Playing with Fish: And Other Lessons from the North » (New Edition)

According to the Yup ik Eskimo of Alaska, fish are not to be played with. It s an adage instilled in children that s as basic as looking both ways before crossing the street, but at its heart lies a concern for nature. Yup ik traditions are tested each generation by this people s struggle for survival, the admonition not to play with fish has been further tested by the arrival of sport fishing from the south. Worlds are colliding whose will emerge unscathed? Robert J. Wolfe, a cultural anthropologist from California, spent twenty years in Alaska documenting the traditional hunting and fishing practices of Alaska Natives. During that northern sojourn he discovered much about sustainable relationships between people and nature and about the basis of meaningful communities. In Playing with Fish he has crafted a series of thought-provoking essays on nature, culture, and the human condition that convey unsuspected lessons from the North. In contrasting California and Alaska worlds far apart yet connected by peoples, cultural traditions, and ecology Wolfe not only draws distinctions between compass points, he also conveys memorable stories about nature and life. He depicts bears and humans as both neighbors and ancient adversaries, and how cultural views about bears can destroy or preserve those relationships. He shows us Alaskan villages where security is found not in locks but in neighbors, unlike electronically sealed suburban California homes, their lawns studded with security signs. And he describes the peaceful resolution of conflict between California bird hunters and Eskimos of the Bering Sea coast over declining geese numbers, where small humanizing acts tipped the balancein favor of cooperation. Blending insights into subjects as diverse as music and chaos theory, Wolfe challenges readers to reflect on their own personal conduct within nature and within our multicultural world. Playing with Fish is a delightful and insightful collection of modern parables that offer a new way of looking at cultural and ecological issues, reminding us that the road between two worlds is always a two-way street.

Publishers Weekly

Wolfe, a cultural anthropologist, worked from 1982 to 2001 in the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. He spent those years documenting subsistence economies of the far north and taking note of the difficulties that economic development "opportunities"-such as proposed navy home ports in coastal cities or changes in laws regulating fishing and hunting-posed to the traditions of Alaska's native populations. He was profoundly changed by his experiences, and in these graceful, sensitive essays reflects on what he learned in a place where there are no locked doors (in case a passing stranger needs to get in out of the cold). He does not attempt to live alongside of bears (which should be kept at a respectful distance) or play with fish (because fishing is a subsistence activity, not a sport). After moving from the sparsely populated state, whose capital has only 13 traffic lights, to a rapidly growing town north of San Diego, he looks back on his days in Alaska and finds inspiration in "America's last frontier," where the old ways of living convey a message about survival, for humans as well as for nature. (Apr. 6) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.