Mountain People

by Colin M. Turnbull

Book Overview

In The Mountain People, Colin M. Turnbull describes the dehumanization of the Ik, African tribesmen who in less than three generations have deteriorated from being once-prosperous hunters to scattered bands of hostile, starving people whose only goal is individual survival.

Sad, disturbing, and eloquently written, The Mountain People is a moving meditation on human nature, our capacity for goodness, and the fragility of...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0671640984
• ISBN13: 9780671640989
• Release Date: July 1987
• Publisher: Touchstone Books
• Length: 320 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.3" x 8.2"

Customer Reviews

The Most Important Book Ever Written About Human Nature In the 20th Century

This anthropological classic is important on a number of levels. Leading by example, Turnbull provides a lesson for anthropology students about the bravery required to embraces one's biases, instead of just pretending they do not exist. On a deeper level, he chronicles the disintegration of a culture through starvation to reveal the human nature that underlies all cultures. He describes, through the story of one people, what all people are capable of in dire circumstances. Many people would prefer to read ethnographic accounts where the anthropologist sugar coats their real opinions. Indeed, this is what the scientific community expects. In many cases, the ethnographic writer poisons their own writing that comes out of bad experiences by superimposing a fase, insincere gloss of respect and understanding on top of a culture that they clearly feel superior to. Turnbull does not feel superior to the Ik, but he is bluntly honest with himself and his readers about his pessimistic outlook and his view that the remainder of the Ik culture should be disbanded. Readers have complained about Turnbull's "bias" when in fact they simply disagree with the conclusions he reached. Many readers' complaints betray vast ignorance about ethnographic fieldwork, anthropological research methods and accuse the author of hypocricy while practicing it themselves. Indeed, some people imply that Turbull led a cushy life among the Ik because he eat (in private, hiding in his Land Rover) while the Ik starved for two years. What an evil, greedy man, say the critics. Why didn't he do something? Well, he DID do something. He brought their plight to the attention of the world. What was he supposed to do, starve to death along with them? That would have been a futile, empty gesture that served no one and nothing except the ego gratification of one person. Instead, he spent two long, lonely years living among and trying desperately to understand people who were dying, and who constantly attempted to manipulate him and kill him. In one instance, they attempted to push him off of a cliff. In many other instances, they laughed mercilessly when he seriously injured himself. They let lions take their children away to be eaten. No sane human being could ever realistically come to a pleasant, poltically correct middle ground of love and admiration under these circumstances. The fact that Turnbull did not shamelessly kow tow to these sorts of empty headed demands makes his account of the Ik one of the most authentic, humane ethnographies ever written. Just in case anyone thinks Colin Turnbull is incapable of admiring or respecting another culture, read The Forest People and then judge. People who chide Turnbull for not "doing enough" do not understand that anthropologists are not U.N. aid workers. Anthropologists enter the field to do their best to learn from and understand another culture--not save it, destroy it or alter it in any fundamental way. If anthropolo

The Ik within us all

This is a profoundly disturbing book. The author's reflections on what he saw of a completely disintegrated society - the Ik people of Africa are chilling. The ultimate implication is that human nature is not so tightly bound to inherent goodness as one might wish to think. The newspapers daily play out isolated, but ever more frequent stories of the Ik in our midst ... of the Ik within us all.ofs

Non-anthro loved the book

Was course material that I dreaded initially, but after reading it, I could not stop thinking about the Ik, the changes overcoming their existence and their adaptation to their circumstances. Must tip my hat to Turnbull (now deceased) for a well written, can't put down book on a subject I had zero interest in prior to devouring it. 5 stars well deserved.

A must read for any anthropology major!

The Mountain People is the work of an anthropologist who spent two years studying the Ik, a small tribe in Uganda. This is an outstanding book that is easy to read and understand. A must read for any anthropology major. Knowledge of African geography is not essential to enjoying this book, but might be helpful if you are one who thrives on such details. In summary, I found his comparisons between the Ik and our own society to be very provocative and insightful. Perhaps we are not so compassionate as we say we are...

The human will to survive taken to its ultimate expression.

The Ik, forced from a hunter-gatherer society to a sedentary existence in a drought-stricken, region not suited for agriculture, detriorate as a society into a collection of individuals whose main goal has become a quest for survival on a day-to-day basis. The author cites example after pathetic example of the deterioration of societal values, such as culture, religion, morals, as food becomes scarcer and scarcer and the people literally starve to death one by one. And no one cares, except that there is less competition for precious food. Kids are put out to fend for themselves at age 3! Misfortune of others is grounds for laughter and delight. There is no longer any love, nor any hate. No remorse, no hope. There is only survival. Food, when obtained, is consumed secretely and quickly. This is a tragic story, but one which needs to be read by all to see the depths to which humans, at least the Ik, can plunge in times of dislocation and deprivation. Well written and most sobering.