Something will have gone out of us as a people if we ever let the remaining wilderness be destroyed; if we permit the last virgin forests to be turned into comic books and plastic cigarette cases; if we drive the few remaining members of the wild species into zoos or to extinction; if we pollute the last clear air and dirty the last clean streams and push our paved roads through the last of the silence . . .
In his work "The Sound of Mountain Water," Wallace Stegner emphasizes the profound connection between humanity and nature. He warns that allowing the destruction of the wilderness signifies a loss of our collective identity and essence as a civilization. The author reflects on the consequences of transforming untouched forests and wildlife into mere commodities and entertainment, suggesting that such actions strip away the beauty and purity of nature that define us.
...
