In this book, Colin M. Turnbull describes his experiences living with the BaMbuti Pygmies in the Ituri Forest during the 1950s. The narrative explores the complex relationship between the Pygmies and African village farmers, highlighting the mutual benefits and the Pygmies' independence despite the villagers' beliefs of ownership. Turnbull delves into various aspects of Pygmy culture, including their traditional songs and music, kinship, law, economics, religion, and their deep identification with the forest. The book portrays a unique people living in harmony with nature, contrasting with the fears and practices of the villagers. Turnbull's account touches on sustainability, communal justice, and the Pygmies' reverence for the forest, which they consider their mother, father, and God[1][3][4].
Davi Kopenawa's "The Falling Sky" is a powerful and moving account of the Yanomami people's experience in the Amazon rainforest. Told through the voice of Davi Kopenawa, a Yanomami shaman, the book offers a unique perspective on the impact of colonization and globalization on indigenous communities. Kopenawa's narrative blends personal experiences with traditional Yanomami cosmology, providing insights into their worldview and their relationship with the forest. The book is a testament to the resilience and cultural richness of indigenous societies, while also serving as a critique of the destructive forces of modern civilization. It's a significant contribution to indigenous literature and a powerful call for environmental and social justice. The book's impact lies in its ability to convey the profound spiritual and ecological connection of the Yanomami to their ancestral lands.
James C. Scott's "The Art of Not Being Governed" explores the history and strategies of marginalized communities who have resisted state control. The book focuses on the Zomia region of Southeast Asia, a mountainous area where diverse ethnic groups have maintained their autonomy by evading state power. Scott examines how these communities have used their knowledge of the terrain and their social organization to resist state-led projects and maintain their independence. The book challenges conventional understandings of state power and highlights the resilience of marginalized communities in the face of oppression. Scott's work offers valuable insights into the dynamics of power, resistance, and state formation.
This book argues that the division of the brain into two hemispheres is essential to human existence, allowing for two incompatible versions of the world. The left hemisphere is detail-oriented, prefers mechanisms to living things, and is inclined to self-interest, while the right hemisphere has greater breadth, flexibility, and generosity. McGilchrist takes the reader on a journey through the history of Western culture, illustrating the tension between these two worlds as revealed in the thought and belief of thinkers and artists from ancient to modern times. He argues that the increasing dominance of the left hemisphere in today’s world has potentially disastrous consequences.
Published in 1988, this manual outlines the fundamental ethics, principles, and design strategies that form the core of permaculture philosophy. It covers design methodologies and strategies for both urban and rural applications, including property design, natural farming techniques, and discussions on various climatic factors, water management, soils, and more. The book emphasizes a holistic approach to sustainable living, ecological awareness, and regenerative design, making it a timeless resource for creating resilient and self-sufficient systems.
Arnold talks with David of Feun Foo Permaculture and Rewiliding and An Animist's Ramblings. An anarcho-primitivist, David has been making a case for expanding the cultures this political tendency uses as models for life outside civilization. Feun Foo is an experiment in adapting, to the modern context, practices of small-scale, forest-dwelling cultivation which have enabled a great diversity of societies—from highland Southeast Asia to the Amazon—to live in ecological equilibrium. An Animist's Ramblings is a blog which, among other things, advocates for taking political lessons from small-scale horticulturalists and delayed-return hunter-gatherers.
Primitivism has often faltered for its lack of clear answers to the question: “knowing what we know, how should we live?” David is helping to guide these politics into a more applied, experimental, and fluid manifestation. We speak of the multi-dimensional nature of domestication; the awe-inspiring visits of elephants to Feun Foo; the personality variation of chickens; the strange and varied diet one ends up adopting subsisting off the land; and the need for a unified sense of identity among those who have rejected the mechanistic worldview, regardless of precisely how that identity manifests politically.
Fight Like An Animal 
