Man on Earth: A Celebration of Mankind: Portraits of Human Culture in a Multitude of Environments

by John Reader

Explores the adaptation of different cultures to the environmental and geographical conditions they live with, to find the best means of food production and subsistence

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Science, Anthropology, Ethnography, Biology

255 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 1990

About the author

An author and photojournalist with more than forty years' professional experience. He holds an Honorary Research Fellowship in the Department of Anthropology at U.C.L.

Reviews

[Michael Huang · Rating 5 out of 5]

”Man on Earth” looks at culture from a functional point of view, examining the extent to which systems of adaptation and regulation, promoted the continuing existence of people in a wide variety of environments around the world. Take Pacific islands as an example. The island of Yap was settled prior to 176 AD. The island can not sustain unlimited population growth. As a result a set of social norms evolved. Things are separated from pure to impure, there is full of taboos, subtle social cues are used to limit pregnancies. These are all designed to limit population, There’s even evidence of forced emigration. Take another very different example of Bali. A whole set of religious practices around the rice goddess formalized rules of cultivation of rice to support the population. When foreigners came and offered new ways of cultivation using fertilizers, the production was initially boosted but crashed later on. The islanders went back to their tried-and-true religious practices again. In addition to these two groups of people, there are stories about lobstermen from Maine, pastoralists in Kenya, potato growers in Peru, Swiss farmers in Alpine regions, etc.

In addition to having a fabulous name (Reader), the author is also a photojournalist. Not only do you have very interesting text describing all sorts of cultural practices in very different environments, there are also lots of photos vividly showcasing the people, their environments, and their artifacts. The book is genuinely an eye-opener.

[Bria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting and even-handed, I love the perspective of explaining how human cultures and behaviors came to be and make sense given the environment they live in.

[Max Carmichael · Rating 4 out of 5]

I could almost say this is the book I've always been looking for as a touchstone for my own studies of human life on earth. I wish I had stumbled upon Reader's work earlier; he's wiser, more thorough, and more insightful than the academic celebrities from Paul Ehrlich to Jared Diamond who have attempted similar syntheses of ecology, anthropology and sociology.

Unfortunately, like his counterparts, Reader is not a particularly good writer - dry and academic - and his treatment of societies across the globe and across the scale of technological advancement is distractingly uneven. For example, for the small-scale societies he presents a fairly thorough ecological analysis, but for China he omits ecological or environmental factors entirely, although their importance is now common knowledge.

But regardless of its shortcomings, I would recommend this book to anyone interested in the major social and economic issues facing our world, because Reader's survey of both well-known and obscure communities clearly highlights what works and what doesn't work. For the perceptive, it could be a roadmap to a state of grace.

[Don Heiman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I especially enjoy the experience of reading exceptionally crafted spellbinding books on humanity and its impact on culture and sustainment of life. John Reader’s 1988 “Man on Earth” book gave me a reading joy I will long cherish. His book traces human development from the cultural history of Incas, Blackfoot Indians of North America, Hutterite, Todas and Yaps from their early times to our current age. His writing also discusses Roman, China, India, and Kenyan cultures. Also, his portral of Cleveland, Ohio and Switzerland Alp societies are amazing. John Reader concludes his book with 45 pages of 126 pictures that show in real life the cultures and people he profiles. His book has an “honored” place on my reading shelves. (P)

[Matthew Carter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfectly laid out chapters descibing the endeavours and lifestyles of different subsistence cultures and subcultures still in effect on the planet. The dymanics of these cultures are contemplated as to their increasing influence of change in ever increasing cash culture environments and shift in culture. They serve to find an understandable aspect to their place in earthly disposition and a suggestion towards their futures in an ever homogenising world environment.
An immediate trust is easily placed on the validity of the points laid out as fact by John, truly trustworthy souces under cross examination.
The chapters are laid out, some more fascinating to me than the next or so, so much so, that I'm already predisposed to re-read in the future following study of other text, whether ageeing or taking a different stance.
File under essential reading.

[Craig Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

Considering the uncertain times we live in, I thought I'd read a little something about human history for reassurance. You know how the saying goes - those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it.

Man on Earth explores how the environment that humans live in greatly influence their culture. It seems like an obvious relationship on the surface, but the subtitles of the relationship between humankind and our environment is really quite fascinating. John Reader explores a variety of different cultures, from the islanders of the south Pacific, to Swiss farmers, to the people trying to get by in a modern American city like Cleveland. While Reader's prose frequently gets bogged down with textbook statistics (he often describes the land masses his subjects live in with painstaking detail), it's not frequent enough for the book to get boring. My only other critique is the book might be somewhat dated since the time of its publication (1990), although Reader does a good job of emphasizing the history of these cultures, as opposed to their present-day quality of life. For example, while Native Americans today might be dealing with different issues than they were in the 80s/90s, there's still value in learning about their history, especially the injustices committed upon them, up until the modern era.

Some highlights of the book include the first chapter, about the natives of an island called Yap, who used to have currency the size of a large coffee table. I also quite enjoyed the final chapter, which briefly goes over the history of cities, ending with the rise and fall of Cleveland. If there's one thing I learned from reading this book, it's that despite whatever religion or ideology we might adhere to, mankind isn't really all that different from each other. From the microcosm of the South Pacific islands to the larger issues that we face to this day in modern society, we share a lot of the same hopes, fears, and basic drives. This is a basic truth that I find a glimmer of hope in.

[Adrian Colesberry · Rating 4 out of 5]

I reviewed this book when it came out for my university newspaper. His description of societies is beautiful and thorough. His description of south-sea islanders array of social customs designed to control population, including abortion, and how the lowest caste family would, at some point, be packed into an outrigger canoe with a few trees in pots, food and water then just sail off into the blue, most likely to die a pretty horrible death... but that's how all those tiny islands in the Pacific were populated. Every time I look at a globe, I think of a terrified, starving, dying family seeing an atoll in the distance and starting a whole society. Their fate being a. start an entirely new society. b. die horribly.
The other section that has stuck with me is his geographically deterministic take on the particular customs of the Indian subcontinent:
a. The caste system psychologically relieves overcrowding because you only pay attention to your own caste. By making white noise out of every human being in other castes, you reduce the sea of humanity around you to a psychologically healthy density. He also explains the economics of their vegetarianism, especially their not eating cows, which would destroy the animal that produces their primary fuel source. And finally, he justifies what to us seems like the barbarically misogynist practice of making women, even pregnant women, eat last as a natural method of birth control.

[Roberta · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating book about the different ways that humans have learned to survive (and thrive) in poor, dangerous and unforgiving environments. Most still existed in the 80s when the book was written, though the Blood Indian and the Northwest Indian societies were dispersed in cities and reserves even then. A book that makes one think somberly about the way globalization, commercialization and consumerism are changing the world and damaging societies that have existed peacefully and successfully for thousands of years.

[Hartley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can not say enough. This should be read by any wishing to study human nature