Summary Of The Dead By The Side Of The Road

Throughout his writing, Gary Snyder explores the theme of deep ecology, an ideology very close to him. Going against most Western cornucopian thought, is an understanding that Homo sapiens are not the most valuable species. Instead deep ecology teaches that all species, all life our planet Earth, has equal value and standing because at the end of the day we all just parts of our environment, just small players in ecological cycles that have been going on for eons. Although humans have greatly disrupted these cycles through our developments and destructive technologies, this still does not make our kind any superior to a ladybug on a leaf according to deep ecology. Snyder describes deep ecology in his compilation of essays, “The Practice
When the average person sees roadkill, they see no use in the carcasses. In the modern capitalistic West few have desire to reuse because of the inescapable materialism pumped through our veins from the media since birth. Why think about recycling what nature has provided when one can purchase something new and shiny instead? Why try and salvage a dirty, dead animal for your meal when you can easily buy cheap steaks and chicken from superstores like Wal-mart? On the contrary, Snyder opens his readers up to a viewpoint that aligns with the natural cycles of nature, scavenging. Although scavenging is commonly thought of to be an activity performed by animals such as gulls and vultures, Snyder shows us that it can also be a way of life for humans as well. The scavenging of roadkill is common among lower-class rural individuals and especially with Indigenous Peoples. Throughout his poem, he eludes to Indigenous culture with examples such as “dance fans,” “a pouch for magic tools,” and finally “Pray to their Spirits. Ask them to bless us: our ancient sisters' trails.” One can even interpret the narrator of the poem as an Indigenous American with all those