Considering the essence of art and literature, it is possible to say, that there is no objective reality in art, and even the most realistic description is in effect a look through the prism of the author’s view. That is why describing space is a rather difficult and fascinating task for a writer: not only does the author describe the place in a beautiful and precise manner; he puts much more into his narration, revealing his ideas and his view of life. The ideas of two outstanding essays considered below are rather consonant, that is why it is interesting to compare and contrast them. The first chapter of her Out of Africa , called The Ngong Farm , has become a certain etalon in travel writing and in describing space. By means of words, Isak Dinesen manages to draw an eloquent depiction of the wonderful landscape she enjoyed in Africa. The first phrase of the chapter, “I had a farm in Africa, at the foot of the Ngong Hill” (Dinesen 3), has become famous and is often cited; these words are simple and pure, and they create the atmosphere of genuineness and slight nostalgia. The author depicts the place where the time has stopped, the space is boundless, and one can feel dissolved in the air. By means of a few big strokes she describes the endless lands around her: the Equator runs through the place on the height of six thousand feet, and “the views are immensely wide” (4). The author pays much attention to describing the landscapes palette: she talks about “dry and burnt” colors (3), comparing them to the colors in pottery, and a sky, which is “rarely more than pale blue or violet” (4). The beauty of the landscape seems modest, calm, and a bit tires of the exhausting African heat. The difference between the Ngong farm and the city felt by the author consists not in the look of the soil and the plants itself; the deserted place in Africa seems to have kept the ancient wise spirit, which inspires not to hurry, live a measured life and enjoy its every moment. Even the depiction of a continuous coffee planting process strengthens the essay’s contemplative spirit: you wait for four or five years until the tree is bearing, and during this time you enjoy observing this process which brings many “times of great beauty” (8). It does not matter for the stones or the sky above, whether it is an ancient time, or the dynamic XXI century: the Ngong farm is the place where “everything that you saw made for greatness and freedom, and unequalled nobility”, says Dinesen (4). After reading this fascinating description about a wild place far from civilization, Edward Hoagland’s Thoughts on Returning to the City (Hoagland 11) seems to be a certain extension of Dinesen’s idea about the contemplative spirit which is still present in some remote oases of calmness. At the same time, while Dinesen focuses on nature and provides modest, but picturesque description, Hoagland depicts the country spirit by means of his philosophical observation of life in the countryside. His main device when expressing his idea is bringing bright contrasts: rich country nature opposes to New York with its “one patch of green in the street” and “a basket of avocados in the door of Shanvilla Grocery”; the