Silent Spring
Silent SpringThe following quote �The sedge is withr�d from the lake, And no birds sing,� (Keats)
seems like a very simple sentence with no meaning to it. However, after reading Chapter 6 of
Silent Spring , I realized how loaded the comment is with meaning. The quote is describing
humans and how humans treat the plants here on earth. The quote describes a scene where
humans continue to destroy plants because they feel that they are in the way or that the plants are
not appealing to look at. However, the plants that humans kill each day with chemicals and
pesticides end up ruining the complete area and stripping it of the natural beauty of the land. The
situation cannot be fair when chemicals are used. Humans today expect that when they kill a plant
then that is the end of it and all is fair. This cannot be more wrong according to this quote. When
you kill one thing many others will die along with it. In Chapter 6 of Rachel Carson�s Silent
Spring Carson tells of how after chemicals are used many beautiful roadsides and lands were
destroyed and the edges along rivers and were destroyed also which left animals without food and
water. The first part of the quote is describing this. �The sedge is withr�d from the lake� is
another way of showing the destroying of plants. The sedge that was withr�d in the quote has
been stripped of its natural beauty. This was caused by chemicals used along this lake to kill the
plants that were unattractive to the eye according to the land owner. The second part of the
quote �and no birds sing� is describing the consequence of killing those plants. Once there were
animal life along this lake. Birds sang and took baths in it. When chemicals were used, the lake
became contaminated and along with that the birds left that area. In the Chapter, Carson
describes a situation like this. It was a situation where sage was destroyed. When this happened
the animals that used this sage slowly went along with it. The quote �and no birds sing� is telling
of after the area was damaged by chemicals and the sedge was withr�d, the animals that adapted
there also felt withr�d and damaged so they left. This left the area without birds singing.
Carson writes about the beauty of the land and plants. She also tells the uses of these so
called �weeds� and why they should not be destroyed by chemicals. Carson tells of a way that
when the plants need to be removed, they can be removed safely without affecting the land around
it the way that chemicals do. Carson does not feel that there is hope for our future. The quote I
chose to use tells of no hope either. The quote is telling that this is what happens when chemicals
are used. In the world today more and more chemicals are being produced to kill off certain
plants. Today�s knowledge of chemicals is increasing and each day more people are replaced with
the work of machines. These machines make it easy to spread the chemicals across the land and
can only do harm in this situation of our enviroment. Increasing pollution of these chemicals are
also destroying the ozone. When there are other ways to rid land of these plants in an area, why
should very harmful chemicals be used? I know the answer to this. The world today lives a life
where knowledge and less manual labor means better. Although this is the wrong way to look at
the beauty and helpfulness of the enviroment, poeple still do.
I think that the authors of the quotes are right in being pessimistic. I feel that in the book
Carson is also pessimistic about the future of our enviroment by the feeling she displays in her
writing. Everyone in the world should be pessimistic about the enviroment. Yes, you may not
live long enough to see what the total outcome of all these chemicals are, but your children will
and their children will. The situation only gets worse over time. If chemicals are continued to be
created and used, the generations to come may not see the beauty that we see now. We do not
even see the beauty of the land that once was seen many years before chemicals were invented to
be used on plants. The tourist sites may no longer be there. However, not that many people
think about that now.
Carsons work is important for many reasons. Her work along with many others that write of
enviromental literature inform the reading public of the actions being taken to destroy the natural
uses of the land. We should all be aware of these problems because they will not stop
automatically. If anything, the problems will increase, leaving our earth stripped of the beauty
and natural resources that were made on it. When people read enviromental literature, many are
persuaded to do something about the damage being done. One voice is not always heard, if ever.
But many voices can make a difference. This is why their work is out there. To save our
enviroment and keep it safe and beautiful and resourceful is what is intended by these writings.