On the planet Athshe, human colonists from Earth have established a logging colony to strip the world of its timber. The military administration, led by the aggressive Captain Davidson, treats the native Athsheans as enslaved labor, viewing the small, green-furred inhabitants as subhuman. Unlike the humans, the Athsheans possess a sophisticated culture built on "dream-time," a state of conscious dreaming that governs their social reality. When a native named Selver leads a violent insurrection against the loggers, he introduces the concept of murder to his peaceful society, permanently altering their collective psychology.
Readers interested in ecological science fiction and the ethics of colonization read this book for its stark depiction of environmental destruction and cultural clash. It provides a technical look at how language and non-violent structures react to external brutality. Those who study the psychological impacts of imperialism will find a detailed case study in how a society loses its innocence to survive. The reader walks away with a clear understanding of the irreparable damage caused when one civilization imposes its industrial logic onto a delicate biological and mental ecosystem.
- Published
- 1972
- Language
- EN
