Free Essay Sample. Mark Arax and D.J Waldie's: The History of California

What Does Arax's Study Tell Us about Consolidation in California Agriculture and the History of Water Use in the State?

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Order now

California in the 1880s was presented with the option of mining gold or mining the soil. Mining for gold polluted the environment as it affected the rivers and the farmland. On the other hand, mining the soil involved in planting different crops. The decision was made to practice farming, and the shareholders planted wheat. The monoculture of wheat reduced the fertility of the soil, resulting in the need to develop a special soil climate. As such, the majority of the farmers opted to plant special crops such as fruits, nuts, and vegetables. However, the success of this farming technique was reduced by extensive droughts that affected California.

The resilience and creativity of the people led to the invention of the turbine pump that channeled water from the alluvial plain of the rivers and into remote aquifers on marginal ground. This action further led to the development of farmlands as the instances of drought were reduced, and farms flourished. However, the farmlands were still vulnerable to violent swings of weather that resulted in situations such as wildfires. As such, the author urged the readers to incorporate climate change into human nature to improve outcomes. Furthermore, the expansion of technology advanced the footprint of agriculture to the extent that agriculture fully relied on technology. Some of the technological advancements in agriculture included digging canals and tapping into the flow of rivers as well as sinking the ground using pumps to draw up the water.

The most significant technological advancement is the invention of drip irrigation, which was intended to save water as it releases water in portioned drips and sprays. Drip irrigation has significantly facilitated the development of farms on lands that were previously considered as wastelands. Furthermore, drip irrigation promoted farming on hills where furrow irrigation was not possible.

What Conclusions Might You Draw from this Study?

This study focuses on the history told through management of water in California. The book has numerous autobiographical elements complemented by social commentaries. The study provides the reader with a memorable cast of characters over several spread-out episodes. Furthermore, the study creates the author's perception of California as a whole. The author presents California as a form of the American Dream. The writer also presents it in the form of a rich land that’s identified as a land of prosperity for Americans or anyone who is seeking prosperity.

What Surprises Did You Find?

A unique surprise is the main focus of the book. The study forces the reader to take a long hard look at the past of California as a whole. Furthermore, the author presents struggles that are continuously present in the headlines. The author further poses questions that uncomfortably reflect the ongoing debates about current issues that revolve around water politics. Furthermore, the author does not shy away from his queries. His first awareness of California water was peripheral to some other part of everyday life like most people. His grandmother made the younger version of the author to promise that he will never play near irrigation ditches that crossed the Fresno.

Another surprise is that the author can rearrange his childhood through a twisted kaleidoscope such that when they are identified, they illustrate the powers that control the flow of California water. It is as if his education of California water revealed a secret that changed the author's perception of his family's history. The author then uses the reshaped history to guide the reader into accepting that history includes everyone as it trickles into the present issues.

Prompt B

California has been known to be the foreground of numerous discoveries that have spread to other parts of the country. The severe droughts that have hit California have led to the invention of different water conservation and irrigation plans that were later incorporated in the other parts of the country. As California continues to develop, it puts more pressure on the other parts of the country to develop. As such, developments first start in California before spreading to other parts of the country. For instance, California, due to advanced irrigation projects, developed huge agricultural businesses that then spread to other areas of the country.

There is comfort in recurrent patterns that others may criticize as standardization. The author also noted that the grid design of standardization is ever-present throughout history which indicates that suburbs are often the basis of initiating plans. Therefore, in this situation, it is possible that the activities that occur in California often spread to other parts of the country. The grid pattern incorporates the good, bad, comforting, restrictive, and liberating aspects of people's lives and manifests itself in a repetitive pattern instead of containing them in a specific location. The author also explains that the grid can be used to explain the deep stories that are intertwined with national, regional as well as international histories. For example, California's hydraulic civilization can be identified as a pattern for the rest of the arid west, as well as a pattern for the gradual privatization for water in lots of other parts of the country.

Those in disagreement with this notion may claim that suburbs limit the development of other areas by promoting isolation of the area from the outside world, which may limit the development of both the individual and the other areas. However, this statement might not be accurate as individuals from the suburbs are allowed to travel and interact with individuals from other areas. Furthermore, people in the suburbs are primarily responsible for spreading some features to other areas. For instance, if a family residing in California suburbs is used to practice a certain activity, and one member relocates to another area, the member will most likely apply the same activity in the new location, which may be adopted by the people within the new area. As such, the activity will spread to new places in California.

Critics of this notion may claim that activities in California cannot spread to other parts of the country due to differences in perception and opinion of the different areas. However, the notion may not be accurate as positive attitudes and activities from California are more likely to spread to other areas as compared to negative attributes. For instance, Waldie's mother, who lived in Lakewood, was dissatisfied and often isolated since women in the location stayed at home while the men worked. However, a woman living in Manhattan may not desire Waldie's mother's life. However, the significant agricultural development in California eventually spread to other parts of the country due to the positive impact of the development practices.

California has undergone significant adjustments regarding economic activities that have changed from mining gold to successful farming of fruits, nuts, and vegetables. This success attracted individuals from different areas to study and experience California's successful agricultural technique. From this, technological agriculture spread to other areas to bust the farming situation of the different locations within the United States. As such, California became the basis for scientific farming practices. Just like other areas, California has its oddities that cannot be spread to other areas. For instance, the issue of water shortage often affects the area.

Moreover, other issues may include the extreme level of satisfaction where individuals are not willing to love new areas even though California was identified as a wasteland. As such, California attracts numerous people to experience and share in its developments. This promotes the spread of ideas from California to other places.

In conclusion, I agree with the notion that what happens first in California eventually spreads to the rest of the country. California has been a significant location as it has advanced from being an area that was identified as a wasteland to being identified as an agricultural area that grew crops such as fruits, nuts, and vegetables. Additionally, inventions such as drip irrigation attempted to reduce the wastage of water while at the same time supplying water for farming to farms where other forms of irrigation were not possible. These ideas eventually spread to other areas. Additionally, the nature of individuals to find comfort in recurrent patterns facilitates the spread of ideas from California to other areas. Therefore, it is clear that there is a higher chance that whatever occurs first in California will eventually spread to the rest of the country.