Environmental Essay

Article Review #2

The author states that history can be explained using ecology. This idea was the genesis of Aldo Leopold who was a conservationist and a biologist. He suggested that how the past developed could be explained by ecological research and ideas. This suggestion was borne of the events that took place at the Kentucky frontier where the Americans along with agriculture won against the native Indians and colonialists and settled there. Since agriculture was an important part of the Americans lives, plants contribution to history is assessed to determine whether they aided the settlement of Americans in the frontier (Worster, 1990).

Development of the Ideas

Donald Worster, the author, supports this suggestion using the presence of the plants on the Kentucky frontier and the impact they hard on the war as well as the settlement of Americans on the frontier. The pioneers who were agrarian would look for a patch of blue grass on the frontier land and they would make homesteads there. The reason for this was that blue grass provided pasture to their livestock and was also an indicator of good arable land. The agricultural settlers did not win over their competition based on their prowess as fighters only. They were helped by along by their plant counterparts in what is called ecological imperialism (Thommen, 2012).

The frontier bottomlands were the most accessible to the Americans. Unfortunately, there were high cane brakes that grew on the land and could not be surpassed by the plow. They razed the cane brakes and grass grew in its place. When the blue grass was seen they would settle there. Ecologists describe the growth of grass after the original vegetation has been burned secondary ecological succession (Worster, 1990).

Grass was the new species that replaced the vegetation before and this encouraged settlement. What would have happened f the new species was a shrub. This may have discouraged settlement or not. At the end of the day, the Kentucky frontier may or may not have become American land if it was not conducive to agriculture depending on the vegetation. Environmental history then becomes a study of the natural environment has affected man over time. It deepens the understanding of history from the environmental perspective as well as man’s impact on the environment and how this will shape history (Smout, 2009).

An Evaluation of the Persuasiveness of the Argument

Environmental history then looks at weather and climate as these had an impact on the harvest and prices of agricultural products epidemics and ultimately affected the population. All these are factors that have influenced history over time. Environmental history is studied in three levels as the Worster puts it. The first level being the basic understanding of the history of nature, its structure and distribution. The second level is a study of how man has used technology to convert nature into a system that produces for his consumption. Human ecological relations reveal how man has utilizing the resources found in nature. The third level analyses man’s ideologies, ethics, values and myths which have impacted his relationship with nature over time. These have been consequential in shaping the nature, settlement and surface of the earth (Worster, 1990).

The argument seems persuasive that history should be looked at from an environmental perspective because human beings have forgotten the impact nature has had on history and settlement. By raising the awareness of the significance of nature in history, an environmental historian can help change man’s relationship with nature. By knowing the earth’s history and limits will allow man to feed himself without degrading natures resources (Thommen, 2012).

Conclusion

Environmental history is an important field of study which would reveal truths that have shaped human nature apart from the societal aspect. Understanding this aspect of history helps people understand how the ecology has an influence on the world’s economy and human settlement of the past and in the future. It is, therefore, one of the aspects which ought to be considered while studying a culture/society; be it for the purpose of facilitating the drafting of economic policy or any other objective for that matter. Environmental history is a complicated subject, but with an appropriate strategy, it is easy to understand and use that information as intended (Smout, 2009).

References

Smout, T.C. (2009). Exploring Environmental History: Selected Essays. Edinburgh, UK: Edinburgh University Press

Thommen, L. (2012). An Environmental History of Ancient Greece and Rome. Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press

Worster, D. (1990), Transformations of the Earth: Toward an Agro-ecological Perspective in History. The Journal of American History, 76(4), 1087-1106