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Our World With and For the Future

The Lost Woods

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H. William Rice The idea of “green” literature is a complex and so is its definition. In order to determine if literature is “green” we have to come up with a definition for “green” literature. A main motivator for “green” literature is centered on the idea of climate change/global warming and many people believe that in order for “green” literature to be considered “green” literature, it has to deal with environmental problems. In my opinion “green” doesn’t necessarily have to deal with environmentalism. My criteria for “green” literature is that the piece of literature creates a sense of reverence and respect for nature. The piece of literature must have a human element, specifically the use of human characters as a tool to show respect and reverence for nature.

The Lost Woods by H. William Rice, is a collection of fifteen short stories which I would consider “green” literature. All of the stories follow two families, the Whites and the Chapmans in the fictional town of Sledge, South Carolina. The stories begin around the 1930s and continue all the way to the present day. All of the stories revolve around hunting. As you progress throughout the book, from one short story to the other, the stories show the changes in hunting and the use of the land by the two families. Each narration has something in common, that they are from the perspective of the hunter. In each story the main characters are searching for more than the animals that they are trying to hunt. They are searching for something greater. “Rice’s interests lie in man’s mystical connection to nature and wildlife, the ties formed from sharing time afield, and the lost and damaged parts of ourselves that draw us to the woods.” (Sullivan)

The first short-story in the Lost Woods is “The Deer Hunt” is a good example of “green” literature. This story takes place in the late 1930’s to early 1940’s. It is about Jacob White and his grandfather hunting deer in the Appalachian Mountains of South Carolina. The story explores the relationship that hunting has created between the two of them and nature itself. Most people would think that are short story with a central theme of hunting would not be considered “green” literature. Hunting can be a very polarizing issue especially when it comes to environmental impact. We see cases all around the world, in the past and in the present that show the devastating effects of hunting where we as humans bring other species to the verge of extinction. We currently see this in Africa where rhinos and elephants are being butchered for their ivory tusks and horns. The White Rhino species is one male rhino away from being completely extinct. So we can see why from first glance why people would think that “The Deer Hunt” or any of the stories in The Lost Woods wouldn’t be considered “green” literature because hunting has such a negative connotation with it because it brings death and destruction. But I believe having hunting as the main theme of the story is important because hunting is essential in nature. Animals, including humans have to hunt to eat, to survive. It is an essential part of the circle of life. Because hunting is an essential part to the circle of life, it will always continue but it is in the manner in which you hunt that and why you hunt that determines whether the action can be considered “green.” “The Deer Hunt” fills my criteria of what is considered to be “green” literature. The Story uses Jacob’s Grandfather, Jacob’s disconnection with nature after his grandfather’s death, and Jacob’s ultimate reconnection with nature as tools to show respect and reverence towards nature.

The first way the story “The Deer Hunt” models respect and reverence towards nature is the character Jacob’s grandfather. In the story Jacob and his grandfather track and kill a buck because “The family depended on venison to make it through the winter, and the larder was emptying out.” (Rice 7) This quote shows that Jacob and his grandfather only hunt for what their family needs to survive, they aren’t poaching or hunting excessively. They aren’t damaging species to the point of extinction. They are respecting nature and only hunting for what they need. Jacob’s grandfather was also part Cherokee. Because of the grandfather’s ancestry, we see a deep connection and reverence to nature through his rituals when he hunts. “As he always did, the grandfather sat beside the deer and said a prayer of thanks to God and to the spirit of the deer.” (Rice 9) “He placed the head and the skin in a copse of trees, sprinkling tobacco at the mouth of the deer to make his journey to the spirit world pleasant.” (Rice 9) This ritual shows that the grandfather respects the deer by praying to its spirit, he doesn’t take it for granted. He understands the connection humans should have with nature that. It’s ok to use the resources that the earth has to offer but only what is necessary to live a quality life. We take what we need no more. Through this I think Rice is trying to argue that if we take more than what we need and don’t show nature and the environment the respect and reverence that it deserves we will be headed down a path that is destructive towards the environment and lead to even more environmental crisis that we are already in.

Another way the story “The Deer Hunt” models reverence and respect for nature is by showing what happens when Jacob loses his connection with nature after his grandfather passes away. After Jacob’s grandfather passes away the memories and teaching he had taught Jacob had started to fade, just like his father’s. Jacob’s father “had never been much of a hunter–what the grandfather had taught had never stuck with the father. The father had lost much of what he had learned from the grandfather amid the mad rush to survive the last decade.” (Rice 10) Jacob’s family struggles to survive after his grandfather’s death. The farm struggles to produce. Jacob’s father tries different endeavors to make something of the farm but they all fail and the family struggles to make to make ends meet. “His father had gotten some cows and was having a mighty hard time making money off them” (Rice 10) I believe Rice is trying to show when you become disconnected to nature like Jacob and his father, you run into problems in life. When people have a disconnection with nature and the environment that it has consequences. Rice is trying to connect the financial problems that Jacob’s family faces is the result of their disconnection with nature. I believe Rice is trying to draw a parallel to our current society and the current environment problems we face today are a result of our disconnection with nature. When we are disconnected from nature we don’t make educated decisions, we don’t consider the negative effects our decisions will have on the environment. That is why we are currently face an environmental crisis.

The last way the story “The Deer Hunt” models reverence and respect for nature is Jacob’s ultimate reconnection with nature at the end of the story. Jacob’s whole life changes in the blink of an eye when he is drafted into World War II. “Everything that Jacob had known or planned or thought or done was instantly a Jacob thinking about the memories with his grandfather, yearning for their relationship. Jacob’s grandfather “who struggled and fought for the land that now languished in Jacob’s father’s keeping. He fought in World War I when he was a young man. Jacob wondered what the grandfather would say about his oldest grandson fighting to defend his country. What advice he would have. But the grandfather was dead, gone.” (Rice 12) Jacob had a profound respect for his grandfather, who he was, what he accomplished, and what he taught him. So Jacob yearning for his grandfather headed to the Mountains with his grandfather’s 1894 Winchester model rifle to the places where they had hunted together. Jacob set up camp where he prepared his dinner, “he was hungry in a way he had not been hungry since he had known of the war.” (Rice 13) I believe this quote represents Jacobs desire to be reconnected with his grandfather. His hunger for food is symbolic for his hunger to be reconnected with his grandfather, and through his grandfather to be reconnected with nature. Later that night Jacob ran into a buck that “stood on the hillside starting off into the valley.” (Rice 13) “Jacob stood still when he saw him, and the image became clearer… He realized then that it was a buck, one almost as big as the buck that he and his grandfather had killed on that morning all those years before.” (Rice 14) This scene is significant because this buck is bring back memories of Jacob’s relationship with his grandfather. The sight of the buck is reconnecting him with his grandfather. Rice is using this scene with the buck to show the connecting power that nature has. Jacob through seeing the buck again is connected with his grandfather through nature, developing a respect and reverence for it.

The story “The Deer Hunt” found in the novel The Last Woods fits my criteria of what should be considered “green” literature. “The Deer Hunt” creates a sense of reverence and respect for nature using the characters of Jacob and his grandfather. The setting of the story around the historical periods of the Great Depression and World War II is better set to argue my definition of what “green” literature because over current times because it invites readers to reflect what has changed, people’s attitudes over time, and peoples connection to the land over compared to the period in time they are reading in.

Works Cited:

Rice, Herbert William. The Lost Woods: Stories. Columbia, South Carolina: U of South Carolina, 2014. Print.

Sullivan, JR. "H. William Rice Has Written the Best Hunting Book You’ll Read This Year."Sporting Classics Daily. Sporting Classics Daily, 16 Dec. 2014. Web. 18 Mar. 2016.