The Rise and Fall of Generation Now - Softcover

Ingold, Tim

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1509556613 ISBN 13: 9781509556618

Publisher: Polity, 2023

Synopsis

Is the future about to close in, or is it open to new horizons? For anthropologist Tim Ingold, the root of our difficulty in facing up to the future lies in the way we think about generations. We imagine them as layers, succeeding one another like sheets in a stack. This view figures as a largely unquestioned backdrop to discussions of evolution, life and death, longevity, extinction, sustainability, education, climate change and other matters of contemporary concern. What if we were to think of generations, instead, as wrapping around one another along their length, more like fibres in a rope than stacked sheets?

In this compelling new book, Ingold argues that a return to the idea that life is forged in the collaboration of overlapping generations might not only assuage some of our anxieties, but also offer a lasting foundation for future coexistence. But it would mean having to abandon our faith both in the inevitability of progress, and in the ability of science and technology to cushion humanity from environmental impacts. A perfect world is not around the corner, nor will our troubles ever end. Nevertheless, for as long as life continues, there is hope for generations to come.

About this title

About the Author

Tim Ingold is Emeritus Professor of Social Anthropology at the University of Aberdeen.

Edition details

• Publisher: Polity
• Publication date: 2023
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1509556613
• ISBN 13: 9781509556618
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 157