Tag Archives: conclusions

Reflection

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Wow! I can’t believe it is already the end of the semester. It is impossible for me to recite everything I have learned in this class but my biggest takeaway is how I view perspective now. To be more specific, the way we talk about history and how it is not one universal truth has really stuck with me. I have always been really stubborn and wondered “how do we know?” in a classroom or based on a textbook and it is sometimes difficult to get a productive answer. I feel like this discussion has allowed me to realize things don’t have to be right or wrong, left or right, and they can be a combination of anything and everything. There is comfort knowing that knowledge is so personal and dynamic, and that not everyone has to understand each others history. With that being said, I definitely am excited to continue learning and looking for new perspectives in all aspects of life, to continue asking why, and thinking of this class whenever I see a mermaid! So grateful for this class and everyone in it, cheers and good luck!

We Are Mermaids

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I didn’t know what a thermophile was, but after looking it up I see that it is a bacteria that thrives in high temperatures. I wonder if Burt included this to show how the Ocean is a harsh place, yet a place of origin. The fumaroles that the thermophiles feed on are arguably some of the earliest catalysts for human life. Burt then references more Ocean dwellers like zoarchids, known for being sluggish and consumptive. To me, Burt is highlighting the fertility of the Ocean. They want readers to know that the Ocean is the birthplace of humanity. The first stanza also hints at the origin of life on Earth, calling the Ocean “life-giving.”

Later in the poem, Burt references the liminal spaces of the “harbor” and the “estuary.” Why did they surface liminal spaces? The estuary, between fresh and salty waterways. the harbor, a place between the human world on land and the Ocean.

I wonder if this poem serves as a reminder that if mermaids exist, then we evolved from them. Burt repeatedly hints that the Ocean is the origin of all living things, and the title of the poem “We Are Mermaids” furthers this idea. Maybe this is a calling for us to acknowledge all that has come before us, all the species that lead to humanity.

What does Burt mean when they say, “Some of us are going to be okay.”

Final Thesis Proposal

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Hello all,

In “Finding Oannes,” the quest for the missing ship The Oannes, as a sign of intellectual harmony with nature, ultimately serves to highlight the disastrous implications of our faulty relationship with the natural world, as demonstrated by the shipwreck, pointing to a broader reflection on human-nature bonds.