Megan Nisbet: Outside Reading #1

Moran, Jeffrey. "A Manufactured Wilderness: Summer Camp and the Shaping of American Youth, 1890-1960. Journal of Social History. 14.3. (2008): 787-89. ProQuest. CNU Library, Newport News, VA. April 30, 2008.

This journal article tells about the way that the structure of summer camps has changed over time. When summer camps were first introduced, they were meant to give children a "wilderness" experience, which was beginning to disappear during the late 1800s because of changing technology (nowhere near today, but people seemed to think they should start early). Now, however, summer camps are merely a way for parents to get rid of their children so that their children are being sent away to do the things they already do everyday, just more intensly. Summer camps are now places for children to intensely learn tennis, an instrument, or math. Rarely do children sit around a campfire, go hiking, and fishing at summer camp anymore.

I agree with this article--summer camp used to be a fun time when children got a little bit of a wilderness experience, and got away from the things they do everyday. Now, it's just more intense and they're away from their parents. I also agree with the article that the camps in the beginning weren't really wilderness camps in the first place. They contained sewage disposal, perfectly placed trash cans, and cabins that the children lived in instead of tents and tarps. If the goal was a real wilderness experience, the children should've camped in tents and backpacked through real wilderness without toilets and trash cans. Around the 1920's and later, the children could've hiked the Apalachian Trail for a few weeks, which would've given them a true wilderness experience.