How did Stijn Streuvels portray nature in De Vlaschaard?

In his masterpiece De Vlaschaard (1907), Stijn Streuvels portrays nature as a primeval, overwhelming force. Rather than serving as a mere backdrop, the natural world acts as a dominant presence in which human characters are dwarfed.12

Streuvels describes this force with a visionary power that has been compared to the intensity of the painter Vincent van Gogh. Within the agrarian setting of southwestern Flanders, he depicts a world where farmers and farm workers engage in an obstinate struggle against both the land and their own destiny. His epic yet lyrical prose style effectively captures this atmospheric tension, establishing the rural landscape as a microcosm where the raw power of nature dictates the rhythm of human existence.12