The Secret River

In Reading the River, Mark Twain begins by stating that the Mississippi river “had a new story to tell every day,” implying both the extensive beauty and the possibility of a variety of perspectives on the river. Mark Twain, born Samuel L. Clemens, spent much of his life as a riverboat pilot. This occupation inspired his pen name, a leadsman term for the depth at which it was safe to pilot a steamboat. Through many years of experience, he became an expert at navigating the treacherous course of…

time. Should they really be free or not? Twain represents the topic of Freedom through the Mississippi River but also symbolizes the confusion Huck feels about helping Jim gain this freedom through the white fog. Twain also symbolizes the mob mentality going on at this time through Col. Sherburn and the lynching mob. One of the biggest symbols for freedom in Huckleberry Finn is the Mississippi River. Before embarking on his journey, Huck begins to feel the confinement of society both…

farming and timber practices had caused topsoil to be swept down the river and into the Gulf of Mexico leading to catastrophic floods and impoverishing farmers. I especially love the buildup, using the imagery of small trickles of water that became creeks and brooks that became tributary to other rivers that became the Mississippi. In cinematic fashion the filmmakers are painting a picture for us in which they depict all of the rivers that run into the Mississippi to look like blood vessels.…

the metaphor of mohonas to bring together rivers of language: …the mudbanks of the tide country are shaped not only by rivers of silt, but also by rivers of language: Bengali, English, Arabic, Hindi, Arakanese and who knows what else? Flowing into each other they create a proliferation of small worlds that hang suspended in the flow. And so it dawned on me: the tide country’s faith is something like one of its great mohonas, a meeting not just of many rivers, but a circular round about people…

fluctuations in river flow or demand for water, raising the water level so that the water can be directed to flow into a canal to generate electricity, control flooding, and provide water for agriculture, households and industries (Silvia, 1991). With an increase in demand for cleaner sources of energy, many countries have turned to damming as a solution. The Southeast Asian countries that the Mekong river flows through have recently become increasingly interested in damming the Mekong river.…

amidst the beauty of the nature. Whether you are an adventure lover or an adrenaline junkie, there is nothing more satisfying than hitting the water on your kayak. With hundreds of miles of designated areas covered with stunning lakes and Wild, Scenic Rivers on the National Forests of USA, there are enough and more places where you can indulge in ultimate Kayak/ Paddling experience. If you’ve been wondering which spots to choose though, here is the comprehensive list of the best spots to…

The Mississippi River is an important river system that allows the transport of goods into the United States. One of the main problems of the Mississippi River is that it is a meandering river, meaning that its river course is constantly bending, allowing it to change course at several instances throughout time. The rates of meandering can be seen using the Google Earth-based GIS program by overlaying old maps of the Mississippi River onto the current map seen on Google Earth. These meandering…

peace through numerous years of concentrating on the river. Siddhartha communicates a desire to learn from the river too, and Vasudeva consents to give Siddhartha a chance to live and work alongside him. Siddhartha concentrates on the river and starts to take from it a spiritual enlightenment not at all like any he has ever known. Siddhartha studies the river for many years, and Vasudeva teaches him how to learn the secrets of the river. With the river as his spiritual guide, Siddhartha…

Kevin Fedarko’s The Emerald Mile takes readers on a journey through the Grand Canyon behind the eyes of boat guides, who all seem to have a special connection to the canyon and the river. The boatmen in the book are used to convey a message that there is so much beauty to be seen in the canyon. The characters Martin Litton and Kenton Grua are examples of boatmen that share a special connection with the canyon because of the canyon’s beauty. When humans began building dams and using technology to…

Great Mississippi flood of 1927 the author, John M. Barry communicates his fascination of the river. He began to mention the unique characteristics of the river. “The river’s characteristics represents an extraordinary combination of turbulent effects, and river hydraulics quickly beyond the merely complex” Barry quote a physicist about the astonishing quality of the relatively and turbulence of the river. He intends to convince the audience that not even an expert can explain its uniqueness…