Earth Words: Conversing with Three Sages

Earth Words connects three earlier writers through the glosa, a poetic form that unfolds as a dialogue, exploring themes of environmentalism, politics, and the relationship between self and nature. Wang An-shih's writings embody an ideal relationship between self and nature, while Henry Thoreau's writings provide an antidote to our dependence on digital forms of communication. Emily Carr's writings and art enter into Indigenous cultures and witness the enduring value of their way of looking at nature, culminating in a vision of creative growth.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 128 pages
Publication date: 20 October 2021
Publisher: McGill-Queen's University Press

Earth Words is a collection of poetry that explores the relationship between humans and nature through the glosa, a poetic form that unfolds as a dialogue. The collection spans three centuries, from the eleventh-century world of Wang An-shih to the nineteenth century of Henry Thoreau and into the twentieth century with Emily Carr. While the environmental and political problems of the twenty-first century may seem unique, the figures in this book face similar challenges. Wang's writings embody an ideal relationship between self and nature, preserving a sense of rootedness in times of upheaval, much like the Trump era. This relationship is further confirmed in conversations with Thoreau, whose closeness to nature provides an antidote to our modern dependence on digital forms of communication. He also grapples with issues of slavery and the failure to respect the full humanity of Indigenous peoples, struggles that echo through the present. Carr's writings and art delve into Indigenous cultures, witnessing the enduring value of their way of looking at nature. She realizes that the impulse to creatively express one's being runs through the entire natural world.

Culminating in this realization, the concentric circles of Earth Words broaden out to include its twenty-first-century readers as well as its writers in a vision of creative growth. Earth Words serves as a reminder that our connection to nature is essential for our well-being and that we can find inspiration and wisdom in the natural world. It encourages us to appreciate the beauty and complexity of the world around us and to strive for a harmonious relationship with the environment.

Dimension: 191 x 127 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780228009016