Honors College Theses
Publication Date
12-17-2024
Major
English (B.A.)
Document Type and Release Option
Thesis (open access)
Faculty Mentor
Dr. Joe Pellegrino
Abstract
This thesis focuses on the role of nature in opposition to modernity in Ernest Hemingway's “The Last Good Country” and “The End of Something” as well as Cormac McCarthy’s The Orchard Keeper. Each author places the forces of modernity, such as the logging industry or the introduction of the railroad, at odds with the untouched state of the natural world. Specifically, I emphasize the different portrayals of the natural world from each author. Hemingway’s nature is very closely tied to Romanticism, as nature is a spiritual and healing force for those who choose to commune with it. However, McCarthy portrays the natural world as a more ambiguous power, one who even retaliates against those who have wronged it.
Thesis Summary
This thesis focuses on the role of nature in opposition to modernity in Ernest Hemingway's “The Last Good Country” and “The End of Something” as well as Cormac McCarthy’s The Orchard Keeper. Each author places the forces of modernity, such as the logging industry or the introduction of the railroad, at odds with the untouched state of the natural world. Specifically, I emphasize the different portrayals of the natural world from each author. Hemingway’s nature is very closely tied to Romanticism, as nature is a spiritual and healing force for those who choose to commune with it. However, McCarthy portrays the natural world as a more ambiguous power, one who even retaliates against those who have wronged it.
Recommended Citation
Ball, Danielle, "The Imposition of Power: Modernity and Nature in Hemingway and McCarthy" (2024). Honors College Theses. 1005.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/honors-theses/1005
