Rachel Carson beautifully captivates the nature of the coast and sea, and how it is another world of itself in her essay, "The Marginal World". Carson uses imagery throughout her essay, to describe the "magic" she sees within the sea. From the dreamy descriptions of the coastal shore to the rise and fall of the tides, to the delicate tenacious creatures living amongst one another between the tides, I cannot help the feeling that I have been to a place like this, and remembering experiencing moments as beautiful as this. The plant and animal life Carson writes about from her own experience visiting a pool hidden within a cave, reminds me of the tide pools I used to frequently visit as a young girl in Malibu, California. The elementary school I attended consisted of taking field trips down to the tide pools, so we could learn about and explore the same wonderful aquatic creatures living within these beautiful and heavily vacated tide pools. Even at a young age, I was captivated by the plant-like animals, such as sea anemones and sea urchins, as well as the sea slugs and bright red and orange colored starfish. I can remember lightly petting the same "exquisitely fashioned" and "fragile" tide pool creatures with my small pointer finger, that Carson mentions in her essay.
I understand how amazed Carson is in this lasting moment amongst the tide pools because I have experienced this same moment. It really does feel like magic. This world that Carson writes about may seem far away, but it is the same world that she, I and every human on Earth is connected to.
Carson's elaborate descriptions of the wonders of these tidal pools and delicate creatures, gives me a deeper understanding in the meaning of the natural world around me. I understand the emotions and experience Carson had with the tide pool and sea, because I grew up playing in same busy, beautiful tide pools, throughout my entire youth. Not only did I grow up in this dream-like but familiar world Carson describes, but I studied and learned about each "plant-like" creature she mentions within her essay.
However, Carson has made me also realize that over the years, I have lost that appreciation of those precious moments standing alongside the tide pools, and the aesthetic beauty of the incredible creatures living amongst them. I understand that the world and even the smallest parts within it, are breathtaking. I have come to the realization that these wondrous creatures and magical places are real and a part of our world. These are the same places being affected by our destructive forces of industrialization, and unsustainable human practices that impact all forms of life, including our own. It is important to take a step back and appreciate the world around us, for what is within the world is special and irreplaceable. Like the tides, the world is constantly changing. And humanity is severely impacting it in the harshest ways possible.
