The following is a lament for the disappearnce of wildness which, even more than the disappearance of wilderness, may be bankrupting the Earth and its populations with a source of resourcefulness, strength, and vitality. Even bears are growing lazy, as well as obese, on foods scavanged from dumpsters.

Here is a tale of lost wildness:

In 1797, a boy about the age of twelve was found naked and alone in the woods around Aveyron, France. He apparently had never before been in the company of humans. He was captured twice because he managed to escape the kindly ministrations of Pierre Joseph Bonnaterre, a local abbot and biology professor who took him in as a case study. Later, Jean Marc Itard, a medical student, devoted himself to civilizing the wild boy. The story inspired a remarkable film by Francois Truffault called Wild Child, 1976. 

The terror that gripped the lad suffuses the film with heart-stopping drama. Comparable terror engulfs civilized people when they venture into the wilderness. However, the wild boy’s terror was caused by all their comforts and delights - interior spaces, mandolin music, language, etc. The wild boy’s pleasures originated in their aversions - such as romping naked in the snow. His joyful abandonment contrasts with Itard’s persistent attempts to help this child claim his humanness. 

The first sign of the boy’s entry into civilization is, significantly, also the first sign of the boy’s weakness and discomfort. This triumphant transformation took the form of a shiver. For the first time the wild boy felt cold. He reached for a cloth and wrapped it around his body. He sought clothing and shelter! 

Are we humans made weak by our own cleverness? Are we inflicting weakness on Earth's other creatures?

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