Don't Sleep, There Are Snakes Audiobook By Daniel L. Everett cover art

Don't Sleep, There Are Snakes

Life and Language in the Amazonian Jungle

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Don't Sleep, There Are Snakes

By: Daniel L. Everett
Narrated by: Daniel Everett
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Daniel Everett, then a Christian missionary, arrived among the Pirahã in 1977 - with his wife and three young children - intending to convert them. What he found was a language that defies all existing linguistic theories and reflects a way of life that evades contemporary understanding. The Pirahã have no counting system and no fixed terms for color. They have no concept of war or of personal property. They live entirely in the present. Everett became obsessed with their language and its cultural and linguistic implications, and with the remarkable contentment with which they live - so much so that he eventually lost his faith in the God he'd hoped to introduce to them. Over three decades, Everett spent a total of seven years among the Pirahã, and his account of this lasting sojourn is an engrossing exploration of language that questions modern linguistic theory. It is also an anthropological investigation, an adventure story, and a riveting memoir of a life profoundly affected by exposure to a different culture. Written with extraordinary acuity, sensitivity, and openness, it is fascinating from first to last, rich with unparalleled insight into the nature of language, thought, and life itself.

©2008 Daniel L. Everett (P)2017 Tantor Anthropology Thought-Provoking Social Sciences Philosophy Adventure Travel

Critic reviews

"Rich account of fieldwork among a tribe of hunter-gatherers in Brazil.... Everett's experiences and findings fairly explode from these pages and will reverberate in the minds of readers." ( Kirkus)
Fascinating Cultural Insights • Thought-provoking Content • Authentic Pronunciation • Unique Linguistic Exploration

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This is one of those audios easily dismissed because it does not intended for general audiences. It is written by a linguistics field researcher describing his many years of research analyzing a unique language spoken by a small population of indigenous Amazonian people.

Included in this audio are: explanations of why this research is important, descriptions of the culture and ethnography of a unique population of Indians speaking one of the world’s most intriguing languages, explanations of the unique features of that language, the methods used to study it, and profound insights of how language affects understanding and behavior.

What is described herein is one example of how anthropological, linguistic, field research is done. The author also recounts the challenges he and his family, including children, made when living with him in the field. Those challenges were poignant and breath taking.

Some of the presentation is technical, tedious, and can be profitably ignored. (I would recommend including it in an appendix, not in the body of the text.)

This audio will most certainly not be of interest to casual listeners, but for serious language aficionados and academics, including students, it is essential listening.

The last few chapters are profoundly important in that this linguistics scientist objectively studied a tiny community of people speaking a unique language not merely to deconstruct the grammar, but, more importantly, embrace radically different cultural views bringing about foundational changes in his spirituality and weltanschang. What courage to have done this!!!


HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Fascinating, informative, academic, unique.

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Wonderful all around. Fascinating from beginning to end. A wide range of subject matter. I wish the book was twice as long.

Wow

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The insights the author gave on the working of the piraha peoples were given With compassion and desire to understand these peoples. The Piraha peoples live in a state of presence that is foreign to the commercialized world. Refreshing

Happiness

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Even though I don't have the slightest clue about linguistics, Daniel Everett's narrative fascinated me. He has a great way to describe the Pirahã's way of life, their believes and values. Very understanding and very respectful!

loved it!

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This is one of THEEE most fascinating books I have ever read!

If ever there is a way to CURE any "white" person of racism, bigotry, prejudice, then Everett has found it.

The proudly deep internal journey that Everett has made is truly miraculous. This man's faith carried him, yet what has carried him he questions and ultimately discards.

What an amazing masterpiece!

WELL DONE DANIEL EVERETT!

An ABSOLUTE must read!

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