Under the Sea Wind

Last updated
Under the Sea Wind
Under the Sea Wind (Cover).jpg
First edition
Author Rachel L. Carson
IllustratorHoward Frech (first)
Robert W. Hines (1991)
LanguageEnglish
SeriesSea trilogy
SubjectOcean and shore life
Genre Nature writing
Publisher Simon & Schuster (1941)
Oxford University Press (1952)
Penguin Nature Classics (1996)
Publication date
1941
Publication placeUnited States
Media typePrint
Followed by The Sea Around Us  

Under the Sea Wind: A Naturalist's Picture of Ocean Life (1941) is the first book written by the American marine biologist Rachel Carson. It was published by Simon & Schuster in 1941 and received very good reviews, but sold poorly. After the great success of a sequel The Sea Around Us (Oxford, 1951), it was reissued by Oxford University Press; that edition was an alternate Book-of-the-Month Club selection and became another bestseller, and has never gone out of print. [1] It is recognized as one of the "definitive works of American nature writing," [2] and is in print as one of the Penguin Nature Classics.

Contents

Under the sea-wind was reportedly Rachel Carson's personal favourite book, although first edition copies by Simon & Schuster remain scarce.

Background

Under the Sea Wind was based on the article Undersea by Carson, published in The Atlantic Monthly in 1937. [3] [4] This article began as an eleven-page introduction to a government fisheries brochure, and grew into Carson's first book. [5] Prior to publishing Undersea, she wrote marine themed radio scripts which influenced her later work. [3] The article elaborates on ecology and the unwavering will to survive that embodies marine organisms. [3] After the article was published, Dutch-born children's author Hendrik Van Loon became interested in Carson's work. He supported and encouraged her to continue this type of depiction of nature in her writing, as well as advising her about publishing. [6] [7] Carson furthered the perspectives from her article and expanded them in Under the Sea Wind, which was described as her personal favorite. [8] The initial failure of Under the Sea Wind may have been due to the bombing of Pearl Harbor and America entering World War II the same year it was published. [9] [10] The book became popular after the publication of the second book in the Sea Trilogy, The Sea Around Us, and it was this second text that established her as a natural history author. [11]

Description

Under the Sea Wind describes the behavior of organisms that live both on and in the sea on the Atlantic coast. Under the Sea Wind consists of three parts, each following a different organism that interacts with the sea, and viewing it from a personified organism's perspective. [8] [11] The first section, Edge of the Sea, follows a female sanderling Carson names Silverbar. [8] The second section, The Gull's Way,  follows a mackerel named Scomber, and the third section, River and Sea follows Anguilla, an eel. [8] The narrative follows these creature's migration habits over the span of a year. [11]

Viewing ocean life from a broader ecological perspective was crucial to Carson, rather than just isolating parts of the sea. The term "sea wind" was Carson's way of referring to the entirety of the shore, sea, and sky. [5] Carson had a poetic way of writing about nature, while still maintaining the scientific accuracy of her observations. [1] [12] Her work draws connections between nature and home, the borders of interrelated communities, and the growing separation between man and nature. [1] [11] Carson took inspiration from natural history authors such as Henry Williamson and Henry Beston, and uses her scientific expertise to ground Under the Sea Wind in scientifically accurate detail on each animal's appearance, diet and behavior. [13] [14]

Carson's stated goal of using poetic prose and personifying sea life was "to make the sea and its life as vivid a reality for those who may read the book as it has become for me during the past decade." [15] This writing style brought scientific observations to a larger audience, and as stated by fellow marine environmentalist author Joel Hedgpeth in a review of the book, allowed for "turning the subject of the sea to a respectable reading matter for the clientele of the New Yorker and Reader's Digest sets, and inspiring a fashion in literature about the sea, its ways, and creatures." [16] The style of Carson's writing makes the book suitable for children as well as adults, and the appeal is enhanced with illustrations, originally by Howard Frech. These were eventually replaced in 1991 with illustrations by Robert W. Hines. Though Under the Sea Wind is a story of struggle and chance survival, the style that Carson presents is in stark contrast to her later work, Silent Spring , which is much more dire and analytical. [12]

Related Research Articles

Gaia philosophy is a broadly inclusive term for relating concepts about, humanity as an effect of the life of this planet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marine biology</span> Scientific study of organisms that live in the ocean

Marine biology is the scientific study of the biology of marine life, organisms that inhabit the sea. Given that in biology many phyla, families and genera have some species that live in the sea and others that live on land, marine biology classifies species based on the environment rather than on taxonomy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oceanography</span> Study of physical, chemical, and biological processes in the ocean

Oceanography, also known as oceanology, sea science, ocean science, and marine science, is the scientific study of the ocean, including its physics, chemistry, biology, and geology.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rachel Carson</span> American marine biologist and conservationist (1907–1964)

Rachel Louise Carson was an American marine biologist, writer, and conservationist whose sea trilogy (1941–1955) and book Silent Spring (1962) are credited with advancing marine conservation and the global environmental movement.

<i>Silent Spring</i> 1962 book by Rachel Carson on the environment

Silent Spring is an environmental science book by Rachel Carson. Published on September 27, 1962, the book documented the environmental harm caused by the indiscriminate use of DDT, a pesticide used by soldiers during WW2. Carson accused the chemical industry of spreading disinformation, and public officials of accepting the industry's marketing claims unquestioningly.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sylvia Earle</span> American marine biologist and lecturer

Sylvia Alice Earle is an American marine biologist, oceanographer, explorer, author, and lecturer. She has been a National Geographic Explorer at Large since 1998. Earle was the first female chief scientist of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and was named by Time Magazine as its first Hero for the Planet in 1998.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ed Ricketts</span> American marine biologist (1897–1948)

Edward Flanders Robb Ricketts was an American marine biologist, ecologist, and philosopher. Renowned as the inspiration for the character Doc in John Steinbeck's 1945 novel Cannery Row, Rickett's professional reputation is rooted in Between Pacific Tides (1939), a pioneering study of intertidal ecology. A friend and mentor of Steinbeck, they collaborated on and co-authored the book, Sea of Cortez (1941).

<i>Tarka the Otter</i> 1927 novel by Henry Williamson

Tarka the Otter: His Joyful Water-Life and Death in the Country of the Two Rivers is a 1927 novel by English writer Henry Williamson, first published by G.P. Putnam's Sons with an introduction by the Hon. Sir John Fortescue. It won the Hawthornden Prize in 1928, and has never been out of print since its first publication.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nature writing</span> Nonfiction or fiction prose or poetry about the natural environment, literary genre

Nature writing is nonfiction or fiction prose about the natural environment. It often draws heavily from scientific information and facts while also incorporating philosophical reflection upon various aspects of nature. Works are frequently written in the first person and include personal observations.

Joel Walker Hedgpeth was a marine biologist, environmentalist and author. He was an expert on the marine arthropods known as sea spiders (Pycnogonida), and on the seashore plant and animal life of southern and northern California; he co-authored Between Pacific Tides, the definitive guide to California intertidal organisms. He was a spokesperson for care for the floral and faunal diversity of the California coastline.

<i>The Sea Around Us</i> 1951 book by Rachel Carson

The Sea Around Us is a prize-winning and best-selling book by the American marine biologist Rachel Carson, first published as a whole by Oxford University Press in 1951. It reveals the science and poetry of the sea while ranging from its primeval beginnings to the latest scientific probings. Often described as "poetic," it was Carson's second published book and the one that launched her into the public eye and a second career as a writer and conservationist; in retrospect it is counted the second book of her so-called sea trilogy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sea</span> Large body of salt water

A sea is a large body of salt water. There are particular seas and the sea. The sea commonly refers to the Ocean, the interconnected body of seawaters that spans most of Earth. Particular seas are either marginal seas, second-order sections of the oceanic sea, or certain large, nearly landlocked bodies of water.

Marjorie Spock was an environmentalist, writer and poet, best known for her influence on Rachel Carson when the latter was writing Silent Spring. Spock was also a noted Waldorf teacher, eurythmist, biodynamic gardener and anthroposophist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Louis Darling</span> American illustrator and conservationist

Louis Darling, Jr. was an American illustrator, writer, and environmentalist, best known for illustrating the Henry Huggins series and other children's books written by Beverly Cleary. He and his wife Lois provided illustrations for the first edition of Silent Spring.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marine habitat</span> Habitat that supports marine life

A marine habitat is a habitat that supports marine life. Marine life depends in some way on the saltwater that is in the sea. A habitat is an ecological or environmental area inhabited by one or more living species. The marine environment supports many kinds of these habitats.

Cindy Lee Van Dover is the Harvey Smith Professor of Biological Oceanography and chair of the Division of Marine Science and Conservation at Duke University. She is also the director of the Duke University Marine Laboratory. Her primary area of research is oceanography, but she also studies biodiversity, biogeochemistry, conservation biology, ecology, and marine science.

Shirley Ann Briggs was an American artist, photographer, writer, editor, and naturalist. She spent a large portion of her career participating in efforts to inform the public about the environment in regards to synthetic chemicals such as pesticides. A talented artist and writer, Briggs would often use the combination of her understanding environmental hazards with her artistic skills to achieve her goals in regard to environmental education. After graduate school she moved to Baltimore to work for Glenn L. Martin Company as a mechanical arts illustrator and would later move on to work for the U.S Fish and Wildlife Service. She also worked as chief of the Bureau of Reclamation's graphics sections and drew diagrams for the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History. After Rachel Carson's passing in 1964 Briggs became the executive director of the Rachel Carson Council between the years of 1970 and 1992. She served as an essential editor and illustrator of a number of Rachel Carson's works.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Juli Berwald</span> Ocean scientist and science writer

Juli Berwald is an ocean scientist and science writer based in Austin, Texas. She is the author of a science memoir and two science textbooks, and her magazine-length pieces have appeared in The New York Times and National Geographic, among other publications. She graduated from the University of Southern California with a Ph.D. in ocean science in 1998.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Linda Lear</span> American historian of science and biographer

Linda Jane Lear is an American historian of science and biographer.

<i>The Edge of the Sea</i> 1955 book by Rachel Carson

The Edge of the Sea is a best-selling book by the American marine biologist Rachel Carson, first published as a whole by Houghton Mifflin in 1955. The third and final volume of her sea trilogy, The Edge of the Sea, is a scientifically accurate exploration of the ecology of the Eastern Seaboard.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Sullivan, Marnie (2012). Vakoc, Douglas (ed.). Revealing the Radical in Rachel Carson's Three Sea Books. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books. pp. 75–88.
  2. ↑ Bryson, Michael (2002). Visions of the Land: Science, Literature, and the American Environment from the Era of Exploration to the Age of Ecology (Under the Sign of Nature) . Charlottesville, VA: University of Virginia Press. ISBN   0813921074.
  3. 1 2 3 Ferrara, Enzo. (2016). Undersea - Rachel Carson. 10.13135/2384-8677/1433.
  4. ↑ Wheeler, J. C. (2013). Rachel Carson: Extraordinary Environmentalist. Minneapolis, Minn: Abdo Publishing.
  5. 1 2 Carson, Rachel (2007). Under the Sea Wind. London, England: Penguin Classics. pp. ix–xxi.
  6. ↑ Davis, Frederick R. (2013-03-01). "From the Sea to Silent Spring". Science. 339 (6123): 1034. Bibcode:2013Sci...339.1034D. doi:10.1126/science.1232265. ISSN   0036-8075. S2CID   162187726.
  7. ↑ Lear, Linda J. Rachel Carson, Witness for Nature. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1997.
  8. 1 2 3 4 Carson, Rachel (2007). Under the Sea Wind. London, England: Penguin Classics.
  9. ↑ Chambers, John Whiteclay II, ed. The Oxford Companion to American Military History. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999, 819-830.
  10. ↑ Lear, Linda. Under the Sea-Wind. RachelCarson.org. http://www.rachelcarson.org/UnderTheSeaWind.aspx
  11. 1 2 3 4 Norwood, Vera L. (1987). "The Nature of Knowing: Rachel Carson and the American Environment". Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society. 12 (4): 740–760. doi:10.1086/494364. ISSN   0097-9740. S2CID   143507223.
  12. 1 2 Arvidson, Adam Regn (26 September 2011). "Nature Writing in America: The Power of Rachel Carson".
  13. ↑ Stewart, Frank. A Natural History of Nature Writing. Island Press, 1995, p. 170. ISBN   1-55963-279-8.
  14. ↑ Quaratiello, p. 29.
  15. ↑ Quaratiello, Arlene. Rachel Carson: A Biography. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 2004, pp. 26–27. ISBN   0-313-32388-7.
  16. ↑ Hedgpeth, Joel (March 1956). "Review: Under the Sea Wind. A Naturalist's Picture of Ocean Life. by Rachel L. Carson". The Quarterly Review of Biology. 31: 40–41. doi:10.1086/401182 – via JSTOR.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.