Biophilia

by Edward O. Wilson

Book Overview

Biophilia is Edward O. Wilson's most personal book, an evocation of his own response to nature and an eloquent statement of the conservation ethic. Wilson argues that our natural affinity for life--biophilia--is the very essence of our humanity and binds us to all other living species.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0674074424
• ISBN13: 9780674074422
• Release Date: January 1984
• Publisher: Harvard University Press
• Length: 176 Pages
• Weight: 0.54 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.2" x 9.1"

Customer Reviews

visionary life

a brilliantly well-researched, enriching, and enlightening work that will transform the way you view and re-shape the world.E.O. Wilson writes with great flair and passion; not to mention much authority.

Still Relevant Today

Edward Wilson is an entomologist. He studies insects. It's significant that he can write a book that can appeal to so many readers, given the obscure public perception of insects and arthropods.I expected this book to be an onslaught of scientific explanations and studies, but this was clearly not the case. Wilson writes about his worldly field biology travels with such rich, sensory language. It's actually fun to read.In no section of the book does he thoroughly or methodically explain the construct of biophilia in a textbook fashion. Instead, he writes his very personal memoirs and takes us through rain forests and other areas teeming with tropical life. For readers familiar with Neil Gaiman's Sandman, Wilson writes as if "Biophilia" were one of the Endless, who are anthropomorphic personifications of ideas and states of human consciousness. In biophilia, Wilson writes a story (his own) that is INTENSELY biophilia THEMED, while not necessarily about biophilia explicitly.Edward Wilson is a two time pulitzer prize winner, and a great writer at that. You'll be surprised how readable yet informative and entertaining this book is.

Biophilia

Biophilia written by Edward O. Wilson is a book about the conserative ethic and moral reasoning, bringing a new perspective on mans place within the richness of species diversity. Biophilia as defined by the author as the innate tendency to focus on life and lifelike processes. Arguing that the essence of our humanity... the expansive freedom the mind seeks... is inextricably linked with the green enclaves of this planet. This book covers a wide expanse in both time and scope, from the microscopic and across time... exploring life's varying time scales. I found this book to be wriiten on a personal level bringing the reader into confidence and like a father or grandfather showing us the marvels of nature first hand. I'm sure that was his intent, to reawaken us, to show how man is intergrated and plays an intergral part in the natural affinity of life on the planet, explaining that biophilia is central to the evolution of the human mind.We go from rain forests in Brazil, to handfulls of soil, explore the bird of paradise, and study the Huron Peninsula of New Guinea. Through all of this we acquire a greater appreciation for life and the intricate symbiosis that interplays on our human equilibrium. The book has excellent illustrative text that brings a unique vividness to the author's excellent writing. This is a book that takes the reader on a rich educational look... a serious look... at nature and all of the intergral parts as interplayed in life. Man whether he likes it or not, is tied to this planet and its life force.