Synopses & Reviews
A surprising and enlightening investigation of how modern society is making nature sacred once again
For more than two centuries, Western cultures, as they became ever more industrialized, increasingly regarded the natural world as little more than a collection of useful raw resources. The folklore of powerful forest spirits and mountain demons was displaced by the practicalities of logging and strip-mining; the traditional rituals of hunting ceremonies gave way to the indiscriminate butchering of animals for meat markets. In the famous lament of Max Weber, our surroundings became "disenchanted," with natures magic swept away by secularization and rationalization.
But now, as acclaimed sociologist James William Gibson reveals in this insightful study, the culture of enchantment is making an astonishing comeback. From Greenpeace eco-warriors to evangelical Christians preaching "creation care" and geneticists who speak of human-animal kinship, Gibson finds a remarkably broad yearning for a spiritual reconnection to nature. As we grapple with increasingly dire environmental disasters, he points to this cultural shift as the last utopian dreamthe final hope for protecting the world that all of us must live in.
James William Gibson is the author of Warrior Dreams: Paramilitary Culture in Post-Vietnam America and The Perfect War: Technowar in Vietnam. A frequent contributor to the Los Angeles Times and the winner of multiple awards, including a Guggenheim Fellowship, Gibson is a professor of sociology at California State University, Long Beach. He lives in Los Angeles.
For more than two centuries, Western cultures, as they became ever more industrialized, increasingly regarded the natural world as little more than a collection of useful raw resources. The folklore of powerful forest spirits and mountain demons was displaced by the practicalities of logging and strip-mining; the traditional rituals of hunting ceremonies gave way to the indiscriminate butchering of animals for meat markets. In the famous lament of Max Weber, our surroundings became "disenchanted," with natures magic swept away by secularization and rationalization.
But now, as acclaimed sociologist James William Gibson reveals in this insightful study, the culture of enchantment is making an astonishing comeback. A Reenchanted World is a surprising and enlightening investigation of how modern society is making nature sacred once again. From Greenpeace eco-warriors to evangelical Christians preaching "creation care" and geneticists who speak of human-animal kinship, Gibson finds a remarkably broad yearning for a spiritual reconnection to nature. As we grapple with increasingly dire environmental disasters, he points to this cultural shift as the last utopian dreamthe final hope for protecting the world that all of us must live in. A Reenchanted World reveals the many ways in which our self-imposed exile from our original network of natural relationships is civilizations most disorienting misstep. Fortunately for us, James William Gibson gives us a compass back to that very sane, very grounded place. This is a wisely haunting, soulful book.”Carl Safina, author of Song for the Blue Ocean and Voyage of the Turtle Of all the holes in the human heart, perhaps none is bigger than the space once occupied by our connections to wild things and the rhythms of nature. A Reenchanted World reveals the many ways in which our self-imposed exile from our original network of natural relationships is civilizations most disorienting misstep. Fortunately for us, James William Gibson gives us a compass back to that very sane, very grounded place. This is a wisely haunting, soulful book.”Carl Safina, author of Song for the Blue Ocean and Voyage of the Turtle
A fast-paced and highly rewarding account of the struggle to realize a deeper consciousness of the human relationship with naturebefore it is too late.”James Gustave Speth, author of The Bridge at the Edge of the World: Capitalism, the Environment, and Crossing from Crisis to Sustainability
An important history of the reconnection with our animal origins. Gibsons charting of the slow, rocky road to human awareness of our place in the natural world is well worth reading.”Benjamin Kilham, author of Among the Bears: Raising Orphan Cubs in the Wild
Maybe just in time (and maybe not), we are rediscovering the world that we had buried under a mountain of abstractionseconomy, culture, faith. Our planet is actually at the heart of all of these, and thank heaven some are reaching back for that vestigial memory.”Bill McKibben, author of Deep Economy: The Wealth of Communities and the Durable Future
"Gibson examines the struggle to make nature sacred once again. The author envisions 'reenchantment' as a longing for connection to the natural world and the ability to 'rediscover and embrace nature's mystery and grandeur.' Gibson notes that mankind's heedless destruction of nature has been accepted since the death of many of the earth-worshipping religions. In pre-industrial times, the author writes, '[n]o one would cut down a grove of trees to build houses, for example, if forest spirits were believed to inhabit the woods.' With the rise of organized religion and industrialization, man's connection to the environment began to disintegrate. Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels were among the first to speak out about how factories and the newly modernized lifestyle was degrading nature. Engels wrote that the Irk River in Manchester, once pristine, was now 'a long string of the most disgusting, blackish-green, slime pools.' Ansel Adams and others used photography and other mediums to capture the astounding beauty of nature in hopes of inspiring its protection. A significant landmark came in 1962, with the publication Rachel Carson's breakthrough environmental book Silent Spring, which 'prompted others to take up the issue of pollution.' Gibson levels a particularly venomous attack on the George W. Bush administration for the utter environmental destruction it propagated during Bush's tenure in office. From moving to open national forests to timber harvesting and oil and gas drilling, to refusing to classify new endangered species and protect their dwindling habitats, the author notes that the Bush administration's 'all-out attack on the nation's public lands and environmental laws was unprecedented in its thoroughness and hostility.' Gibson ends on an upbeat note, as he points out new progress in fighting back against the damage caused in the past century and looks hopefully at the long journey ahead. Sad, illuminating and ultimately inspiring."Kirkus Reviews
"If todays environmental catastrophes are traceable to the loss of awe over lifes beauty, to the negation of what Gibson calls the 'culture of enchantment,' then will the 'reenchantment' of nature inspire us to reverse our marauding ways? New to environmentalism, Gibson articulates a fresh perspective in this brisk yet strongly stated, many-storied weave of history, psychology, spirituality, and hope. He looks to diverse writers intent on reawakening our appreciation for the living world and our kinship with other species. He charts the influence of Native American culture, assesses the profound impact of the first photographs of Earth from space, and tells heart-lifting tales of people whose passion for nature inspired them to protect endangered animals and places. But this is no starry-eyed, tree-hugging lovefest. Gibson unflinchingly explores the dark side of enchantment, the perverse fact that we destroy what we love, as he reports on the crushing environmental consequences of cruise ships, heavy car traffic in national parks, and exurban sprawl. Yet Gibsons central premise holds: the reenchantment of nature is essential to the sea change in perception and action necessary for us to save what is fast becoming a bankrupt planet."Booklist, (starred review)
"Since the industrial era, our connection with the environment has been one of utilitarianism and capitalist interests. Recently, however, the greening of our culture has been moving from society's fringes to become prominent. Gibson has deemed this renaissance of ecoworship 'reenchantment'where humans once again recognize their spiritual and emotional connections with nature. His own sense of reenchantment palpable, Gibson details each of the major American connections with the earth. Spanning from Native American lore to the Gaia hypothesis of the 1970s and on to today, he weaves the work of the most prominent writers in the field of earth sciences with the artistic works of poets, photographers, and songwriters. Gibson's synthesis of the green movement's varied components offers an insightful new perspective on the modern-day reenchantment with our planet. Lengthy endnotes provide an excellent resource for more information. Highly recommended for academic libraries and larger public libraries."Jaime Hammond, Library Journal
"According to Gibson, 'No political movement [in the last two decades] . . . can account for the intensity of feeling expressed by those . . . who experience an attachment to animals and places so overwhelming that they feel morally compelled to protect them, and who look to nature for psychic regeneration and renewal.' He follows the thread of the 'recently recovered tradition of Native American spiritualism' and historical figures who rejected a mechanical view of modernismHenry David Thoreau, Herman Melville, John Muir, Rachel Carsonarguing that 'out of these shards of history came the new culture of enchantment' and a paradigm that stresses a relationship with rather than dominion over other species. The rise of the 'reenchantment of nature' is not all sweetness and light; Gibson notes the ecological damage caused by enthusiastic nature tourists and evangelicals' backlash against 'nature worship' as idolatry. But the book's message is passionately optimistic. Gibson believes that the cultural transformation gathering momentum and 'coupled with political courage to act' can 'remake the world.'"Publishers Weekly
Review
“Of all the holes in the human heart, perhaps none is bigger than the space once occupied by our connections to wild things and the rhythms of nature.
A Reenchanted World reveals the many ways in which our self-imposed exile from our original network of natural relationships is civilizations most disorienting misstep. Fortunately for us, James William Gibson gives us a compass back to that very sane, very grounded place. This is a wisely haunting, soulful book.”
—Carl Safina, author of Song for the Blue Ocean and Voyage of the Turtle “A fast-paced and highly rewarding account of the struggle to realize a deeper consciousness of the human relationship with nature—before it is too late.”
—James Gustave Speth, author of The Bridge at the Edge of the World: Capitalism, the Environment, and Crossing from Crisis to Sustainability “An important history of the reconnection with our animal origins. Gibsons charting of the slow, rocky road to human awareness of our place in the natural world is well worth reading.”
—Benjamin Kilham, author of Among the Bears: Raising Orphan Cubs in the Wild “Maybe just in time (and maybe not), we are rediscovering the world that we had buried under a mountain of abstractions—‘economy, ‘culture, ‘faith. Our planet is actually at the heart of all of these, and thank heaven some are reaching back for that vestigial memory.”
—Bill McKibben, author of Deep Economy: The Wealth of Communities and the Durable Future
Synopsis
“A fast-paced and highly rewarding account of the struggle to realize a deeper consciousness of the human relationship with nature—before it is too late.”—James Gustave SpethFor more than two centuries, as Western cultures became ever more industrialized, the natural world was increasingly regarded as little more than a collection of useful raw resources. The folklore of powerful forest spirits was displaced by the practicalities of logging; the traditional rituals of hunting ceremonies gave way to indiscriminate butchering of animals for meat markets. In the famous lament of Max Weber, our surroundings became “disenchanted,” with natures magic swept away by secularization and rationalization.
But as acclaimed sociologist James William Gibson reveals in this insightful study, the culture of enchantment is making an astonishing comeback. From Greenpeace eco-warriors to evangelical Christians preaching “creation care” and geneticists who speak of human-animal kinship, Gibson finds a remarkably broad yearning for a spiritual reconnection to nature. As we grapple with increasingly dire environmental disasters, Gibson points to this cultural shift as the last utopian dream, the final hope for protecting the world that all of us must live in.
Synopsis
In a surprising and enlightening investigation of modern society's rediscovery of the sacred in nature, an acclaimed sociologist reveals that the culture of enchantment is making an astonishing comeback.
About the Author
James William Gibson is the author of Warrior Dreams: Paramilitary Culture in Post-Vietnam America and The Perfect War: Technowar in Vietnam. A frequent contributor to the Los Angeles Times and the winner of multiple awards, including a Guggenheim Fellowship, Gibson is a professor of sociology at California State University, Long Beach. He lives in Los Angeles.