Compare And Contrast The Architecture Of Thomas Cole And Louis Sullivan

Richard White’s The Organic Machine offers the perspective that humans are not impeding on or destroying nature, but are working in tandem with nature. White uses the argument of the Colombia River as an “organic machine” designed by nature because it can create energy, support labor, and it can additionally serve as a resource for humans. Humans should look to understand and incorporate the power and capability of the river and nature into their work as labor can be used as a force to unite humans and nature. By utilizing the stories of the Indians and settlers along the Columbia River, we are able to see how nature and humans are able to work together to benefit each other.

In his passage from “Last Child in the Woods,” Richard Louv uses various rhetorical strategies in order to make his audience more supportive of his argument. The passage discusses the connection, or really the separation, between people and nature. On this subject, Louv argues the necessity for people to redevelop their connection with nature. His use of tone, anecdotes, rhetorical questions, and factual examples all help develop the pathos and logos of his piece.

In the chapter titled Where I Lived, and What I Lived For from Henry David Thoreau’s novel Walden, the author utilizes rhetorical strategies such as imagery and tone to convey how the distractions that accompany a progressing civilization corrupts society. Since he is a transcendentalist, his argument encapsulates the same principles of becoming free from the binds of society and seeking harmony with nature. He emphasizes those ideals when he states that “[he] went to the woods because he wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if [he] could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when [he] came to die, discover that [he] had not lived”(276). In other words, he wanted to escape from society and live

In “The Birth and Death of Meaning” by Ernest Becker he is making an argument on the problems of man (Becker, 1971). Becker makes an argument on the reasons why people act the way that they do (1971). In chapter 10 Becker lists six of the common problems with humans (1971). The first question with the problem with humans is “what is the relation of man to nature?” (Becker, 1971, p. 114). The second question with the problem with humans is “what are the innate predispositions of men?” (Becker, 1971, p. 116). The third question with the problem with humans is “what types of personality are most valued” (Becker, 1971, p. 116). The fourth question with the problem with humans is “what are the modes of relating to others” (Becker, 1971, p. 116).

The mutual relationship between man and nature has evolved from a contract to a sad reality. The harsh reality surrounds the fact that as time and technology advances, the separation between people and nature increases as well. Louv, in his rhetoric from Last Child in the Woods (2008), argues why the separation between society and nature is distressing.

Nature is easily projected onto, as it allows for a sense of peacefulness and escapism. Due to its ability to evoke an emotional reaction from the masses, many writers have glorified it through various methods, including describing its endless beauty and utilizing it as a symbol for spirituality. Along with authors, artists also show great respect and admiration for nature through paintings of grandiose landscapes. These tributes disseminate a fixed interpretation of the natural world, one full of meaning and other worldly connections. In “Against Nature,” Joyce Carol Oates strips away this guise given to the environment and replaces it with a harsher reality. To her, it is superficial and only has overlying positive associations because humans

In his 1995 essay “The Trouble with Wilderness,” William Cronon declares that “the time has come to rethink wilderness” (69). From the practice of agriculture to masculine frontier fantasies, Cronon argues that Americans have historically defined wilderness as an “island,” separate from their polluted urban industrial homes (69). He traces the idea of wilderness throughout American history, asserting that the idea of untouched, pristine wilderness is a harmful fantasy. By idealizing wilderness from a distance, he argues that people justify the destruction of less sublime landscapes and aggravate environmental conflict.

Ansel Adams was an American photographer well-known for his black and white landscape photography. His work was based around the American West and national parks as he was a keen environmentalist. Some of his most famous work was that of the photographs taken at Yosemite National Park. His work is based more towards the sublime due to the nature of the landscapes he photographs such as mountains, cliffs, raging rivers etc. In the introduction to Adams’ book: The Portfolios of Ansel Adams, John Szarkowski writes, “Adams’ pictures seem as dematerialized as the reflections on still water, or the shadows cast on morning mist.” (Adams, A., 1977. p. 8). This suggests that Adams images are sublime as his focus was more on the meaning of the landscape

In the essay, “A Literature of Place”, by Barry Lopez focuses on the topic of human relationships with nature. He believes human imagination is shaped by the architectures it encounters within life. Lopez first starts his essay with the statement that geography is a shaping force for humans. This shaping force is what creates our imagination; the shaping force is found within nature. Everything humans see within nature is remembered, thus creating new ideas and thoughts for our imagination. Lopez also states that humans should not be isolated in the universe. Therefore saying that people need to get out and explore the world, or to open yourself to new adventures. Exploring new things bring the connection between relationships and happiness that humans need.

A world without culture, creativity, and connection is soul-less. There is a loss of some higher form of expression that separates a living human from a living shell of one. This form of expression can be caught in literature, music, and dance, but also in opposition, arguments and differences. To selectively avoid the negative side of this reality is to deny an important part of actually living as a human. This is why in the novel Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury’s use of connotations associated with machines and society against those associated with mirrors and nature in the work reveals how society’s rejection of unfair reality in favor of a false utopia of equality dehumanizes the population.

Romanticism was a movement during the late 18th century that encouraged imagination, exploration, individualism, and emotion. From it derived Transcendentalism, one of the first movements to originate from America and which bore the first American philosophers. These movements are often present in many pieces of American literature and this is no exception in Jon Krakauer’s novel Into the Wild. The historic account retells the story of a young man named Chris McCandless, who adopts the pseudonym Alexander Supertramp and takes to the road, only to die of starvation in Alaska. On the surface it appears to be cautionary tale, but Krakauer literally retraces McCandless’ steps, talking to the people who Chris spoke with and even traveling to Chris’ final resting place.

The Architectural Fantasy by Hubert Robert is an oil painting created in 1802. For an architectural painting, is displays much emotion through the use of color, line, and light. The painting does not utilize a multitude of colors but still is able to provide an exciting scene. Although it does not appear to be that large in the gallery, the work would actually be prominent if it were a standalone piece. The artist’s use of perspective, light, and color give the overall composition a balanced look.

The poem “Woodchucks” by Maxine Kuman and the poem “The Fish” by Elizabeth Bishop give the reader two examples about how man interacts with nature. Charles Darwin wrote “the love for all living creatures is the most noble attribute of man”; it is clear that the narrator of one of the poems is much more noble than that of the narrator in the other poem. Not only do the narrators contrast each other in the two poems, the poems also differ in the theme, tone, and situation (Citr).

Man and nature has always had an imbalanced relationship. Since the dawn of mankind, humans depended on the unpredictable being that is nature in order to survive. Gradually, however, the environment has been manipulated by people, to fit their needs for survival and personal satisfaction. Presently, the relationship between man and nature has been drifting further apart with a growing disconnection between the two, as shown in Richard Louv’s Last Child in the Woods. Through the use of rhetorical devices like anecdote and pathos, Louv brilliantly develops his argument about the separation between people and nature.

Our attachment to nature is represented in significant interactions that occur through events and situations. An individual’s value of nature may be challenged through their experiences and the obstacles they have encountered throughout their lives. Alain De Botton’s philosophical text The Art of Travel explores our attraction to nature and how it affects our inner being. This is also highlighted in Albert Namatjira’s painting Ljalkaindirma which conveys the artist’s links between his Aboriginal heritage and its culture. Both these texts explore humanity’s connection to landscapes and our own lives through their personal and imaginary insights which reflect their unique methods of representation.