Nicole's Blog

Annie Dillard said, “I wake expectant, hoping to see a new thing. If I’m lucky I might be jogged awake by a strange bird call. I dress in a hurry, imagining the yard flapping with auks, or flamingos. This morning it was a wood duck, down at the creek. It flew away.�? I think it’s interesting that Dillard thinks of nature and its’ beauty/mystery every morning. This is most definitely a peaceful, laid-back, and nature-loving way to live. I myself hit the alarm clock about five times and drudgingly get up in a half stupor to take a shower and go to class. My mind is nowhere near nature or the beauty that’s sitting right outside my window. I thought it was intriguing how Annie was so engrossed with nature and what a big part of life it was for her. Nature could represent a spiritual place for her. She says, “it’s a good place to live; there’s a lot to think about.�? That reminds me of Thoreau. In Dillard and Thoreau’s works, it seems that nature is an escape from a hectic life and a one-track mind. Nature provides a setting where it’s easy to think and let your mind wander. I also thought it was interesting how Dillard seems to find wisdom from nature and can relate nature to her own life. She says, “I’m drawn to this spot. I come to it as to an oracle; I return to it as a man years later will seek out the battlefield where he lost a leg or an arm.�? Clearly, she is heavily influenced by what nature has to offer. It was definitely interesting that she compared her spot to an oracle. I was interested in what Dillard’s religious background/beliefs were. In my link they talk about her writing that addresses religions. However, it talked of her religious views/beliefs with ambivalence. She says, "Is nature whole, like a completed thought? Is history purposeful? Is the universe of matter significant? I am sorry; I do not know."

My link talks about how many of Dillards views on religion and other aspects of life are ambivilent: THE ECOTHEOLOGY OF ANNIE DILLARD: A STUDY IN AMBIVALENCE