Alex Teeuw (Alton College), reviews Erle Ellis' 'Anthropocene: A Very Short Introduction'
Participants in Worcester's Bookshelf project are all in year 11, 12 or 13 at UK state schools. They are asked to review the book in no more than 300 words, as well as to respond to the three prompts at the bottom of the page. Here Alex Teeuw, who is studying at Alton College, reviews Erle Ellis' book, Anthropocene: A Very Short Introduction:
Anthropocene: A Very Short Introduction by Erle C. Ellis is a comprehensive book, which investigates how humans have made an impact on Earth both environmentally and geologically, and what implications such impacts pose to society. The book evaluates evidence for and against a new geological epoch called “The Anthropocene” due to the scale of human impacts to the present day, making the book a worthwhile read for people who are interested in the environment and society. Ellis has drawn on the works of geologists, geographers, archaeologists and humanities experts to condense a wealth of information into a very short, snappy paperback.
Initially Ellis introduces the concept of the Anthropocene and its origins before explaining elements of the Earth System, such as positive feedback loops, and then the concept of geologic time, thus providing the necessary foundations for later chapters of the book. As I read the book my curiosity surrounding the subject grew, especially where Ellis explored the links to society in the penultimate chapter entitled “Politikos”. This was compelling because he highlighted, for example, how many people perceive climate change as the damage collectively done by all of humankind when, as it turns out, almost one billion of the poorest people in the world contribute to virtually no fossil fuel carbon. This has made me realise that, like social and economic inequality, environmental inequality also exists and has further social and economic knock-on effects.
And that’s not the only impressive aspect of the book. The continual use of figures and diagrams as visual stimuli helped me to visualise statements. The concept of the “great acceleration” was highlighted in several graphs, including urban population growth, ozone depletion and some with worryingly exponential increases. Generally, the book was informative, well-structured and interesting – discussing important issues which concern current and future generations.
Something I agreed with in this book was...
That the effects of humans on the environment are widespread and global, yet such issues are only caused by a minority, so characterising the Anthropocene as the fault of all humanity is, in mine and the author’s opinion, wrong.
Something I disagreed with in this book was...
That the ending was an optimistic message, with hope for humankind, which contradicted previous content. Whilst it is important to acknowledge that there is still hope, it is equally important to remind readers that such hope is delivered only by change. Or maybe I’m just a well-informed pessimist…
Something I learnt from reading this book that I didn't know about this subject before was...
The idea of a “pristine myth”; that even areas which are, understandably, perceived as being untouched by human activities have been indirectly shaped by humans for thousands of years.