Big Sur Man and the Natural World Quotes Page 2
Citations follow this format: (Chapter.Paragraph)
| Quote #4 Nevertheless I go there every night even tho I dont feel like it, it's my duty (and probably drove me mad), and write these sea sounds, and all the whole insane poem "Sea." (7.2) |
Jack spends much of Big Sur trying to determine what his divine purpose is – what he's supposed to be doing, why God put him on earth.
| Quote #5 There's the poor little mouse eating her nightly supper in the humble corner where I've put out a little delight-plate full of cheese and chocolate candy (for my days of killing mice are over). (8.1) |
Notice that this passage comes shortly after Jack's acute awareness in Chapter Seven that he is a part of something bigger. His time in Big Sur makes him feel connected to many aspects of the natural world – down to the smallest mouse.
| Quote #6 The sea swirls up but seems subdued -- It's not like being alone down in the vast hell writing the sounds of the sea. (19.3) |
Look at the way Big Sur changes for Jack when he's there with other people. The landscape is subject to his interpretation.
