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Changes in the Land by William Cronon

The English colonists would utilize the white pine for crucial purposes such as ship construction. On page 28, William Wood elaborates on how the Native Americans' woodland burning ironically resulted in another appreciated asset of the forest by the English colonists. The "thickets " created by the Native Americans' burning of the underbrush is described on page 28 as "an excellent refuge for deer " creating a fine place to hunt for the English colonists were used by the Native Americans as hiding places for times of war. The personal influences of one group directly affected the other and how they would use the ecosystem by adjusting the environment and allowing it to work to their advantage.
             In chapter three, pages 35-37, Cronon elaborates on the differing strategies in food storage and "production " of the Native Americans and English colonists. The differing strategies, methods, and utilizations of resources are directly related and accredited toward cultural differences. Being that the Native Americans placed great emphasis on being one with nature and culturally in touch with their environment and surroundings, their ability to produce and store their food supply could almost be considered instinct. The Native Americans were able to understand the great importance of hot or cold seasons, overlapping cycles of light and dark, high and low tides, waxing and waning moons. (37) This would ultimately result in knowledge crucial to human survival. The Native Americans maintained the ideal that they were to learn about and use their ecosystem to their advantage by seeking to obtain their food sources when their environment most graciously allowed. This was a major detail that the English colonists were lacking. The colonists proved to be unprepared when their vision of carrying over their identical lifestyles from England over to New England went from attainable to very unattainable.


Essays Related to Changes in the Land by William Cronon

1. Changes in the Land by William Cronon

William Cronon's book Changes in the Land is a very detailed and informative explanation of the cultural and environmental shifts that North America underwent with the European colonization. ... " "As William Wood observed, the fire 'consumes all the underwood and rubbish which otherwise would overgrow the country, making it unpassable and spoil their much affected hunting'" (Cronon 49) While the Native Americans depended on the exploitation of seasonal diversity the Europeans believed in settling and cultivating the land. ... " (Cronon 108) Another result o...

  • Word Count: 1423
  • Approx Pages: 6
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

2. William Cronon and Changes in the Land

William Cronon has shed light on all of these reasons in his book, Changes in the Land: Indians, Colonist, and the Ecology of New England. ... "( Cronon, xiv) as opposed to why the changes occurred , I am confident that I can divulge on the "why" using his book as a resource. ... Cronon construes this when he says, " To take advantage of their land's diversity, the Indian villagers had to be mobile." ( Cronon, 54). ... "Colonists were moved to transform the soil by a property system that taught them to treat the land as capital." ( Cronon, 77). ... (Cronon, 109) The colonists clea...

  • Word Count: 958
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

3. Changes in the Land by William Cronon

In order for one to understand how the conquest caused distinct changes to the culture and ecology of the native population and land one must first understand how the New England natives and environment functioned before the Europeans landed, how the European settlements functions differed the natives ideals and culture, and what effects European conquest had on the native people and the land. ... They conformed to the land rather than forcing the land to conform to them. ... Cronon summarizes, "The struggle was over two ways of living and using the seasons of the year, and it expresse...

  • Word Count: 671
  • Approx Pages: 3
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

4. Changes in the Land - Indians, Colonists and the Ecology of New England

William Cronon's 20th anniversary edition of "Changes in the Land: Indians, Colonists, and the Ecology of New England," strives to analyze how the land and the people influenced each other and how those relationships shaped new England's communities. ... In fact, when explained by Cronon it does seem to make common sense that the changes people made would undoubtedly, impact ecological systems as well. ... For example, pre-colonial Indians viewed ownership of land based strictly upon the use of the land (p. 80). ... Once the use of the land changed, such as letting the land rest from...

  • Word Count: 735
  • Approx Pages: 3
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

5. Economic Growth and Environmental Destruction

William Cronon jokes, "The only way to save nature is to kill ourselves" (Cronon) fortunately, this is not the solution. ... On another note, the idea of dualism and Cronon's "dualistic vision" of nature has been an intense debate amongst environmentalist for years. ... Non-dualist, Cronon, does not believe humans can help in the progression of conservation because we are the problem, however, Donald Waller disagrees. ... " So, humans have the power to make changes in the environment through their actions. ... The issues that are affecting our environment are g...

  • Word Count: 1339
  • Approx Pages: 5
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

6. Is Humanity Suicidal

- and William Cronon's "The Trouble with Wilderness,"" are two essays that address the changing environment and what is to be expected in the future. ... Wilson feels that overpopulation is causing a dramatic change on Earth. ... The carelessness of humans is "swiftly changing the atmosphere and climate [ ]- (501). ... Because of an increase in population, people require more land and supplies to be able to have a suitable life. ... Cronon believes when humans go into the wilderness it is no longer considered wild. ...

  • Word Count: 834
  • Approx Pages: 3
  • Grade Level: High School

7. Changes in the Land: Native Americans in New England

How did the Native Americans view land use and property rights? ... "This I have imagine..." is what Henry David Thoreau pondered as he set about cataloging the changing landscape of Walden. ... William Cronon, tackles this subject in his book Changes in the Land, as he explores and explains the changing landscape that Thoreau writes about using both factual/historical data combined with a fresh ecologically based approach. ... They utilized the seasonal changes to signal and direct them in their agricultural plantings and harvests, their hunting and foraging expeditions, their fishing excu...

  • Word Count: 1322
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