Thomas Trautmann > Quotes

“The relation of kings to elephants is, in fact, a four-cornered relation of kings, elephants, forests, and forest people—a rich and complex field of relations. Studying it holds out the promise of bringing the forest and its inhabitants into the history of kingdoms, instead of looking upon the forest as the antithesis of the kingdom, of farmers and farming, of villages and cities—in short, all that makes up what we call civilization.”
― Thomas Trautmann, Elephants and Kings: An Environmental History