پرواز از Grace: تاریخ فرهنگی انسان‌ها و پرندگان

An examination of the human shift from worship and reverence of nature to open attack on the very environment in which we must live. Suggesting that the replacement of an animistic worldview with a mechanistic one has led humans to deny their animality, __Flight from Grace__ calls on readers to appreciate how our past relationship with birds might help transform our current relationship with nature. "Human animals are despoiling nature and causing a sixth extinction on Earth. Our natural environment is being compromised, and birds and other animals are disappearing at an alarming rate. Flight from Grace does not so much reveal the extent of the damage as ask and answer the perplexing question: why? This book traces human reverence for birds and nature from the Stone Age and the New Stone Age, through the cultures of Mesopotamia, Egypt, Peru, and Greece and through biblical traditions, up to its vestiges in the present. Richard Pope takes a hard look at Judaeo-Christian and ancient Greek thought to demonstrate how the emergence of anthropocentrism and belittling of nature led to our present-day ecological dilemma. Striking images of cultural artifacts--many little-known--together with extensive discussion of art, music, literature, and religion illustrate the paradox in our contemporary relationship to the natural world. Humanity, in moving from its paleolithic origins to modern times, has simultaneously distanced itself from and disenchanted nature. Suggesting that the replacement of an animistic worldview with a mechanistic one has led humans to deny their animality, Flight from Grace calls on readers to appreciate how our past relationship with birds might help transform our current relationship with nature."-- Provided by publisher Human animals are despoiling nature and causing a sixth extinction on Earth. Our natural environment is being compromised, and birds and other animals are disappearing at an alarming rate. Flight from Grace does not so much reveal the extent of the damage as ask and answer the perplexing question: why? This book traces human reverence for birds from the Stone Age and the New Stone Age, through the cultures of Mesopotamia, Egypt, Peru, and Greece and through biblical traditions, up to its vestiges in the present. Richard Pope takes a hard look at Judaeo-Christian and ancient Greek thought to demonstrate how the emergence of anthropocentrism and belittling of nature led to our present-day ecological dilemma. Striking images of cultural artifacts — many little-known — together with extensive discussion of art, music, literature, and religion illustrate the paradox in our contemporary relationship to the natural world. Humanity, in moving from its paleolithic origins to modern times, has simultaneously distanced itself from and disenchanted nature. Suggesting that the replacement of an animistic worldview with a mechanistic one has led humans to deny their animality, Flight from Grace calls on readers to appreciate how our past relationship with birds might help transform our current relationship with nature. Cover 1 FLIGHT FROM GRACE 2 Title 4 Copyright 5 Dedication 6 CONTENTS 8 Preface 10 Acknowledgments 14 PART ONE | SACRED BIRDS 18 1 Divine Implications: Telltale Evidence 20 2 Animism and the Sacred 33 3 Birds in Palaeolithic Cave Wall Art 40 4 Birds in Palaeolithic Portable Art 58 5 Birds in Neolithic Art: Anatolia, Iraq, Syria, and Europe 68 6 Sacred Birds of Mesopotamia and Egypt 90 7 Sacred Birds of Peru 115 8 Sacred Birds of Greece and the Judeo-Christian World 125 PART TWO | THE IMITATION OF BIRDS 150 9 Gods as Birds: The Magic of Flight 152 10 Sacred Music: The Ecstasy of Birdsong 181 11 Birds Betrayed: Sapiens at Its Worst 204 12 What Went Wrong? 222 13 What Is to Be Done? 242 Notes 266 Bibliography 288 Index 300