Download The Spell of the Sensuous PDF

1997
Title The Spell of the Sensuous
Authors
Genres Philosophy Books Philosophy Of Mind Applied Ecology
Publisher Vintage Books
ISBN 9780679776390
Winner of the International Lannan Literary Award for Nonfiction Animal tracks, word magic, the speech of stones, the power of letters, and the taste of the wind all figure prominently in this intellectual tour de force that returns us to our senses and to the sensuous terrain that sustains us. This major work of ecological philosophy startles the senses out of habitual ways of perception. For a thousand generations, human beings viewed themselves as part of the wider community of nature, and they carried on active relationships not only with other people with other animals, plants, and natural objects (including mountains, rivers, winds, and weather patters) that we have only lately come to think of as "inanimate." How, then, did humans come to sever their ancient reciprocity with the natural world? What will it take for us to recover a sustaining relation with the breathing earth? In The Spell of the Sensuous David Abram draws on sources as diverse as the philosophy of Merleau-Ponty, Balinese shamanism, Apache storytelling, and his own experience as an accomplished sleight-of-hand of magician to reveal the subtle dependence of human cognition on the natural environment. He explores the character of perception and excavates the sensual foundations of language, which--even at its most abstract--echoes the calls and cries of the earth. On every page of this lyrical work, Abram weaves his arguments with a passion, a precision, and an intellectual daring that recall such writers as Loren Eisleley, Annie Dillard, and Barry Lopez.
More Books You May Like
ROMeANTICALLY CHALLENGED
ROMeANTICALLY CHALLENGED
Marina Adair

Amazon Best Romance of the Month Publishers Marketplace BuzzBooks: ROMANCE 2020-2021 pickFresh Fiction Fresh Pick "Fun...

Contagious: Why Things Catch On
Contagious: Why Things Catch On
Jonah Berger

The New York Times bestseller that explains why certain products and ideas become popular. “Jonah Berger knows more a...

Be the Serpent (October Daye #16)
Be the Serpent (October Daye #16)
Seanan McGuire

Now in hardcover, the sixteenth novel of the Hugo-nominated, New York Times-bestselling October Daye urban fantasy serie...

When Giants Walked the Earth
When Giants Walked the Earth
Mick Wall

Over ten years after WHEN GIANTS WALKED THE EARTH, Mick Wall's seminal biography of the band, comes this major and exten...

Unconventional Success by David F. Swensen
Unconventional Success by David F. Swensen
David F. Swensen

The bestselling author of Pioneering Portfolio Management, the definitive template for institutional fund management, re...