Country Idyll
While the simple life for hundreds of millions of people is anything but easy, it’s difficult not to feel that the complexity of modern, industrialized life somehow lacks something important that our forebears had. Part of it likely has to do with what we might call the greener-pastures effect: that no matter how well-off we are, we still yearn for something just beyond reach in the belief that it is superior to what we’ve got. Another part has some basis in research: Living predominantly indoors with our eyes often focused on electronic screens has many unhealthy side effects. Electric lighting has allowed us to conquer the night, and may have messed up our natural circadian rhythms. Sedentary life is probably different than what our bodies were designed for—and it may be harder on them than we imagine.
This is the spirit with which to consider Russ Roberts’s conversation with Oxford-educated English sheepherder James Rebanks, who has written books extolling the joys and virtues of simple farm life. (I might have said “English shepherd,” but commenters will need something to do.) James can trace his family’s farming roots in the English Lake District back to the 1400s, which is as far as the written record goes back. His sheep, typical of the regional variety, go back to the Viking invasions.
It is a rare thing to feel a connection to past generations on such a grand scale, going back so many generations. Rebanks expresses an awe and a gratitude for it. The discussion contrasts this unique attachment to the land and the past with the constant economic pressure to move away, to pursue something better and richer elsewhere. Rebanks talks about how the advice to move away has probably been predominant going back to the early Industrial Revolution, when demand for factory labor put pressure on people to migrate to cities.
They also examine the good and bad of life on a farm: living outdoors in all weather; the constant need for help from domesticated livestock; how neighbors rely on each other, even when they don’t necessarily get along. And rather than presenting only a romantic look at the joys of simple country living, the discussion also covers the daily hardships and arduous slog of farming, living on the cusp of economic survival.
I was left wondering what Jusper Machogu from yesterday’s post would think: How much would a Kenyan subsistence farmer recognize as completely familiar?
How many of us have a similar connection to the past? Or to a place—especially the outdoors, exposed to nature in its beauty and contrasting harshness?
Several of the topics discussed are prized as good for our mental health in psychological research: researching your family trees to discover your roots; spending time in the outdoors, whether going for long walks, doing outdoor chores, and so on.
Podcast version here.
Jonah watch: The Wednesday G-File is out already (3:30 my time) and it appears that he at least partly wrote it while on vacation. It looks interesting. It also looks like an appropriate place for me to post a follow-up thought or two related to the German language (I posted some compound words on this blog on Monday). So if time permits, my elaboration will be found there tonight.
To end the suspense, I survived! Ta Da!
I made it up 233 steps, but they closed the "summit" due to the thunderstorm. Buit we made it high enough to get a great view of Florence (a sheltered patio, probably ten stories up!). My students heard thunder, and asked if I wanted to grab the metal railing. It was so thoughtful of them to think of my safety. 🤦♂️
But I want to go back, if time permits, if it is sunny! 😊 More tomorrow!