208 ❯ STEP 5. Build Your Test-Taking Confidence
345Enlightenment, natural philosopher Francis Bacon dev eloped the scientific method as
a set process which experiments ought to follow. His methodology has been adhered
to since then in experimentation throughout the world. Using this method, Benjamin
Franklin experimented with a kite in a storm and discovered electricity. Other
thinkers utilized Franklin’s findings and developed ways to use new energy sources.
One concept has led to another and another, eventually arriving at our highly evolved
world today.
These advances serve to benefit man’s survival, which is why Stegner sees
humans as heading for a man-controlled environment. To relieve nature-related
hardships, man seeks ways to make things more comfortable for himself. For instance,
air- conditioning was invented to control temperature. Another example of man
controlling his environment can be found in the area of transportation: automobiles,
trains, airplanes, ships, etc. Man is naturally slow, and to adapt himself to the large
world, he creates machines to do the transporting. All of the inventions in the world
today demonstrate attempts mankind has made in order to survive and to make life
more “livable,” and in these efforts, man controls nature.
Though Stegner’s case that humanity’s focus on dominating their environment can
be defended, his idea that people ignore the need to rest for reflection is erroneous. While
scientific and technological advancement is a commanding aspect of humankind, it is
not as if history, art and culture do not exist. These facets of human society contribute to
introspection. We create art to express modes of self-examination. Musicians, painters,
sculptors, poets, and other artists concentrate on reflecting about man and his world.
We study history as a method of introspection, and, in so doing, we essentially examine
our past and reflect on it. There exist in this world goals other than the desire to control
nature with technology. Humans are not “committed wholly, without chance for even
momentary reflection and rest,” to dominate the globe.
While Stegner’s concept of humanity’s desire to attain dominance over nature
contains truth, his notion that people do not focus on anything else is false. Yes, humans
do possess the tendency to explore and conquer. However, humans do not exclude all else
in life. We are not always in pursuit of scientific and technological accomplishment. We
are also seekers of cultural, artistic and philosophical achievement.