Derrick Jensen, an American author who lives in Northern California, has published several books which challenge contemporary society and cultural values, including The Culture of Make Believe (2002), and many essays.
Jensen emphasizes the hate, dishonesty, and destructiveness in contemporary industrialized culture. He argues that this culture will soon collapse because of the damage being done to the planet.
Jensen proposes that a different way of life is possible, and perhaps historically more "normal" than "modern" life. This different way of life is characterized by honesty, appreciation of beauty, and connectedness with the natural world.
Politically Jensen's work is in favor of revolution - in values, the self, and society - often in line with the ideas of eco-anarchism and primitivism.
Oft-repeated themes in Jensen's work include discussion of his violent family, the role of lying in maintaining systematic oppression, "We're fucked" vs. "Life is good", the value of writing vs. the value of blowing up dams, and his thoughts while staring at his hands.
Related authors include Jack Forbes (Columbus and Other Cannibals), Dave Edwards , Daniel Quinn (Ishmael (novel), The Man Who Grew Young), Stephen King (Running Man) and Jared Diamond (Guns, Germs and Steel and Collapse - How societies choose to fail or succeed).
He has taught creative writing at Pelican Bay State Prison and Western Washington University.
Partial list of published works
- Derrick Jensen, Listening to the Land: Conversations about Nature, Culture, and Eros, 1995, 2002
- ---- A Language Older Than Words
- ----, George Draffan , and John Osborn, Railroads and Clearcuts: Legacy of Congress's 1864 Northern Pacific Railroad Land Grant , Spokane: Inland Empire Public Lands Council, 1995
- ---- The Culture of Make Believe, New York: Context Books, 2002, ISBN 1893956288, LoC HT1523.J46 2002
- ---- Walking on Water: Reading, Writing, and Revolution
- ---- and George Draffan, Welcome to the Machine: Science, Surveillance, and the Culture of Control
- ---- and Jensen, McChesney, "Free Press For Sale: How Corporations Have Bought The First Amendment: An interview with Robert McChesney," The Sun, September, 2000.
- ---- and George Draffan, Strangely Like War: The Global Assault on Forests
- ---- Standup Tragedy (live CD)
- ---- forthcoming, tentative title: Endgame..., about "civilization".
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