Twilight At Easter Island Analysis
In Jared Diamond's "Twilight at Easter," we travel across the mysterious Easter Island as he describes the most intriguing fact about this place: the island consists of monolithic stone statues that had once been found all over the island despite the apparent lack of means to create them or ways of transporting them to their different coastal locations. This central mystery of standing statues had been explored since the earliest recorded European contact by Jacob Rogeveen in 1722. While the mystery initially centered on why and how the statues were built on this denuded island, Diamond explores the mystery in modern terms and focuses on the environmental context, in particular the lack of trees that would have been used to sustain life in
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this remote place. Yet apart from the historical and scientific explanation of these people seemingly so remote from us Diamond makes striking and apparently strange direct comparisons with our way of life. In particular he mentions competition among islanders due to limited natural and economic resources; a competition present in today's society. How does this unusual strategy work in detail? And how does this strategy relate to the author's stated intention of using Easter Island as a metaphor for our own times? After Diamond talks of the Spanish exploration in the middle of the piece, we see a direct remark about Hollywood. Diamond directly relates Easter Island's boasting characteristics to those of Hollywood's. The statues on the island became a symbol to gain "bragging rights." This competition is similar to the competition in Hollywood. For example, superstars will not settle for a house that is as big as another superstar's. The better star always has the better house! Living in Hollywood puts expectations on a person. This is one of the reason's Diamond emphasizes this specific detail. People on Easter Island have to live by the expectations of their surroundings. Once these enormous statues started to be built, others had to make larger statues to compete. In Hollywood people are expected to "live large." On Easter Island, statues were meant to "be built large." This direct comparison of something far, Easter Island, to something we know very well, Hollywood, gives us a better understanding of Diamond's analysis. Diamond deliberately brings up this comparison to warn us of our society's unhealthy competition. This type of unhealthy competition is what can lead a society to destruction. Diamond uses this particular strategy of direct comparison to show that the islanders were always in competition with one another instead of collaborating with one another. It is this competition amongst knowledgeable islanders which played a major role in the down fall of their society. The act of battling one another for high social status, as the islanders did, will lead us to the destruction of our own society.
Throughout the piece we are bombarded with facts about conserving limited resources; at the end of the piece Diamond explicitly states that Easter Island is "the clearest example of a society that destroyed itself by exploiting its own resources." Diamond acknowledges this deforestation because deforestation has been a topic of discussion among many environmentalists in society.
According to Environmentalist Eric Bastin, if we continue cutting tree's at the rate we cut now, we only have enough trees for about two generations. In our society we do not acknowledge this deforestation much because we feel we have an endless supply. On Easter Island, natives did not know they were limited to the trees they had cut down. Diamond tells us there could me many excuses for why they cut down the last tree. These excuses are identical to those used in today's counter arguments to deforestation. Prior to the conclusion of the piece, Diamond uses sarcasm to express these ideas. He relates the loggers of Easter Island to the loggers of our society. This sarcastic technique is used toBy relating an obstacle Easter Island's society faced with our society, Diamond justifies their actions. Since we are close to the conlusion of the piece, Diamond wants to clear up any doubt on may have about the islanders. Diamond concludes with such a harsh statement to further imply how resource management in our society needs to be taken seriously. Though this comparison was only a paragraph long, the idea of our society collapsing because of limited resources is discussed throughout the entire piece. This topic is specifically depicted in the piece because after resources are gone, a society is
doomed. In the beginning of the piece we see another direct comparison when Diamond relates the setting on the quarry to that of a factory. Diamond makes this specific comparison to stimulate pictures in the reader's brain. After a first read of the paragraph, I saw pictures in my head of a sweat shop from the early 1900s with underpaid workers and no unions to help. If our society ends up like this, with overworked factory workers, the workers will quit and our society will be destructed, just as the statues. Diamond also brought this idea up to show us that if we do not treat our "blue-collar" workers properly, we will be moving back in time. When our society did take advantage of workers, it did not prosper. Diamond wants to reiterate that taking advantage of the middle class is not benefical to society as a whole. When the middle class stops working, the upper class can not function. Diamond talks of the factory in a very informal way in this paragraph to make it seem as if we have bonded with him. Though it has only been one page into the piece, we already feel a sense of trust built. Diamond is warning us. We need to use our resources and manpower wisely so our society does not move back in time and have rebellious laborers. By the middle of the piece Diamond has gained our trust through his vivid descriptions and is able to support his positions with personal references. These personal references are very strong because they come from a trustworthy author. In conjunction with historically valid points, Diamond also uses his personal experience with his "British biologist friends" who eat rats just as the islanders did. This analysis is drawn to acknowledge that at critical times, the unordinary seems ordinary. That is why in the piece he also tells us that there were more rat bones than fish bones. The islanders had reached a time where they had to eat whatever was available; the same way the 1950 British biologists ate "creamed laboratory rat" during "the years of wartime food rationing." We can not negatively judge the islanders if our own people are also going to unorthodox boundaries to survive. Diamond brings this particular comparison to our attention to not only warn us, but to justify some of the actions made by the islanders. This defense set up for the Islanders allows the reader to see how Diamond wants to defend the actions of the Islanders. Throughout the piece we see of activity conducted by the islanders that we would normally think of as "savage status;" but if we look at their circumstances: strong competition and low resources, their actions are slightly acceptable. In this particular section we see how we too have, and can again, end up acting as savages. The islanders set their self up for destruction, just as we seem to be.
Through Diamond's comparisons, we are able to see the use of vivid descriptions prior to making accurate yet dramatic conclusionstechniques very much like those of a lawyer pursuing a case. Society does not typically doubt a lawyer because they are under the oath. Diamond must be telling the truth. So why should we have any reason to doubt Diamond? For various subtle settings in the piece, Diamond gives us a long and detailed description. He comes across to the reader as an all knowing and trustworthy author. We should not consider the islanders as savages if our modern society also functions as their society did. Instead, we should act differently so our society does not collapse as the islander's society did. Diamond bombards us with facts to leave us no room to doubt him. In a 1995 interview conducted by Discover Magazine, John Diamond expresses to the editor that " we are about to follow their lead." This technique in conjunction with Diamond's direct comparisons creates an ideally strong piece that warns us to use our resources sparingly.
Response:
My thesis was: He bombards us with facts to leave us no room to doubt him. This technique in conjunction with Diamond's direct comparisons creates an ideally strong piece that warns us to use our resources sparsely. My main supporting points in this paper were Diamond's direct comparison to Hollywood, deforestation, the quarry vs. the factories, and the justification of actions. The most difficult thing in writing this paper was the fact that I could no state my thesis in the beginning. This made me feel as if I was losing some "synthesis." Thus, I feel my paper's weakness is the synthesis in some parts of different body paragraphs. I feel my paper's strength is the structure and the conclusion. I also think it was a good idea to go over each body paragraph and see how I could deepen analysis. The handout entitle "How to Deepen Analysis" became a great resource.
this remote place. Yet apart from the historical and scientific explanation of these people seemingly so remote from us Diamond makes striking and apparently strange direct comparisons with our way of life. In particular he mentions competition among islanders due to limited natural and economic resources; a competition present in today's society. How does this unusual strategy work in detail? And how does this strategy relate to the author's stated intention of using Easter Island as a metaphor for our own times? After Diamond talks of the Spanish exploration in the middle of the piece, we see a direct remark about Hollywood. Diamond directly relates Easter Island's boasting characteristics to those of Hollywood's. The statues on the island became a symbol to gain "bragging rights." This competition is similar to the competition in Hollywood. For example, superstars will not settle for a house that is as big as another superstar's. The better star always has the better house! Living in Hollywood puts expectations on a person. This is one of the reason's Diamond emphasizes this specific detail. People on Easter Island have to live by the expectations of their surroundings. Once these enormous statues started to be built, others had to make larger statues to compete. In Hollywood people are expected to "live large." On Easter Island, statues were meant to "be built large." This direct comparison of something far, Easter Island, to something we know very well, Hollywood, gives us a better understanding of Diamond's analysis. Diamond deliberately brings up this comparison to warn us of our society's unhealthy competition. This type of unhealthy competition is what can lead a society to destruction. Diamond uses this particular strategy of direct comparison to show that the islanders were always in competition with one another instead of collaborating with one another. It is this competition amongst knowledgeable islanders which played a major role in the down fall of their society. The act of battling one another for high social status, as the islanders did, will lead us to the destruction of our own society.
Throughout the piece we are bombarded with facts about conserving limited resources; at the end of the piece Diamond explicitly states that Easter Island is "the clearest example of a society that destroyed itself by exploiting its own resources." Diamond acknowledges this deforestation because deforestation has been a topic of discussion among many environmentalists in society.
According to Environmentalist Eric Bastin, if we continue cutting tree's at the rate we cut now, we only have enough trees for about two generations. In our society we do not acknowledge this deforestation much because we feel we have an endless supply. On Easter Island, natives did not know they were limited to the trees they had cut down. Diamond tells us there could me many excuses for why they cut down the last tree. These excuses are identical to those used in today's counter arguments to deforestation. Prior to the conclusion of the piece, Diamond uses sarcasm to express these ideas. He relates the loggers of Easter Island to the loggers of our society. This sarcastic technique is used toBy relating an obstacle Easter Island's society faced with our society, Diamond justifies their actions. Since we are close to the conlusion of the piece, Diamond wants to clear up any doubt on may have about the islanders. Diamond concludes with such a harsh statement to further imply how resource management in our society needs to be taken seriously. Though this comparison was only a paragraph long, the idea of our society collapsing because of limited resources is discussed throughout the entire piece. This topic is specifically depicted in the piece because after resources are gone, a society is
doomed. In the beginning of the piece we see another direct comparison when Diamond relates the setting on the quarry to that of a factory. Diamond makes this specific comparison to stimulate pictures in the reader's brain. After a first read of the paragraph, I saw pictures in my head of a sweat shop from the early 1900s with underpaid workers and no unions to help. If our society ends up like this, with overworked factory workers, the workers will quit and our society will be destructed, just as the statues. Diamond also brought this idea up to show us that if we do not treat our "blue-collar" workers properly, we will be moving back in time. When our society did take advantage of workers, it did not prosper. Diamond wants to reiterate that taking advantage of the middle class is not benefical to society as a whole. When the middle class stops working, the upper class can not function. Diamond talks of the factory in a very informal way in this paragraph to make it seem as if we have bonded with him. Though it has only been one page into the piece, we already feel a sense of trust built. Diamond is warning us. We need to use our resources and manpower wisely so our society does not move back in time and have rebellious laborers. By the middle of the piece Diamond has gained our trust through his vivid descriptions and is able to support his positions with personal references. These personal references are very strong because they come from a trustworthy author. In conjunction with historically valid points, Diamond also uses his personal experience with his "British biologist friends" who eat rats just as the islanders did. This analysis is drawn to acknowledge that at critical times, the unordinary seems ordinary. That is why in the piece he also tells us that there were more rat bones than fish bones. The islanders had reached a time where they had to eat whatever was available; the same way the 1950 British biologists ate "creamed laboratory rat" during "the years of wartime food rationing." We can not negatively judge the islanders if our own people are also going to unorthodox boundaries to survive. Diamond brings this particular comparison to our attention to not only warn us, but to justify some of the actions made by the islanders. This defense set up for the Islanders allows the reader to see how Diamond wants to defend the actions of the Islanders. Throughout the piece we see of activity conducted by the islanders that we would normally think of as "savage status;" but if we look at their circumstances: strong competition and low resources, their actions are slightly acceptable. In this particular section we see how we too have, and can again, end up acting as savages. The islanders set their self up for destruction, just as we seem to be.
Through Diamond's comparisons, we are able to see the use of vivid descriptions prior to making accurate yet dramatic conclusionstechniques very much like those of a lawyer pursuing a case. Society does not typically doubt a lawyer because they are under the oath. Diamond must be telling the truth. So why should we have any reason to doubt Diamond? For various subtle settings in the piece, Diamond gives us a long and detailed description. He comes across to the reader as an all knowing and trustworthy author. We should not consider the islanders as savages if our modern society also functions as their society did. Instead, we should act differently so our society does not collapse as the islander's society did. Diamond bombards us with facts to leave us no room to doubt him. In a 1995 interview conducted by Discover Magazine, John Diamond expresses to the editor that " we are about to follow their lead." This technique in conjunction with Diamond's direct comparisons creates an ideally strong piece that warns us to use our resources sparingly.
Response:
My thesis was: He bombards us with facts to leave us no room to doubt him. This technique in conjunction with Diamond's direct comparisons creates an ideally strong piece that warns us to use our resources sparsely. My main supporting points in this paper were Diamond's direct comparison to Hollywood, deforestation, the quarry vs. the factories, and the justification of actions. The most difficult thing in writing this paper was the fact that I could no state my thesis in the beginning. This made me feel as if I was losing some "synthesis." Thus, I feel my paper's weakness is the synthesis in some parts of different body paragraphs. I feel my paper's strength is the structure and the conclusion. I also think it was a good idea to go over each body paragraph and see how I could deepen analysis. The handout entitle "How to Deepen Analysis" became a great resource.