initially describe winter to be delicate and blissful, yet, as one delves deeper into the poem, it is revealed that the speakers believe winter to be harsh and forceful. Archibald Lampman’s “Winter Evening,” starts describing an evening
In John Updike’s poem “The Great Scarf of Birds”, he uses diction and figurative speech to depict the beautiful autumn season to show how inspiring and uplifting nature is to man. Updike chooses autumn as the season to set his story in because generally, it is the season that has the most vivid vibrant colors in nature such as the ripe apples which are described as “red fish in the nets (limbs)”. (Line 3) Updike paints the picture of the beauty of nature with the simile about the apples to show the reader what a powerful effect nature has on man. Updike goes on to discuss the elm trees that were “swaying in the sky” (Line 7) and the “dramatic straggling v’s” of geese. Updike uses these descriptive portrayals of na...
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Frye, Northrop. Preface. The Bush Garden: Essays on the Canadian Imagination. By Northrop Frye. Toronto: House of Anansi, 1971. i-x.
Osgood, Samuel. “Nature.” The Western Messenger. (1837): 385-93. Rpt. in Nineteenth Century Literature Criticism. Ed. Laurie Lanzen Harris. Vol. 1. Detroit: Gale Research Inc., 1981. 275.
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Robert Frost, an Americian poet of the late 19th century, used nature in many of his writings. This paper will discuss the thought process of Frost during his writings, the many tools which he used, and provide two examples of his works.
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