"On a Monument to the Pigeon"

This essay was very interesting to read because this essay focuses on a monument in the state of Wisconsin. Anytime I read a piece of work that involves my home state I always get a feeling of pride in my gut. However, after reading Leopold's essay I felt a pit in my stomach start to grow. Leopold started his essay with the statement that the Passenger Pigeon species is extinct. He then bashes the newly erected monument by exclaiming that the monument symbolizes our sorrow. I couldn't help but ponder this statement. It made think about monuments as a whole. What do they represent? Do they honor or shame? In this case I agree with Leopold that the Passenger Pigeon monument is meant to shame. Leopold blames the extinction  on man but he does it with grace. Leopold turns to the Passenger Pigeon itself by talking about the freedom and elegance of the bird. He then says that the Passenger Pigeon will live on forever by not living at all. I thought that was a very powerful statement. It really makes the reader think about life as a whole. Leopold then goes on to talk about Darwin and his theory of evolution. I think that this was a smart mover rhetorically. To use Darwin is brining science and history together. Later in the essay Leopold talks about how tourists will see the monument and read the bronze plaque. But their thoughts, like the bronze pigeon, will have no wings. This was a very powerful moment in the essay. Leopold explains that the public will never know of the full truth of the passenger pigeon. Leopold ends the essay by talking about the resources that have come and gone and reappear over the years. He says that he wishes for man to ply our wings. This ends the essay with a call to man to step up. I loved the way he ended the essay.

Things that I noticed during the essay that made it unique was the word choice and tone. I thought Leopold placed an almost romantic tone when describing the passenger pigeons and there freedom. The word choice and phrasing used creates a beautiful picture of the pigeons and that is a very powerful rhetorical tool.