How Forests Think: Toward an Anthropology Beyond the Human
by Eduardo Kohn
In How Forests Think, Eduardo Kohn develops an anthropology that decenters the human, exploring how forests and their inhabitants generate meaning through semiosis. Based on fieldwork in Ecuador's Amazon, the book reveals the agency of nonhuman life forms and challenges conventional views of thought and communication in ecological contexts.
About This Book
How Forests Think introduces a new approach to anthropology that extends beyond human perspectives. Eduardo Kohn examines the ways in which forests engage in processes of meaning-making, drawing on ethnographic research in the Amazon.
The book argues for recognizing the agency and thought inherent in nonhuman entities, such as trees and animals, through the lens of semiotics. It proposes a framework where life itself becomes a site of interpretation and communication.
By rethinking anthropological methods, Kohn invites readers to consider the broader ecological and ontological implications of nonhuman cognition. This work bridges anthropology with philosophy and ecology, offering insights into a more inclusive understanding of the world.
Through detailed case studies, the text illustrates how forests 'think' via signs and relations, expanding traditional boundaries of knowledge and culture.
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