Lourdes Safie
Travis Mann
March 13, 2010
Who are you?
A prairie is an open space where there are no limits, borders, or divisions. Could this lack of borders be not only physical but also spiritual barriers? In “Dakota” Kathleen Norris mentions how being isolated from people has helped her find herself. In the emptiness of this environment she is able to explore every corner of her imagination, without being interrupted or distracted by stereotypes of society. Norris mentions how silence is capable to create a personal space in the midst of noise. Space can be seen either as physical or mental, the nothingness of the prairies is both allowing the imagination to flow and discover new things. Having access to this vast territory represents how every human being has control of his or her own infinite thoughts. Norris believes that being part of an urban community creates certain walls that restrain the opportunity to search within ourselves.
Norris had the opportunity to live in New York, an environment where loneliness and silence are not that common. Crowded streets, noise, and multiple opinions sometimes distract the creation of personal and independent thoughts. A place that has no space for individuality may sometimes overshadow the need for it. People may come to think that following the lead of a group of individuals is the norm, and that having one’s own opinions and making own decisions is no longer necessary. Time is really an important issue in Ney York, people have to think, move, and act fast in order to stand out and be somebody. People that live in places like big cities spend most of their time following a busy lifestyle, often having no time left for themselves.
On the other hand, Norris explains how isolated places my cause indifference, loss of natural curiosity and the ability to cope with change. She says, “Living close to such an expanse of land I find I have little incentive to move fast, little need of instant information” (145). The lack of challenges and willingness to succeed can make people become mediocre. Insufficient goals and important events to look up to, may also lead to a relatively boring life. Dakota’s big prairies may cause social disorientation; the place is so immense that population dilutes in it, giving less opportunities for human interaction. Norris explains that, “some have come to prefer the treelessness and isolation, becoming monks of the land, knowing that its loneliness is an honest reflection of the essential human loneliness. The willingly embraced desert fosters realism, not despair” (110). Even though some say they prefer this type of life style, it may soon become a monotonous routine, where change is neither acceptable nor anticipated.
It is common to find certain human beings who are scared to change. Change is an unknown territory that not everybody is brave enough to explore. Norris compares the land to Dakotans by stating that “the land does not change, or does so only slowly; maybe Dakotans emulate the land in that respect.”(63) Learning to accept change and deal with uncomfortable situations helps build character and allows growth in people’s personality. What is a world without change? Being afraid to change can create big boundaries; maybe if Dakotans thought about this, they could realize that they are trapping themselves in a place with no hope. Ironically, the prairies in Dakota are extended and big, with no limits, and still Dakotans have managed to restrain themselves from growing and developing. This is just what Gatsby discovered, “disconnecting from change does not recapture the past. It loses the future”(64). At the end it all comes to the ability to conquer fear, as Carl Jung said, “to grow we must eventually stop running from our “shadow” and turn to face it (99)”.
A place can represent someone’s personality; there are those that are like the prairies, dull and plain, with no interests or goals, nothing special or distinctive. But there are also places like the forest, rich in fauna and flora, that represent those eager to learn, intriguing persons with interests. Knowing who we are and having complete understanding of ourselves is not easy, this knowledge comes with time. Often, there are things and places that might interfere, tempting us and letting us feel that we need amenities to survive. People don’t necessarily need big nice places, things, or even people to feel comfortable, but having it definitely makes it easier. Every human being has the power to feel however they want, no matter where they are or what they have, but not everyone knows this. Norris refers to this power as the “desert wisdom;” she said that “having a healthy ascetic discipline asks you to rejoice in these gifts of depravation, to learn from them, and to care less for amenities than for that which refreshes from a deeper source. Desert wisdom allows you to be at home, wherever you are”(24.) Norris also believes that the “desert wisdom can teach us to love anyway, to love what is dying, in the face of death, and not pretend that things are other than they are” (121).
The world is constantly changing; there are approximately 6,707 million inhabitants in the planet living in different places around the world. Each and every single one of these inhabitants are completely different; there is only one thing they all have in common, and this is that they live in a certain place and time. No matter where the place might be, place plays an important role in shaping our personality. There are those who share their lives with others, learn to live in a community and relate as family. Those who choose to live a solitary life, engaging in activities that helped them find their real identity. And finally, those who are too busy worrying about problems that never end and then, they forget to think either about themselves or their families.
No matter the type of lifestyle, every person has a place that relates to his or her existence. Norris believes that you need to accept your place as it is, because “trying to make this place like the places they had known, they would not allow it to be itself”(148). The only way to accept a place is analyzing its characteristics, especially those that allow to shape and form ones character. Norris explains how moving to Dakota helped her find herself; she states “My own life has opened up more than I thought possible in Dakota desert, the desert of the monastery and of the small town, the desert of a small and fairly conservative Presbyterian church”(122). Norris found that, you not only need to know where you are but to learn to love what you find there. Finding the right place to be yourself means not wanting more, realizing that what you have there is all you need.