Seeing by Annie Dillard and Our Perception of the World

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In the world of science there are many discoveries. “A discovery is like falling in love and reaching the top of a mountain after a hard climb all in one, an ecstasy not induced by drugs but by the revelation of a face of nature … and that often turns out to be more subtle and wonderful than anyone had imagined.” (Ferdinand Puretz). Most people in the world we live in lack to notice and or appreciate the gift of sight in life. By not cherishing the gift of sight and using it properly, many discoveries are left unfound. In the writing piece, Seeing, Annie Dillard speaks of nature and the small things that we all are unconsciously blind to and not appreciative of. Seeing explores the idea of what it means to truly see things in this world. Annie Dillard’s main point is that we should view the world with less of a meddling eye, so that we are able to capture things that would otherwise go unnoticed. There’s a science to how we view things in nature. Dillard attempts to persuade her reader to adopt to her way of seeing, which is more artificial rather than natural. From one end, what we see right away tends to be the natural obvious. We notice these things right away because they are in plain sight and we are used to seeing them every day without thinking or analyzing what we perceive. For example, the grass is green and the sky is blue. Dillard speaks of a time where she saw a frog and because of the surroundings it was in and its appearance it was hard for her to recognize it for what it was. Dillard described, “I once spent a full three minutes looking at a bullfrog that was so unexpectedly large I couldn’t see it even though a dozen enthusiastic campers were shouting directions… When at last I picked out the frog, I saw what pain... ... middle of paper ... ...vercome, there is more of a chance to capture such great discoveries. People need to realize that if they never take the time to stop and look around, appreciate the small things in life, they might miss out on important details and or moments that the world has to offer. Scientist didn’t obtain their greatest discoveries by looking at the world with a closed mind. During the months of September through Novemeber, the leaves start to fall off the trees. It is obvious its fall, but what else is occurring? Gravity. Albert Einstein discovered gravity by watching and ordinary object fall. At that moment he became a scientific unscrupulous observer. Works Cited Dillard, Annie. "Seeing." Pilgrim at Tinker Creek. N.P.: HarperCollins, 1974. 110-27. Print. Ferinad Puretz, Max. 'True Science', Review of Peter Medawar, Advice to a Young Scientist. N.p.: n.p., 1980. Print.

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