For Rip Van Winkle, nature offers Rip a sense of freedom. Early in the story, he desires to leave his nagging wife and all the difficulties of modern, industrialized life behind. By escaping into the woods and living in nature, he feels he will be able to leave freely in solitude and peace. Nature, then, serves as a place where Rip can find harmony and personal satisfaction.
Answer:
Farmers in the Middle Colonies were the most prosperious of all. They grew wheat, barley, oats, rye, and corn. The Middle Colonies were often called the "breadbasket" because they grew so much food. Wheat could be ground to make flour, and both wheat and flour could be sold in other colonies or in Europe.
After Stalin died in 1953, the number of people sent to the gulag "<span>c. decreased dramatically," since Stalin was a primary proponent of sending political dissenters, any anyone he felt threatened by to the Gulag as punishment. </span>