Earth Without People Reaction Paper

Leah Mancuso
“Earth Without People” Reaction Paper

               It is obvious from reading Alan Weisman’s “Earth Without People”, that he is passionate about the environment, and writes in a way where he is able to reach every one of the reader’s senses. Weisman proposes a question he intends to answer with his essay: what would the world be like without people? He answers this question mostly with many allusions to history, and examples of “worlds within this world” that already mimic a possible “Earth without people”. In these allusions, Weisman uses imagery to connect with the reader in many different ways, and through words can invoke every sense.
              When Weisman asks the important questions, he uses many forms of imagery in them. He asks, “Would our concrete cities crumble to dust from the force of tree roots, water, and weeds?”. This sentence can especially resonate with the reader with use of the words “concrete” and “crumble” in the same sentence. The fact that he is putting two things that so rarely happen with each other together, captures the readers attention. People trust solid buildings to never collapse, so Weisman bringing this up as a form of imagery can very much connect with the reader.
               Weisman also alludes to the so-called “Demilitarized Zone” in Korea to answer his questions. This strip of land is completely desolate, and could very well imitate an Earth without people. Weisman uses imagery like “...barely discernible, transformed into pockets of marsh...” to paint a picture of a barren land in the reader’s mind. He also goes into great detail to describe the animals of the “sans-human” world, for example: “...red-crowned cranes that glide over the bulrushes in perfect formation, touching down so lightly that they detonate no land mines.” The animals are able to try and not disrupt their land without having to worry about the distraction of humans. The imagery of a cautious crane will stick with the reader, and make them realize the difference between a world with humans and a world without.
               The author also presents another idea and way to see how the world would be without people. He explains the “Mannahatta Project”, a real experiment to see how Manhattan was pre-Dutch arrival. According to history, there were many streams in the city before the Europeans landed. The author goes into what the city would be like if humans were to suddenly disappear, again with great imagery. He writes things like, “As lightning rods rusted away, roof fires would leap among buildings into paneled offices filled with paper.” Words like “rusted away”, and giving the roof fires personification by making them “leap”, Weisman makes the image in the reader’s mind even more real.
                A story without imagery is nothing, especially one that asks such deep questions like “Earth Without People”. The ability for words and phrases to paint pictures in your mind is incredibly important when an author asks such significant questions, especially ones surrounding an entirely different world. Weisman presents his ideas well with his great uses of imagery to invoke the five senses.