Caston Draper

Period 3

Rhetorical Precis

In the essay “The Meaning of The National Parks” (1950) written by Ansel Adams, the author
asserts the importance of the National Park system on the development of American society
and culture. That the National Parks are “phenomena of an advanced society”.
In the essay Adams uses various techniques to support his claim. He uses his own experiences
in these national parks, as well as other opinions of informed naturalists like Walt Whitman and
John Muir. These experiences are interlaced with the history of the National Parks and how their
founding overall positively affected the state of the american frontier, as well as conserved the
beauty and function of it. The purpose of this essay is to convey the exact meaning of the
national parks, and to inform the american people about the reasons they exist, that they aren’t
just there for the simple enjoyment of one’s self though this is one of the reasons. Overall
Adams attempts to reach out to the general american public who enjoy these parks and
establish a transcendental idea, to look past themselves and into nature.

Response

Adams asserts his ideas through establishing a sense of transcendentalism. He uses beautiful
metaphors that ultimately inform the reader of this idea “The clear realities of nature seen with
the inner eye of spirit reveal the ultimate echo of God”. His rhetoric forces the reader to look
past themselves and into the greater idea of nature and the universe. As the title suggests, he
plainly states the “Meaning of the national parks” but not exactly what they mean on an
individual level but rather he fixes his gaze on the future as seen here “Our time is short and the
future is terrifyingly long”. This establishes a heightened sense of importance of the national
parks to the reader, that they exist to convey the ideas of perfection and to conserve the beauty
of the american landscape for years to come.

Citation

Adams, Ansel. "The Meaning of The National Parks." My Camera in The National Parks, 1950.