ceo E344 Joseph Perry English Lit. 102 r, Martindale 177s On Solitude and the Wild Growing up, I spent my time running in the woods, exploring erecks, and traversing the ee eee ee yeamigs of on con elms Toe widest ing Ee ul Boag eae RE scorn ten Ms proninet athe pens Worsertnd be epee of ese Pye era ane bear ie oll he, also lauds the teachings of nature, It is wisdom stived in with a good bit of cheerfulness. Withthis, wholeheartedly agree. How can one regard the beauty of nature without marveling athe mngjesty of our Creator and reveling in his greatness? Wordsworth ends to atibute this ethereal quality to nature itself, but I see nature an atibute its qualities to God. tn al, Wordsworth's poems impacted me negatively by encouraging my deste tobe outside instead of doing my work ‘sa student, On the other hand, his poems reminded me ofthe allure ofthe work we live in and how nature points peopl to God “The story of Hester Prynne in Nathaniel Havithome’s The Scarlet Letter caused me 19 reflet on solitude and wilderness in a much different way. Hester's actions lead her into a life of social isolation, Her only companion i her daughter Pearl, Throughout the course ofthe story, the only place Hester fees secure and fee is inthe forest. On the surface, this seems to be similar to my solo enjoyment of nature, However, the corelatons between these two narratives give me pause, To begin with, the forest in'The Scarlet Leter is seen as the devil's space It serves a home to a witch and gives Hester reprieve from the religious envionment of the toven, Additonaly, only inthe safety ofthe forest does Hester rationalize her adultery. Conversely, I view nature as God’ space. itis whee I ean go to grow close wih him. Inthe tres, there is peace. The beauty speaks of his majesty. The wildemess provides me with an escape from the temptations of society. [Also Ihave yet to encounter a wite living any ofthe wooded areas Ihave visited. In summary, nature points me towards God as opposed to being an escape fom God as it was for Hester, Ido resonate with pat of Hester's experince with wildemess. Her time inthe forests time when she can escape societal expectations and fels fre to he herself Similarly find immense peace in nature. No one eitiques my style or compliments my wit, There no need to perform or improve. In the solitude ofthe wild 1 become my tre self sinner saved by grace and noting more. In this, Hester's experiences spoke to me.are today, someone mentioned the posibiity of kayaking dovm arverin the area. My yes lit up like a child’ in a candy shop. The trip may oF may not happen. But I certainly knov my desire to experience nature is strong, ‘Through the readings of Wordswort’s romantic poems and Haythome’s Hester Prynne, Modern Wester trate has encouraged and challenged me iin how I think about solitude and the wild {2 Cor? jateractm Dey, Cra. #-- 87