Aside from presenting a detailed account of the life and land of the Mojave desert, each story and essay includes at least one of three themes: the supremacy and divinity of nature, the negative consequences of the disconnect between humans and nature, and the positive consequences of the harmony between humans and nature. Most chapters end with a direct moralizing paragraph emphasizing the theme, but several are less obvious and use allegories to illustrate the argument.
As the central character in the book, nature is personified and deified.[5] It is assigned agency—feelings and intentions—and autonomy from humans.[6] Compared to descriptions of humans, the hyperbolic descriptions of nature are dramatic and theatrical. All that is spiritual, supernatural, and divine is reflected or contained in it. Accordingly, nature is supreme and has higher purposes independent of humans. The spiritual truths and divine mysteries manifested and reflected in nature supersede any human equivalent.
Civilized humans are described in disparaging, condescending, or satiric ways. Their civilization does not better the world, but only disrupts the more divine processes and purposes of nature. Moreover, humans lose touch with their own instinctual knowledge, spirituality, and true purpose because of the disconnect with nature.
Primitive humans, or humans closer to nature and farther from the artifice of civilization, are glorified and idealized. The American Indians and the white people who commune with nature are described as genuine, dignified, virtuous, and holy. They accept their subordinate position to nature and the divine in the universe. As such, these people create communal towns that have cultural harmony and closeness to God and are free from crime and class distinctions.
The three themes culminate in the final chapter detailing the ideal earthy town created by primitive people. The reader is asked to abandon his or her modern life and live close to nature in order to experience peace, harmony, and divinity in this town that may not exist, suggesting that this renewed connection to nature will in fact come primarily via literature and the intellect.
