Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Faariyah Baig
Professor Ludwig
English 101H
7 October 2017
Man has always been dependent on the harmonious balance of nature in order to survive
and thrive on the planet. It is this balance that ensures equilibrium exists to protect our natural
resources while the world is rapidly expanding in the fields of construction and industrialization.
A rising concern that poses a potential threat to the destruction of this balance is desertification.
Desertification refers to the continuous conversion of the Earths naturally fertile grasslands and
forests into arid areas of land that eventually deteriorate into deserts. Humans are to blame for
their various developmental activities that are the real contributors to this phenomenon. These
activities include rapid deforestation, overgrazing, and the burning down of trees to clear land for
agricultural purposes. Years of such abuse has resulted in the changing of the world climate,
leading to desertification, an immense threat to the balance of nature which is essential for the
survival of mankind.
Don Marquis expresses the eradication of Earths resources in his poem written by
Archy in what the ants are saying. In this text, a cockroach writes about the imminent
obliteration that Earth will succumb to, unless a significant change is made. Archy admits his
sadness by writing of the abundant foliage that has deteriorated into barren desert lands due to
mans over-consumption of products. Marquis uses this unique stance to bring attention to the
rising issue of desertification. The author uses many appeals to logic and emotion in his poem.
Pathos can be detected through the tone of the language used to describe obliteration to Earths
lands. Marquis aims to connect his audience to the source of the problem by detailing to issues of
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desertification, and the lasting consequences that are inevitable to follow. By using the voice of
an innocent cockroach, he recognizes that our actions affect not only humanity, but also all other
inhabitants of this world. Marquiss insightful view of these different perspectives persuade his
audience to strive for conserving the natural resources of Earth, in an effort to better our planet
for all those living on it. However, instead of striving for the rejuvenation of nature, mankind has
taken advantage of its elements in pursuit of materialistic gains. After years of exploitation and
abuse of nature, we have been left with mere deserts in place of the greenery that once was.
Marquis makes his concerns more prevalent by adding many accounts of destruction caused by
humans. He consistently writes of the bountiful lands of Egypt, America, and Africa in which
humans have conquered and destroyed. By writing this column, Marquis pleads with humanity to
restore our planet to its original glory and prosperity. Marquis states that the greed of mankind
has robbed the soil and wasted nature, which incites the guilt we should feel for the wrongs
that have been committed to Earth (Marquis 236). While Marquis states many examples of
desertification to Earths landscapes, he reassures us that mankind still has the ability to restore
nature to its prior grandeur. By taking Archys warning and instilling a vision of reform, we may
undo the corruption of nature, and make the Earth whole again for all.
reduce the biological productivity of dryland ecosystems (Rafferty). For decades, Earth has
faced detrimental damage through loss of vegetation and incessant deforestation. This increase in
desertization has been caused by numerous exploitations of nature such as climate change,
unsustainable irrigation and over-consumption of natural resources. All over the world, land has
progressively become arid due to the depletion of natures greenery. The United Nations
Environment Program has classified desertification as the worlds leading crisis in ecological
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development as it has affected over 14 million square miles of Earths naturally vegetated areas.
Climate change has significantly increased the dehydration of grasslands and has led to long
periods of drought in countries such as Saudi Arabia and parts of Africa. As a result, more than
200 million people have suffered from the lasting effects of this environmental issue and
continue to seek refuge. Typically, these dry regions receive less than 50 inches of rainfall
annually. With increase in global warming, rainfall is even scarcer in areas that are limited in
supplies of water and the necessities of agriculture. This causes detrimental changes to Earths
(Rafferty). This is predominantly visible in the many terrains that are affected by this natural
disaster. Similar to Marquiss claims, this source verifies desertification to be a leading crisis that
Humans are directly responsible for the depletion of vegetation such as forests and
natural groves for their expansion purposes, thus inadvertently facilitating the erosion of fertile
soil. The forest trees and their roots ensure that nutrients are retained in the soil during rainfall.
By removing acres of such trees, the land is left exposed such that heavy rainfall causes water to
run-off, taking away with it vital elements that are required for healthy foliage. This leaves the
soil devoid of its otherwise natural fertility and gradually makes the land barren. This infertility
progressively expands to neighboring areas, eventually changing what would have otherwise
been a fertile piece land to desert. Desertification is also caused by mans incessant burning of
natural grasslands to clear land for agricultural fields. Canal irrigation, or other such inadequate
unsuitable for the growth of healthy crops and plants. However this degradation can be stabilized
when farmers plant perennials throughout their fields, as this would serve to reverse the soil
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runoff. Furthermore, increasing the population of plant species that are resistant to salinity and
drought aids in maintaining the fertility of the soil (Armani 66). This reduces the alkalinity of
the soil, thus helping the farmers grow better quality crops. This mutual interdependence benefits
the farmers by protecting their fields from desertification as well as maintaining the
One of the biggest contributors to desertification is the immense overgrazing that has
stripped fertile grasslands and left vast areas of land barren and treeless. Livestock grazing
causes two types of damage: one to the soil and the other to the vegetation. The animals damage
the soil that they walk over to replenish themselves by attaining water. The plants and roots on
the path that is taken by these animals get trampled and are thus destroyed over the years. This
causes the hardening and depletion of the topsoil, as farmers do not take appropriate measures in
making sure their livestock do not destroy the soil which is so vital to the growth of the grass.
This damage is further worsened by rainfall which causes water to run along these paths, and
wash away the fertile nutrients in it. When animals graze, they eat away the plants and remove
what is needed for photosynthesis, causing the plants to further deteriorate. The rapid increase in
world population has required a corresponding increase in the need for livestock. Man has
resorted to breeding livestock that in turn requires food. This need for food has resulted in
worldwide overgrazing which has also contributed vastly to the disappearance of fertile
grasslands which became pastures for animals and soon turned into arid and dry wastelands.
Incessant overgrazing has proven to be harmful for the environment through abundant loss of
biodiversity. This prediction was clearly made in what the ants are saying and continuously
Not only has overgrazing caused mass dehydration to grasslands, this agricultural
procedure has also led to the implementation of other degradation methods. This includes
policies leading to unsustainable resource use and lack of supportive infrastructure, causing
farmers to resort to land depletion (Green Facts). These land tenure practices allow farmers to
overexploit grassland resources which directly results in the depletion of nutrient rich soil needed
for grass to grow. These tactics are most commonly seen in herders who do not maintain security
on the land which they graze on. Because the land is not officially theirs, the farmers have no
incentives to sustain the land. This results in water scarcity, groundwater depletion, soil erosion,
and salinization caused by farmers who are not concerned with the fertility of these soils. Water
necessary topsoil while also removing the oxygen from the roots of the plants grown on such
drylands. This agricultural method also results in the buildup of excessive salts in soil, known as
desertification.
I strongly support the views and claims made by Don Marquis in his column, what the
ants are saying regarding the various risks posed by mans ever- increasing need for expansion
and industrialization. This need eventually leads to the eradication of forests and grasslands,
leaving a stark imbalance in nature and the environment. We need to raise world-wide awareness
to the increasing danger posed by this very prominent global issue. Desertification threatens to
destroy Earths ecological balance and causes adverse conditions to the healthy survival of
mankind.
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The subject that needs to be focused on to sustain our symbiotic relationship with nature
is how man is going prevent climate change, unsustainable irrigation methods, and rampant
overgrazing. Climate change and global warming have resulted from years of environmental
natural resources. We will need to reverse this damage by conserving, if not restoring our natural
resources that have been lost over the years. Unsustainable irrigation methods have led to the
depletion of vital nutrients from the soil, resulting in the transformation of fertile grasslands into
infertile, arid barren lands. We will need to rethink and implement irrigation strategies that are
more favorable to the ecosystem. Overgrazing has also caused years of damage that have
converted fertile, grassy areas to dry and desolate land. This needs to be reversed and accounted
The significance and the power of nature on mankind cannot be underestimated. If not
corrected and stopped immediately, the damage we have done so far to nature will be
reciprocated back to us in one way or another. Mans survival on Earth has been a form of
symbiosis, where each has benefitted from and given to the other. This needs to be maintained in
the same way going forward. Man cannot abuse this delicate balance without bearing the brunt of
it in very adverse ways. The effects of nature are incomparable to anything else that humanity
may ever experience. By understanding the risks that pose a threat to our survival as a
civilization, we can work to minimize and correct its damage. If we are able to restore this
balance and maintain it going forward, we can ensure our healthy survival on this planet for
generations to come.
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Works Cited
Arami, Seyed Abdolhossein and Ownegh, Majid. Assessment of Desertification Risk in Semi-
Abdi, Omar A., Glover Edinam K., Luukkanen, Olavi. Causes and Impacts of Land
Agriculture and Forestry, Vol. 3 No. 2, 2013, pp. 40-51. doi: 10.5923/j.ijaf.20130302.03.
Marquis, Don. what the ants are saying. American Earth, Ed. Bill McKibben, The Library of
Green Facts. Desertification. 4. What Are the Major Causes of Desertification?, Cogeneris,
2005, www.greenfacts.org/en/desertification/l-3/4-causes-desertification.htm#1p0.