Summary Of Renewing Husbandry By Wendell Berry

In today’s culture, society puts a lot of emphasis on utilizing technology. Technology’s influence has spread into the farming industry. In Wendell Berry’s article, “Renewing Husbandry,” he addresses the mechanical changes in the farming process. He stresses the idea of husbandry, taking care of the land and conserving the life the land offers. Berry describes the benefits and downfalls of technology. But the problems of technology exceed the benefits. Although technology aids in the farming process, the advancement in farming technology distorts the importance of cultivating the natural land.

Machinery desensitizes the natural understanding of the land. Berry acknowledges the capabilities of a machine on the farm, but he realizes agriculture

requires more than the fine-tuning of mechanical parts. He contends, “The modern farm is understood as a surface on which various mechanical operations are performed, and to which various chemicals are applied” (Berry, 2005, para. 16). The farmers’ utilization of machinery skews their personal connection with the land. The farmers misunderstand the natural process of cultivating the land because they concentrate on the surface level of the soil. The machines reduce the interactions of the farmer and his farm into an urban factory. The farmers interpret the land with machines, misinterpreting the farm's natural order. By using machines, farmers lose sight of the natural environment around them. Berry notes, “Mechanical farming makes it easy to think mechanically about the land and its creatures” (Berry, 2005, para. 10). Farmers focus on taking care of the equipment more than nurturing the land, in which, the use of the equipment takes place. They forget that the creatures and plants living on the farm help restore the land. By looking through a mechanical lens, the farmers fail to recognize that the earth requires care and time to rejuvenate after harvesting the produce.
Science modifies the biological structure of nature. Berry describes agriculture today as a means of breaking down nature into small parts, and the shaping of agriculture comes from economic forces. But Berry emphasizes, “We were wrong to assume that agriculture could be adequately defined by reductionist science…” (Berry, 2005, para. 6). Science reduces nature into fine specks; therefore, diminishing the importance of agriculture as a whole. Science forces farming into a shallow process and disregard the organisms deep in the ground. Berry highlights that scientists lack the connection to the land because they break it down into small particles and add unnecessary chemicals. Berry underlines, “…to treat the soil as a lifeless matrix in which ‘soil chemistry’ takes place and ‘nutrients’ are ‘made available’” (Berry, 2005, para. 16). Science seeks to manipulate nature and create new substances by using chemicals. By using chemicals, scientists end up harming the environment more than taking care of it. Scientists focus on acquiring the most from the earth; thus, altering and tainting the land. Science only benefits the large corporations seeking to attain more money.
Mass production shifts the farmer’s attention away from caring for the land.

Agriculture fixates more on the production of food instead of stewardship, caring and protecting the land. Berry indicates, “Once one’s farm and one’s thoughts have been sufficiently mechanized, industrial agriculture’s focus on production, as opposed to maintenance or stewardship…” (Berry, 2005, para. 11). When farmers direct their attention on producing crops for the corporation, the farmers forget the reason why they farm in the first place. The farmers mislead thoughts on production create agricultural distress because they lack stewardship. Stewardship involves an intimate relationship with nature, but farmers focus more on the efficiency of production, neglecting the farm. Berry emphasizes that production steers the way of farming instead of the actual farm and community. Berry claims, “…emphasis on production permits the way of working to be determined not by the nature and character of the farm in its ecosystem and in its human community” (Berry, 2005, para. 11). Corporations control the farming industry, mistreating the farms and the farming communities. Production disregards the environment of the farm and demands more than the farm can produce, resulting in damage to the

environment.
New technology ignores the natural farming process. Although technology presents efficient forms of production, technology misguides farmers with artificial understanding. Machinery and science build a gap between the farmer and his land. By utilizing machinery and science, farmers place their attention more on production than the natural process of the earth. The farmers regress from tending the land to manufacturing the land. The farming industry lacks the recognition of the pure and organic aspects the earth offers. Ultimately, the usage of technology disables the farmer’s ability to cultivate the land in a naturally holistic way.