East Is a Big Bird: Navigation and Logic on Puluwat Atoll

By Thomas Gladwin

Book Overview

Puluwat Atoll in Micronesia, with a population of only a few hundred proud seafaring people, can fulfill anyone's romantic daydream of the South Seas. Thomas Gladwin has written a beautiful and perceptive book which describes the complex navigational systems of the Puluwat natives, yet has done so principally to provide new insights into the effects of poverty in Western cultures.

The cognitive system which enables the Puluwatans to sail their canoes without instruments over trackless expanses of the Pacific Ocean is sophisticated and complex, yet the Puluwat native would score low on a standardized intelligence test. The author relates this discrepancy between performance and measured abilities to the educational problems of disadvantaged children. He presents his arguments simply and clearly, with sensitive and detailed descriptions and many excellent illustrations. His book will appeal to anthropologists, psychologists, and sailing enthusiasts alike.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0674224264
• ISBN13: 9780674224261
• Release Date: July 1995
• Publisher: Harvard University Press
• Length: 260 Pages
• Weight: 1.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.8" x 8.9"

Customer Reviews

good book

fifth copy I have bought over the years. Excellent book covering proas. The book covers the design of the boats and the society that encourages these remarkable boats to be developed, built and used. As these people are sailors with a tradition non western base it is interesting to observe their priorities. The only example I will give is: When an adult sails on one of the boats for their first passage, one experienced crew is assigned to "help" the passenger. On a child's first passage, two crew members are assigned. jt

Fantatic insight into a foreign culture

The Micronesian territory of Kenneth Brower is a sea of small islands, inhabited by diverse peoples, each with theier own language, costoms and culture. Kenneth Brower opens our eyes for the necessary preservations of their colorful native lore, and their way of life in the winds of modernisation and cultural change. The congenial photographs of Harri Peccinotti are outstanding.

Navigate by the stars

Thomas Gladwin introduces the society of the islanders of the Caroline atolls with an indepth look at their society and how it is centered on their sea-faring tradition. These fascinating people roll with the punches as new western ideas and influences confront them, but the tenuously hang on to their traditions and, especially in the case of Puluwat, make some of the finest sialing canoes in the islands. For a book this size Gladwin thoroughly introduces the sailing tradition of these islanders and enables European minded folks to understand the intricasies of their complex sailing tradition. Even with a limited background in sailing you learn how people can navigate small craft over long distances successfully without using any more modern technology than the compass,and even that being a recent addition. Using star courses passed down through the generations navigators are able to travel to all the neighboring islands and even some quite far away. In this day of reliance on ever more complex technology much can be learned from these people who can travel long distances entirely without electronic instruments. This book is pleasant to read and surprisingly free of technical jargon. It is particularly remarkable for its frank portrayal of a culture so different from most people's experience, but in a way that you feel you know them as friends anbd neighbors by the end of the book. Quite fascinating.