Linda Hogans Dwellings

Introduction The book Dwellings by Linda Hogan gives the reader a chance to look at life from a different angle or perspective. Linda explains how human beings look at their communities in a way that allows them to live in happiness and ignoring the things that might not matter in their lives.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Linda Hogan’s Dwellings specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The book brings a new concept and encouragement for people to learn how to compare their lives with anything else that surrounds them. The outstanding thing about this text is that it presents several themes like language, knowledge, animals, loss, and history. It is notable that Hogan’s exploration and analysis of language and human communication in the text reveals to us the limits of understanding our place in the universe. In this essay, the theme of language to explore how Hogan has used it to teach people how they ca n find a new way of being in their world. The Theme of Language in the Book Human beings use language to communicate, share ideas, and explore the surrounding nature. In the book, Hogan has explained a lot about the use of language and used it to explore how human beings have continued to misinterpret and understand their position in the universe. In the book, the author believes that different aspects of nature have their own language, something which makes it possible for animals, human beings, and other creature communicate effectively and be in a position of surviving in the world (Hogan 45). However, it is through the way we use this language that we have failed to understand our place in the world. For example, the author says the hills are a place where the starry skies tend to turn inward to thousand holes, a place where the solitary bees might have lived all long and died. This explains our kind of ignorance as humans. Human beings have consistently ignored the existence of animal language. The ignorance has led to denial thereby making it impossible for us to understand these marvels of nature. We have also chosen to ignore the way animals communicate.Advertising Looking for essay on literature languages? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More By so doing, the use language in the work explains why as humans we have not managed to learn much about our environment and the things that affect us on earth as human beings. This means that the theme of language as used in this book by Linda explains how humans have continued to misunderstand their unique place in the world (Chomsky Rizzi 72). The way human beings use language as a tool for communication offers a lot towards understanding how humans have ignored the surrounding nature completely. The theme also explains how humans treat nature with some form of prejudice (Hogan 57). For instance, the author explains how humans use language to categorize nat ure as something that is non-human. Human beings are ready to use ‘less than’ to show the kind of connection they offer between other forms of nature and human beings. By so doing, we understand that the use of language to explain and categorize nature is an idea that has led to our wider misunderstanding of values of natural hierarchy. The author has also used language to explore the co-existence of humans and nature. Human beings use language to view animals as powerless therefore making them appear less meaningful in the world. However, this makes it hard for us to co-exist and learn much about the role of animals in the universe. Linda has expressed her opinions on the idea of disempowering animals and mistreatments of other forms of creatures. When we do this, Linda believes that we remain ignorant creatures thus making it hard for us to understand the universe as our dwelling place much better (Dasgupta 49). This explains why human beings have continued to find th emselves in trouble with nature during the time of disasters and other natural calamities.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Linda Hogan’s Dwellings specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Humans therefore use language as a tool for disempowering the powerless forms of creation such as land and animals occupying our dwelling environments. When this happens, it becomes impossible for us to learn about these animals. We lose touch with the animals and therefore find it hard to understand our natural environment better. As human beings, we should never let such a chance pass or continue to take it for granted. The author, therefore, encourages us to begin learning the language of the powerless such as animals and other creatures if we are to understand our environment much better. From this kind of knowledge, we agree that Hogan’s exploration and analysis of language and human communication in the text reveals to us the limits of understanding our place in the universe (Chomsky Rizzi 78). In the book, Hogan has explored human ignorance of Nature itself. As a result, more people have continued to miss out in knowing the importance of nature. Because we have denied the language of nature, the theme of language makes us understand that human beings will always remain separated from Nature and animals in the world (Hogan 91). If we separate ourselves from these animals, Hogan believes that we will never get the chance to learn about the animals or nature itself. This explains why as human beings we will always continue to limit our chances and potential of understanding our unique place in our society and the universe as a whole. When we separate ourselves from nature and animals, we limit our chances of learning about the surroundings, and how they might affect us as human beings. We cannot learn about the natural environment if we ignore the language of nature as used by different animals and nature itself. When this happens, we realize that we are at a loss and disunity with the universe as a whole. We therefore lose our integrity of the land that makes our community (Hogan 127). The disrespect or ignorance of the non-human through language has undermined the human ability or potential to learn about the surrounding environment.Advertising Looking for essay on literature languages? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Since language is our main tool for communication, we have used it selfishly by ignoring the possibility that other creatures and forms in nature have their own form of language. Because of this, we have ignored, or denied, the language of creatures including animals and nature itself. This has made it impossible for use to understand our universe better. As a result, our relationship with the universe has remained ineffective and unrewarding. Humans have disempowered the native people and treated them with prejudice. This has led to disagreements in the social order in our communities (Dasgupta 63). Linda has therefore offered insightful approaches and views through which we can decide to learn about the language of nature and be in a position of learning much about our nature. Through our kind of language, Linda has managed to explain how our use of language and ignorance of other forms of language has limited our understanding of the world around us. This has also affected our ki nd of relationship and attachment with the world thereby limiting the much we benefit from it. If we were to change this situation, it is necessary that we learn how to categorize everything in nature and represent everything equally. If we do this, definitely we will widen our scope of the universe around us and thereby learn much about everything that surrounds us. This is the best way to achieve a contended and fulfilled life in our universe. We can therefore rely on our human language and communication to learn new things about the surrounding environment and by so doing widen our understanding of our place in the universe (Hogan 94). Conclusion The theme of language is evident throughout the book Dwellings by Linda Hogan. Through our inability and ignorance to learn about the language and nature of the non-human, Linda believes that we have only lost our integrity and knowledge of the universe as our dwelling place. The author has used the theme of language to explore how human beings have continued to use language selfishly as the powerful creation. As a result, humans have seen themselves as powerful creatures thereby ignoring the other forms of languages as used in nature and by other forms of creation. Through the exploration and analysis of the theme, we understand that our form of communication and language has limited our knowledge and understanding of our unique place and position in the world. Works Cited Chomsky, Noam. Rizzi, Luigi. On Nature and Language. New York: Oxford University Press, 2002. Print. Dasgupta, Partha. Human well-being and the natural environment. New York: John Wiley and Sons, 2008. Print. Hogan, Linda. Dwellings: A Spiritual History of the Living World. New York: W.W. Norton Company, 2007. Print. This essay on Linda Hogan’s Dwellings was written and submitted by user Kyan Knox to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.