Blog Entry 7- Coexisting

People with even the most different beliefs, appearances, and opinions can find a way to coexist. Art and literature are an example of the media in which gender, color, age, and sexuality can be disregarded in order to appreciate something aesthetically. Being the indigenous people of the land or foreigners entering a new country can also breed understanding between cultures and people.

In Richard K. Nelson's "Woodsman" it seems as though the common threat of death by the hands of the woodsmen brought people together. Fear brings about a common understanding or in this case a common nightmare. When Nelson refers to "A Huslia man" (639) he is outlining the fact that the different cultures/groups have similar horror stories and experiences with the cannibalistic woodsmen. Although the woodsmen are a piece of folklore, the idea that a mutual fear can unite people is a way in which different cultures can come together and coexist.

            Another example of cultures/people coexisting can be found in Edna Palace’s Ice Palace. It appears that the peaceful interactions between people cause the: “kind of balloon feeling” (622) for everyone in the town. The tranquility exaggerated the senses of the writer who states, “It was true that everything in Baranof seemed exaggerated. Edges seemed sharper. Skies bluer. Mountains higher” (662) which shows the way in which a sense of peace can cause a person’s life to improve. The characters in the beginning of the piece seem to be on the same accord and working together instead of capitalizing on differences.

 

Edna Ferber (1957)

http://xroads.virginia.edu/~cap/bartlett/palace.html

 

Ferber, Edna. "Ice Palace" Last New Land. Ed. Mergler, Wayne. Alaska Northwest Books, (c) 1996. 661-671.

 

Nelson, Richard K. "Woodsman" Last New Land. Ed. Mergler, Wayne. Alaska Northwest Books, (c) 1996. 636-641.