Reflections from the North Country

by Olson, Sigurd F.

• ISBN13: 9780816629930
• ISBN10: 0816629935
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1998-09-01
• Publisher: Univ of Minnesota Pr

Summary

Written in the last years of his life, Reflections from the North Country is often considered Sigurd Olson's most intellectually significant work. In an account alive with anecdote and insight, Olson outlines the wilderness philosophy he developed while working as an outspoken advocate for the conservation of America's natural heritage. Based on speeches delivered at town meetings and government hearings, this book joins The Singing Wilderness and Listening Point as the core of Olson's work. Upon its initial publication in 1976, Reflections from the North Country, with Olson's unique combination of lyrical nature writing and activism, became an inspiration to the burgeoning environmental movement, selling over 46,000 copies in hardcover. In this wide-ranging work, Olson evokes the soaring grace of raven, osprey, and eagle, the call of the loon, and the song of the hermit thrush. He challenges the reader to loosen the grasp of technology and the rush of contemporary life and make room for a sense of wonder heightened by being in nature. From evolution to the meaning and power of solitude, Olson meditates on the human condition, offering eloquent testimony to the joys and truths he discovered in his beloved north-country wilderness.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	ix	(2)
Reflections	xi
PART ONE Primal Heritage	3	(58)
1. Frontiers	3	(5)
2. The Gatherers	8	(7)
3. Nomads	15	(6)
4. Intuition	21	(6)
5. Timelessness	27	(5)
6. Solitude	32	(5)
7. The Great Silences	37	(5)
8. Mystery and the Unknown	42	(5)
9. Evolution of Mind	47	(6)
10. The Dream of Hudson Bay	53	(8)
PART TWO Search for Meaning	61	(60)
11. Harmony	61	(6)
12. Awareness	67	(6)
13. Aliveness	73	(6)
14. Oneness	79	(4)
15. Beauty	83	(6)
16. Simplicity	89	(6)
17. Courage	95	(6)
18. Freedom	101	(5)
19. Tradition	106	(6)
20. Wholeness	112	(9)
PART THREE The Imponderables	121	(50)
21. The Intangibles	121	(6)
22. Love of the Land	127	(6)
23. Flashes of Insight	133	(6)
24. Balance and Order	139	(6)
25. Know Thyself	145	(5)
26. Contemplation	150	(5)
27. Immortality	155	(8)
28. The Emergent God	163	(8)
Epilogue	171