I just finished reading Daniel Quinn's Ishmael this morning, for the third or fourth time. Prior to my first reading, in 1994, I had already learned a good deal about the problems of agriculture and civilization, so Ishmael didn't make my head explode. But when you're wandering far out on the wild frontier, and thinking far outside the box, it's reassuring to discover others on the same path. "Hey! I'm not crazy!" That's always a thrill.
Every time I read the book, I'm impressed by the depth of Quinn's knowledge and thinking. It's jam-packed with descriptions of many serious problems, yet it succeeds at remaining an inspiring piece of work. He doesn't serve us a complete collection of solutions, but he points us in the right direction, and describes the powerful monsters that we must confront and overcome. It's sort of like the course outline for Save the World 101.
Ishmael is over 20 years old now. Quinn finished it in 1990. In 1991, it won the Turner Tomorrow Fellowship. It was published in 1992. Amazon.com ranks the sales of every book it carries -- over three million titles now. I've been tracking the rankings for Ishmael over the years. It was #616 in 2002, #663 in 2007, and #1,507 in 2011 (rankings are updated daily, and these numbers are U.S. only). It is a tremendously successful book. I suspect that it might be the world's best-selling book on environmental issues, if Silent Spring doesn't hold that honor.
In 1994, I was on a quest to find the elusive silver bullet solution to the Earth Crisis. The problems were obvious, and so were the solutions, but humankind seemed not to care at all, and things were continuously getting worse. This was insane! I imagined that a brilliant remedy lie buried beneath a rock somewhere, and if I searched hard enough, I'd find it -- the Holy Grail.
Ishmael did not give me what I wanted, because what I wanted did not exist. In fact, the solution was far more complicated than simply buying "green" products, demanding government action, or rounding up and punishing eco-villains. The solution involved inspiring almost all of humankind to make radical changes in the way they think, breed, eat, work, travel, communicate, dress, and so on. It's not a trivial undertaking, by any means.
Quinn wrestled with this predicament for 13 years, as the process of creating Ishmael meandered through its various versions, in search of strength and coherence. Thankfully, he does not serve us magical thinking or false hope. He never suggests that the Technology Fairy will rescue us via astonishing miraculous inventions. Our only hope is to change minds. But, is this enough? "Of course it's not enough. But if you begin anywhere else, there's no hope at all." Before you can address behaviors, you must first address beliefs and values. Is it possible that changing minds can succeed in bringing humankind back into balance with the living planet? Well, it's as "improbable as hell but not unimaginable" -- the BS-free bottom line. Since we have nothing to lose, and nothing better to do with our lives, it's worth a try. Nothing is more embarrassing than self-extinction.
During Ishmael's 20 years on the planet, environmental awareness has grown exponentially. The class of 2011 is far better informed than my class of 1970, which was tragically swept away by the consumer stampede, devoting their entire lives to mindless hoarding. Ishmael first appeared when there were five billion in the world. Now, we're seven billion. Storm clouds are growing. The road ahead is flashing and rumbling with danger. Many believe that we're gradually moving closer to the mythical "tipping point," when ever-expanding human consciousness will make a sharp shift toward enlightenment and compassion, humankind will move into a bold new era, a beautiful paradise for all living things!
But it now seems likely that the tipping point lies on the other side of turbulent times, and that's OK. Seven billion people simply can't fit into paradise, even if we switch to LED lights, ride bicycles, and feast on tofu and bean sprouts three times a day. The path to a genuinely sustainable future must pass through the collapse of industrial civilization. There are no clever ways to sneak around this troublesome obstacle. Collapse is a necessary component of the healing process, and it will be a powerful force for changing minds. When the lights go out, we'll remember what really matters. We'll quickly develop a profound hunger to become intimately aware of the place where we live, and the edible opportunities that it offers.
On the other side of collapse we'll come to a crucial fork in the path. In the 10,000 year history of civilization, there have been many collapses. In almost every case, when a failed society arrived at this fork, they chose the path of repeated mistakes. It was easier. They already knew how to mine minerals, forests, soils, wildlife, and fisheries. So they regrouped, did it all over again, and suffered the same inevitable results. Their primary objective was to die of old age. The generations yet-to-be-born were on their own, to thrive or perish by the power of their wits. Good luck to ye!
In the coming years, we too will arrive at this important fork of destiny. Will we chose, once again, the well-worn path of repeated mistakes? We don't have to. Many of us now understand why that would be really dumb. Heck, it might actually be fun to try the other path for a change. Our descendants would be so grateful if we took bold steps and freed them from the dreaded curse.
Quinn exhibits great admiration for the few surviving tribes who continue to walk on the path of sustainability: "They're not seething with discontent and rebellion, not incessantly wrangling over what should be allowed and what forbidden, not forever accusing each other of not living the right way, not living in terror of each other, not going crazy because their lives seem empty and pointless, not having to stupefy themselves with drugs to get through the days, not inventing a new religion every week to give them something to hold on to, not forever searching for something to do or something to believe in that will make their lives worth living." Imagine that.
Richard Adrian Reese
Author of What Is Sustainable
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Popular Highlights in this book
“You’re captives of a civilizational system that more or less compels you to go on destroying the world in order to live.”Highlighted by 4,394 Kindle readers- First, they exterminate their competitors, which is something that never happens in the wild.Highlighted by 2,624 Kindle readers
- ‘Intensification of production to feed an increased population leads to a still greater increase in population.’Highlighted by 2,358 Kindle readers
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A fun philosophical book
Amazing read, the story is just white noise for the ideas laid out. I just really hate it when authors let their politics slip out in their work, right or left. His self-abasement is sprinkled across here and there, not enough to be annoying but noticeable enough to make you sigh.
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