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176 reviews for:
Das glücklichste Volk: sieben Jahre bei den Pirahã-Indianern am Amazonas
Daniel L. Everett
3.81 AVERAGE
176 reviews for:
Das glücklichste Volk: sieben Jahre bei den Pirahã-Indianern am Amazonas
Daniel L. Everett
3.81 AVERAGE
adventurous
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
adventurous
informative
reflective
medium-paced
informative
4.5 - audiobook is a MUST here, since the author/narrator is fluent in a rare & complex native language transcribed often
One of the most fascinating books I’ve read in a long time. I came to this book after seeing the Mission documentary on Hulu. Daniel Everett is a really amazing person and writer. The book is just filled with incredibly honest stories about Daniel living amongst people he doesn’t understand but is trying to. Some of the stories were thrilling, scary and hilarious, but they were always interwoven into the broader narrative of trying to learn their language. It is an incredible love letter to the scientific method, to observing the world as it is, not how we want it to be. It was deeply moving, and shows how little we really understand about ourselves.
Overall an interesting read. I found part II the most interesting as this section dealt specifically with grammar and culture's influence on language.
I did a Graduate Diploma in Language Teaching at the beginning of the century (ha! I thought of writing ‘at the beginning of the millennium’ but decided that might sound somewhat pretentious, and also quite silly as it implies the years are more advanced since then than they are…. ) and of course Noam Chomsky’s theories on language learning and culture were touted as the answer to everything. This book makes it clear that there is no universal – the Pirahas have a language and worldview that doesn't fit with anything else.
This book is fascinating, and best of all it's completely readable.
Dan Everett first went to live with the Pirahas when he was 26, with his wife and 3 children. He went there through the auspices of a church, having trained in field linguistics at the Summer Institute of Linguistics, and with the aim of learning the Piraha language (which 20 years of missionaries had failed to manage) and translating the Bible into it. In this book he tells of family life there, of the people they lived with, of learning the language, and of many adventures. There's enough technical stuff to satisfy the reader interested in linguistics and plenty to satisfy the reader interested in other cultures and life in the Amazon.
Everett never did convert the Pirahas – in fact, he came to the conclusion that they had no need of Christianity, and himself ended up an atheist. A reader looking for a book about ‘successful’ missionary work might therefore find this book upsetting, but it is a brilliant account of humanity.
This book is fascinating, and best of all it's completely readable.
Dan Everett first went to live with the Pirahas when he was 26, with his wife and 3 children. He went there through the auspices of a church, having trained in field linguistics at the Summer Institute of Linguistics, and with the aim of learning the Piraha language (which 20 years of missionaries had failed to manage) and translating the Bible into it. In this book he tells of family life there, of the people they lived with, of learning the language, and of many adventures. There's enough technical stuff to satisfy the reader interested in linguistics and plenty to satisfy the reader interested in other cultures and life in the Amazon.
Everett never did convert the Pirahas – in fact, he came to the conclusion that they had no need of Christianity, and himself ended up an atheist. A reader looking for a book about ‘successful’ missionary work might therefore find this book upsetting, but it is a brilliant account of humanity.
"It is a very conservative culture" "...their quality of inner life, their happiness and contentment, strongly support their values."
Another read of this by me.. that makes probably 8 times in the past 15 years that I've read this. I just find it fascinating.
The facets of the environment in which the Pirahas live, their social structure and language, defines them as a people.
Another read of this by me.. that makes probably 8 times in the past 15 years that I've read this. I just find it fascinating.
The facets of the environment in which the Pirahas live, their social structure and language, defines them as a people.
Equal parts "At Play in the Fields of the Lord" and "The Poisonwood Bible", except it's all true. Christian missionary Daniel Everett goes to Brazil to learn the language of the Piraha, and write a Piraha New Testament, no easy task, as the Pirahas have resisted Jesus for 200 years. The book is divided into two parts: "Life" and "Language". Fair warning — the second part can get a little dull as Everett talks about linguistic theories, which is why I deducted one star from my rating, but by no means should you skip this section. Nestled in amongst grammar and syntax, Chomsky and Pinker are some real gems of philosophical musings. Also, "the anaconda and the outboard" story. Good book.
Not particularly well written. The story is all over the place. His linguistic insights are interesting but dry. The best part are the little details about native Brazilian culture scattered throughout.