Words in the English language are usually made up of a root word, then prefixes and suffixes are added to expand their use and meaning.  The word “wilderness” is a strange word.  It has two suffixes in a row - “er” and “ness.”  No one knows why.

The suffix “er” means someone or something that performs or undergoes a particular action - like adjuster, or flyer.  The suffix “ness” means state, condition, degree, even a strip of land near water.  None of this helps us learn the meaning of the word “wilderness.”  “Wilderness” seems to be one of those words like “happiness” “worthiness” and “emptiness” that become more abstract concepts when the suffix “ness” is added.

“Wilderness” - in the public's perception - seems to have little to do with people.  Although the public's perception is that human actions toward "wilderness" are often harmful.  It’s only associated with people by the extension that people enter it and use it in various ways.  “They logged part of the (such and such) wilderness.”  “A child was lost in the (such and such) wilderness.”  "People hike and camp in the (such and such) wilderness."

The word “wild” - in itself - is very interesting and completely unwieldy.  What follows is just some of the uses, intended uses, and clearly stretched uses for the word "wild" (from Crossing Boundaries in Park Management: Proceedings of the 11th Conference on Research and Resource Management in Parks and on Public Lands, edited by David Harmon):

•  marked by extreme lack of restraint or control; "wild talk;" "wild parties."
•  in a natural state; not tamed or domesticated or cultivated; "wild geese;” "edible wild plants."
•  in a state of extreme emotion; "wild with anger;" "wild with grief."
•  deviating widely from an intended course; "a wild bullet;" "he threw a wild pitch."
•  violent: (of colors or sounds) intensely vivid or loud; "a violent clash of colors;" "her dress was a violent red;" "a violent noise;" "wild colors,” "wild shouts."
•  baseless: without a basis in reason or fact; "baseless gossip;" "the allegations proved groundless;" "idle fears;" "unfounded suspicions;" "unwarranted jealousy."
•  raving: talking or behaving irrationally; "a raving lunatic."
•  hazardous: involving risk or danger; "skydiving is a hazardous sport;" "extremely risky going out in the tide and fog;" "a wild financial scheme."
•  fantastic: extravagantly fanciful and unrealistic; foolish; "a fantastic idea of his own importance."
•  desert: located in a dismal or remote area; desolate; "a desert island;" "a godforsaken wilderness crossroads;" "a wild stretch of land;" "waste places" (unfortunately people take this literally).
•  crazy: intensely enthusiastic about or preoccupied with; "crazy about cars and racing."
•  barbarian: without civilizing influences; "barbarian invaders"; "barbaric practices;" "a savage people;" "fighting is     crude and uncivilized especially if the weapons are efficient" - Margaret Meade (anthropologist); "wild tribes."
•  a wild primitive state untouched by civilization; "he lived in the wild;" "they collected mushrooms in the wild."
•  rampantly: in an uncontrolled and rampant manner; "weeds grew rampantly around here."
•  angry: (of the elements) as if showing violent anger; "angry clouds on the horizon;" "furious winds;" "the raging sea."
•  in a wild or undomesticated manner; "growing wild"; "roaming wild"
•  wilderness: a wild and uninhabited area left in its natural condition; "it was a wilderness preserved for the hawks and mountaineers." 

Now when you use the word “wild” or “wilderness” - what are you trying to say?  Language fails us daily.  It fails to get us close to the meaning or meanings we’re trying to convey - to carry over.  So the media often uses images.  We see pictures of waterfalls, deer in a meadow, vast spaces of forest, etc., and the purpose is to convey the idea of “wilderness.”  In my experience, very little is conveyed.  There's a sort of "huh" that goes on in the mind, but not much more.  Conservationists tear their hair out trying to talk about “wilderness” issues - and fail.  So what are we to do?

Roderick Nash, whom I’ve written about in this blog, is a “wilderness” historian.  He says the word “wilderness” conveys both positive and negative connotations or meanings.  A “wilderness” can be at once inhospitable, alien, mysterious, and often threatening, as well as breathtakingly beautiful, friendly, and capable of ecstatic elevating and delightful experiences. 

Again, the definition of “wilderness” is too often vague.  The definition I like and the one I believe ALL of us should embrace and use - including the global media - comes from The Wilderness Act of 1964.  Some of the wording in the Act comes from the famous Wallace Stegner letter of 1960.  The Act defines “wilderness” this way: “A wilderness, in contrast with those areas where man and his own works dominate the landscape, is hereby recognized as an area where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain.”

Granted, much of the definition still seems abstract and contrary, lacks the blatant clarity we might all wish, but the key defining phrase of this definition is: “where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man...”  Simply put, man destroys the wild places.  Man is a waste maker extraordinaire.  I believe the only way we're going to make progress is to continue to suggest meanings for words that the public can accept and use - and then to continue to write about the issues.  At Ultralight Wilderness Toilet we go one step farther, we offer a personal toilet kit that fits in a backpack, is easy to use, and when enough people use it, they make a significant difference in the overall health of the wild places or "wilderness."

So what then is a marine wilderness?  In my next post I’ll probe that whole sphere of our environment and perhaps we can find some definition that makes sense and can be widely used in order to help preserve and protect the oceans.