Abolition of Man - CH. 3

“Man’s final conquest has proved to be the abolition of man” (64).
“Man’s conquest of Nature turns out, in the moment of its consummation, to be Nature’s conquest of Man” (68).

To commence his argument, Lewis introduces the commonly-used expression, ‘Man’s conquest of Nature’ and exemplifies how Man cannot conquer Nature. Lewis anticipates a possible counter argument that may falsely believe they hold a high power over Nature. An aeroplane, wireless, or contraceptives are all examples of things humanity has purchased and utilized leading them to believe they’ve established their own individual power over Nature. On the contrary, because these things can be withheld from some Men, “Man’s power over Nature turns out to be a power exercised by some men over other men with Nature as its instrument” (55). As time is examined, the later generations become weaker as a subject to the decisions of their predecessors. In the end, we realize the only way to conquer Nature is for man to conquer himself first, otherwise known as eradicating himself. After Man’s attempts to conquer Nature, Nature has demolished their existence. Men destroy themselves as Nature reduces them to an object. While Men try to control Nature, Nature continues to manipulate their actions and we ultimately lose the essence and the ability to see Nature for what it truly is. In the end, we actually lose a lot more than we originally set out to gain.