Human Interaction with Nature in the Works of Aldo...

Human Interaction with Nature in the Works of Aldo Leopold and Elizabeth Bishop The poet Elizabeth Bishop and the naturalist Aldo Leopold share a keen power of observation, a beautifully detailed manner of writing, a love for the beauty of nature, and an interest in how people interact with the natural world. Like Leopold, Bishop examines human interactions with nature on both the personal and the ecological level. On the individual level, a hunter’s contact with the animal he or she is hunting changes his or her attitude toward nature in both Bishop’s poem â€Å"The Fish† and Leopold’s essay â€Å"Thinking Like a Mountain.† On the larger level, both Bishop in her poem â€Å"The Mountain† and Leopold throughout the Sand County Almanac envision the†¦show more content†¦For both narrators, this lack of emotional connection changes when they notice some striking detail about the wolf or fish which awakens them to the symbolic value of the animal and transforms their way of relating to nature. Leopold sees â€Å"a fierce green fire dying† (130) in the eyes of the wolf and senses that his neat equation of fewer wolves equals more deer is inadequate, and that wolves have an importance unknown to him. He goes on to develop a new conservation ethic, one that values wolves as well as deer and protects wild animals for their own sake and that of the ecosystem, not just for the pleasure of hunters. Bishop’s speaker notices five fishhooks dangling from the fish’s mouth and realizes how many times the fish has battled for its life and won. Its fighting spirit earns her respect and causes her to release the fish. The particular symbolic value that each writer finds in the wild animal is evident in his or her beautifully poetic descriptions of the animal. Each admires the animal for its undaunted courage in the face of a harsh existence. Bishop repeatedly uses words and images which personify the fish as a wise old warrior: the fish is â€Å"battered and venerable† (8), his skin is â€Å"like ancient wallpaper† (11), and the broken fishing lines that hang from his mouth are â€Å"like medals†