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What Is Nature Shown In 'Catalog Of Unabashed Gratitude'?

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Throughout “Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude,” Ross Gay presents how nature controls emotional responses, forces, and other higher or more powerful things. Furthermore, nature brings about unnatural aspects causing greater control of the forces the natural world has. It can interact with man-made things in ways that disrupt it. Gay portrays nature as a commanding force that’s found everywhere. Also, it shows how the natural forces have consequential reactions that come back up later. This shows how Gay portrays nature as a controlling force, having commanding powers over everything nature comes across.

Natural forces controls the actions of people and human emotion and is apparent when Gay writes, ¨… this is the realest place I know, / it makes …show more content…

His use of “Its tongue working like an engine” uses both a simile and compares a natural element with a man-made element. Again, he relates a tree to his body and his characteristics. Also, Gay uses “my” showing his possession of the tree. Together, this shows nature being compared to a man-made element, while also showing how nature can be found everywhere.

In “Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude,” Gay portrays nature as a commanding force that can control anything from the natural to the supernatural to the mythical. He shows how man-made objects cause disruptions in nature and its control on everything. Furthermore, he depicts how nature can control the emotions and reactions of people. Nature is found everywhere, and its forces leave emotional effects on those it encounters.

Gay, Ross. “Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude by Ross Gay.” Poetry Foundation, Poetry Foundation,

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