Back-to-Nature Movements: History & Literature (Mishka '21)

Why have some people in history gone back to the land? And why back? This independent study focused on two central movements that had back-to-nature tendencies, particularly European Romanticism and the Beat/Hippie Movement. The writers and thinkers of these movements looked to nature for solutions to the world’s problems while desiring further integration of human society and the natural world. Despite being mainly philosophical, these movements have also taken religious, ideological, and cultural forms, or have simply emerged due to necessity and the need to survive. Interestingly, what remains constant is that these diverse movements—which generally served as a response to technological advancements and urbanization—idealized nature and a simple life. As part of this independent study, primary, secondary, and reference sources were read and analyzed, including poetry and prose from the various time periods.