Elizabeth Watkins - Making Nature Sacred

On pages 18 and 19, John Gatta includes William Bradford’s account of a “Hideous and Desolate Land”. Gatta remarks how Bradford has a “distrust” of American landscape. He says that this can be understood because of the circumstances at the time. What I do not understand is how Bradford can call any landscape hideous. I understand that wilderness can be desolate. But isn’t there still a beauty about being so desolate? Think of a picture of a desert with a single cactus off to one side. Is that desolate and barren landscape not beautiful? I feel that anyone can appreciate all types of landscapes. I find it interesting that Gatta gives Bradford an excuse for how he writes about the land. You would think that usually people who experience things for the first time are more open to the differences of that place. I would think that Bradford would have really looked at the environment in a more positive way.