An Analysis of the Poem A Country Without a Mythology

â€Å"In the darkness the fields / defend themselves with fences / in vain: / everything / is getting in† (Atwood, 28-33). The man in Margaret Atwood’s poem â€Å"Progressive Insanities of a Pioneer† is in a situation similar to the stranger in Douglas LePan’s poem â€Å"A Country Without a Mythology.† The man in Atwood’s poem as well as the stranger in LePan’s poem are both unsure of where they are. In â€Å"Progressive Insanities of a Pioneer† the man tries to separate himself from his environment; however, in â€Å"A Country Without a Mythology† the stranger tries to adapt himself to his environment. By analyzing the content, structure, and meaning of â€Å"A Country Without a Mythology† the reader will understand that if the stranger openly accepts his surroundings†¦show more content†¦When the stranger describes the weather the descriptions makes him seem more like an outsider because the Natives do n ot know the difference between Canadian and European weather making it illogical for the Natives to describe the weather in the way the stranger describes the weather. During the summer months the stranger’s word choices change from harsh words such as â€Å"violent† to relaxing words such as â€Å"passion† and â€Å"lovely† (16-19). The change in word choice indicates that the stranger is feeling more comfortable and accepting of his surroundings. Not only does the stranger’s feelings towards his environment change but LePan’s feelings towards the stranger changes as well. There is no evident emotion in the poem from LePan towards the stranger until LePan refers to the stranger as a â€Å"passionate man† who must travel across the fire-ridden land (20). At this point in the poem the stranger is desperate to find a spiritual connection believing he will find â€Å"sanctities of childhood† (23) and â€Å"a golden-haired Archang el† (28), but in reality all he finds is chaos and destruction. The stranger is so preoccupied with his own ideals of spiritual connection and religion that he is oblivious to the Native’s spirit: the manitou. The stranger sees the manitou as merely a clumsy, dirty, unsteady carving made by the savages (34-36). 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