My Name is Chellis and I'm in Recovery from Western Civilization

My Name is Chellis and I'm in Recovery from Western Civilization

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Manufacturer: New Catalyst Books
Author: Chellis Glendinning
Binding: Paperback
Publication Date: 2007-08-01
Publisher: New Catalyst Books
Label: New Catalyst Books
Number Of Pages: 260
Features:

Editorial Review:
When it came out in 1994, My Name is Chellis and I'm in Recovery from Western Civilization quickly became a classic of the ecopsychology movement. It is a book about roots which reach back millennia to a time when humans lived in and honored the natural world. By documenting the entanglement of the ecological crisis with modern addictions, the book gives an unusual glimpse into matters of culture, history, politics, and personal consciousness; and by helping us make sense of the senseless abuses in the world today, it inspires the remembrance of new/old pathways towards healing.
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Customer Reviews
Average Customer Rating:

Understanding this book changes lives.

2008-04-26
I read this book in '94 or '95 and it has been one of my top recommendations ever since. This is a book for real people looking for reasonable perspective on how our current snapshot of cultural evolution fits into the grand scheme. My outlook on life is that its all related. Chellis reinforced this for me even though I don't subscribe to her complete framework. I do appreciate the connections she makes to actions and consequences.

It has been a long time since I read this so I can't comment on many details even though I still regard this book as having a significant impact on how I have dealt with the world over the past decade. Not only do actions have consequences but as Richard Weaver wrote so long ago, Ideas Have Consequences too. Chellis does a great job of showing how all off this fits together for her.

If you are more interested in how people think rather than whether they agree with you or you with them, this is a great conversation piece...if you can find others who have read it.

Jahfre Fire Eater

Reconnecting with the real

2007-11-27
Those familiar with the recovery movement will instantly connect with the thrust of Glendinning's work. She has looked at the loss of connectedness humans endured in shifting from nature-based, hunter/gatherer cultures to agro-industrial life, and found that the symptoms mirror post-traumatic stress. Using anthropological studies and the stories of surviving nature-based groups, Glendinning makes a strong case that we are cut off from the "primal matrix" in which we lived for 35,000 generations before the rise of agriculture. That primal matrix embedded us in oneness with the earth, a sense of place, links to community, and an encompassing spirituality which we lost when we decided that humans were separate from nature. This book makes an excellent companion to Clive Ponting's A GREEN HISTORY OF THE WORLD (St. Martin's Press, 1991), which explores the ecological damage which necessarily followed agriculture around the globe -- now compounded by the waste of industrial civilization. Glendinning's work is part of the relatively new field of eco-psychology, and is a thoughtful introduction to the idea that our behaviour and discontents are closely bound to our environment. (Should this surprise us?)

An Oracle for our time

2007-11-21
When I was 4 years old I ran away from school. It was a cold, rainy day and I'd been herded into a large barn filled with noisy children for lunch. I looked around and saw nothing to soothe my feelings of emptiness. I wanted to go home. Escape filled my mind and drove me to run out of the school and to try to get as far away as I could from my misery. Feelings of alienation, lonliness, and despair have pursued me ever since. I've spent a lifetime alternately trying to either escape or understand my feelings, but I've never been able to adjust. Chellis' has put the missing pieces togther for me, her writing is truly revelatory. She brings together a thesis which is not only intellectually stunning but emotionally and spiritually remarkable. I have to admit that while reading her words I was confronted and challenged. I've been in denial, not wanting to face the consequences of my mindless participation in the spoils of western civilisation. I remain grateful for Chellis' great effort and insights and would like to recommend her book to anyone who is serious about evaluating the real effect of our culture and ways on each other, wildlife and the planet. The book is a testament to her consciousness, loving kindness and integrity.

Victimization of America

2007-06-05
Totally useless concept.. nowadays, everyone is a victim of something or other... don't waste your time with this book.

Open Minds need cultivation

2006-12-29
I read this book many years ago, and it transformed my understanding of the world. It is a difficult book to read since it defies some basic assumptions about good and bad in civilizations. However, reading "My name is Chellis" (in 1999) gave me a framework for comprehending some of the chaos of the modern world that stays with me today.

I noticed a few negative reviews of this book on Amazon. Many of them disagree with the title or the general premise, so I must point out that even if you are in this camp, it is healthy to expose yourself to ideas and information that you would not typically come across. This is exactly such a book. Chellis lives an unusual life, and she has wisdom to share from it. You don't have to agree with everything she rights to read her book and critique it with an open mind.

To be fair, I seem to remember that it did become difficult to finish this book because the subject matter can be very depressing after multiple chapters. You may just want to read the first half and then the last chapter, which I remember has some positive ideas for moving forward.

I also spent many months living on a native reservation four years after reading this book. I think the next time that I read it, I will approach the book with a greater critical eye of potential over-romanticizing of current-day and historical native life.

Even so, I look forward to reading this book again. It may not move me as deeply the second time around, but I know I need a re-fresher, a new perspective every now and then. This is one.

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