2 Comments
User's avatar
Susan Harley's avatar

Really interesting insights, that I also observe in the UK.

I thought Wilding was something you did in Nature to re wild yourself etc

Had no idea of the other connotations.

Expand full comment
Carri Munn's avatar

I'm glad to read that you're making a distinction! This use of wilding is troubling to me in the way that it boxes meaning into a space that is so far from the self-organizing, deeply interconnected ecological intelligence of the wild eros of life that I meet in a tender, humble, and respectful way in the wilderness and beyond. From the old Papal decrees that led to manifest destiny by declaring what was wild to be unproductive and a reason to "claim" land, to the use of this term to describe anti-social behavior that doesn't respond to authority or cultural narratives of control, the colonizer mindset permeates the dialogue in ways that feel both sad and distancing from our true nature.

Expand full comment