"The Civil and the Wild in American Discourse" helps students develop a stronger sense of voice through the study of the civil and wild in American literature. According to the
Random House Webster's College Dictionary
civil is: "1. of, pertaining to, or consisting of citizens:
civil life; civil society.
2. of the commonwealth or state:
civil affairs
. 3. of the ordinary life and affairs of citizens, as distinguished from military and ecclesiastical life and affairs. 4. befitting a citizen:
a civil duty
. 5. of, or in a condition of, social order or organized government; civilized. 6. adhering to the norms of polite social intercourse:
civil relations
. 7. marked by benevolence:
He was a very civil sort.
8. (of divisions of time) legally recognized in the ordinary affairs of life:
the civil year.
9. of or pertaining to civil law" (Costello 249).
"Wild: 1. living in a state of nature; not tamed or domesticated:
a wild animal.
2. growing or produced without cultivation, as flowers, fruit, or honey. 3. uninhabited; underdeveloped:
wild country.
4. uncivilized; barbarous:
wild tribes.
5. of unrestrained violence or intensity, etc.:
wild storms.
6. characterized by violent feelings or excitement:
a wild look.
7. frantic; distracted:
to drive someone wild.
8. unruly or lawless:
a gang of wild boys.
9. unrestrained by reason or prudence:
to regret one's wild youth.
10. amazing; incredible:
It's wild that he's suing for divorce.
11. disheveled:
wild hair
. 12. wide of the mark:
a wild throw.
13.
Informal.
Intensely eager or enthusiastic:
I'm wild about your new hairstyle.
14. (of a card) having its value decided by the wishes of the players. -adv. 15. in an unrestrained manner; wildly. -n. 16. Often,
wilds
, an uncultivated, uninhabited region or tract; wilderness:
a safari to the wilds of Africa.
-v.t. 17.
Slang.
To attack or assault violently:
The gang wilded some runners"
(Costello 1523)
.
This unit focuses on the outsiders' point of view on the ills of society. Tone, structure, style, sound, audience and content all play a role in voice. Each of these elements has the potential to be civil or wild. Frequently the civil does not exist in absence of the wild. The two are frequently merged. Just as an individual is not one dimensional, the means of expressing oneself is not one dimensional. In
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Miss Watson, a civilized character, owns a slave, which is a rather savage act. Therefore her character exhibits not only hypocrisy but complexity. Miss Watson also represents education which is a construct of the civilized world. In Huck's depiction of life outside the civilizing forces of Widow Douglas' household he says, "It was kind of lazy and jolly, laying off comfortable all day, smoking and fishing, and no books nor study. Two months or more run along, and my clothes got to be all rags and dirt, and I didn't see how I'd ever got to like it so well at the widow's, where you had to wash, and eat on a plate, and comb up, and go to bed and get up regular, and be forever bothering over a book, and have old Miss Watson pecking at you all the time" (Twain 24). Here it is clear that Huck perceives education as a part of Widow Douglas' plot to "sivilize" him.
Although there is much criticism of the idea of civilization in Twain's text, the civil is extremely useful. Many writers use it when trying to reach a certain audience or objective. Claude McKay chose the sonnet to comment on American society. The sonnet conveys that McKay is educated and has control of language. Nevertheless the content is at times aggressive and hostile; he uses images of wild animals to expose the savageness of America. In his poem, "America" he writes, "Although she feeds me bread of bitterness,/ And sinks into my throat her tiger's tooth," (McKay 985). This shows the complexity of voice through the concepts of civility and wildness. His message is powerful because of the manipulation of the civil and the wild and of language. Through the study of the elements of voice students will develop a more sophisticated perspective on how to create and manipulate their own use of language. A greater range within their voice will emerge. In addition, through the analysis of different writers and artists, students will develop an understanding of the role of civilization in their own lives and have an opportunity to reflect on the civilizing forces of their own educations.
