Review By Amber Taylor
She is enrolled in my Environmental history course
This is one of my favorite books
It has been out a long time (1978) but still remains an important classic
I chose to read Of Wolves and Men because I have always been fascinated with wolves
and their plight on this Earth. A few years ago I read the book Arctic Dreams by Lopez and knew I could
count on him to give a detailed, informational, and realistic outlook on wolves
and their historically complicated, tense, and mysterious relationship with
mankind. “In the past twenty years, biologists have given us a new wolf, one
separated from folklore. But they have not found the whole truth…No one—not
biologists, not Eskimos, not backwoods hunters, not naturalist writers—knows
why wolves do what they do” (Lopez, 1978, p. 4).
Although Lopez travels the world in order to
research cultures, lands, and stories for his books, he always returns to his
home in Oregon in order to write about what he has seen and experienced. He
brings a unique viewpoint to his writings and “[they] have frequently been
compared to those of Henry David Thoreau, as he brings a depth of erudition to
the text by immersing himself in his surroundings, deftly integrating his environmental
and humanitarian concerns” (Steven Barclay Agency, 2014).
In April, 2010, Lopez was a guest on PBS’s “Bill
Moyer’s Journal, where they discussed spirit, the human condition, and nature.
Lopez describes his inspiration as nature, but not his subject. “I'm not
writing about nature. I'm writing about humanity. And if I have a subject, it
is justice. And the rediscovery of the manifold way in which our lives can be
shaped by the recovery of a sense of reverence for life" (PBS, 2010).
Lopez begins with a thorough and scientific
overview of the wolf, describing in great detail their origins, social
structures, modes of communication, hunting tactics, and territories. My favorite
part of this entire book lies in the first few pages, when Lopez begins with
the words “Imagine a wolf moving through the northern woods” (Lopez, p. 9).
What follows is an incredible narrative that follows this wolf through his
day’s endeavors. We watch as the wolf encounters other animals, stops to smell
the air on a passing breeze, and joins his beautiful harmonics with those of
his sister, who is over a mile away, before being reunited with her in a
playful and joyous reunion. Throughout this narrative, the reader is able to
sense the important role this wolf plays in his surroundings.
The wolf is tied by subtle
threads to the woods he moves through. His fur carries
seeds that will fall off, effectively dispersed, along the trail some miles from where they first caught in his fur. And
miles distant is a raven perched on
the ribs of a caribou the wolf helped kill ten days ago...A smart snowshoe hare that eluded the
wolf and left him exhausted when he was a
pup has been dead a year now, food for an owl. The den in which he was born one April evening was home
to porcupines last winter. (p. 10)
The rest of the first
chapter is dedicated to giving an in-depth and interesting account of wolves:
how they have adapted to their different environments, what their current (as
of the late 1970’s) status is in different parts of the world, the genetics and
nomenclature of the various wolf subspecies, body and coat descriptions, and physical
abilities such as endurance and agility.
Wolves spend an average of eight
to ten hours of every twenty-four on the move,
mostly the crepuscular hours. They travel great distances and have tremendous stamina. One observer
followed two wolves who broke trail through
five feet of snow for 22 miles in British Columbia. The animals paused in their tracks, but never
laid down to rest. (p. 25)
Other topics discussed
in this chapter are pack and litter sizes, the raising of pups, and the many
ways that wolves are killed and occasionally have been found to survive the
harsh realities of their ways of life. Wolves are often parasitized, get
cancer, susceptible to a number of diseases, suffer from malnutrition, and are
injured during hunts, especially by moose, but do not always succumb to these
maladies. “The point of all this is that the woods is a hard place to get on,
and yet the wolf survives” (p. 30).
Social structure and
communication are the focus of chapter two, and the differences between males
and females, alpha and beta, and discipline are highlighted. Lopez points out
that much of what has been observed and studied in the greatest detail is of
captive wolves, but fieldwork has been able to confirm these findings in many
cases.
The wolf is a social animal; it
depends for its survival on cooperation, not strife…The
social structure of a wolf pack is dynamic—subject to change, especially during the breeding
season—and may by completely reversed during
periods of play. It is important during breeding, feeding, travel, and territorial maintenance, and seems to
serve a purpose when wolves gather to reassure
each other of the positive aspects of their life-style as reflected in this social order, one that enhances
survival by collective hunting and natural population
control. (p. 33)
Wolves have a vast
array of communications, including howling, which has numerous pitches and
tones in itself, whining, squeaks, growling, posture signaling, facial
gestures, submissiveness, scent marking, fighting, and ousting members of the
pack.
There has been more speculation
about the nature and function of the wolf’s howl
than the music…of any other animal. It is a rich, captivating sound, a seductive echo that can moan on
eerily and raise the hair on your head. Wolves
apparently howl to assemble the pack…pass on an alarm…locate each in a storm or in unfamiliar
territory, and communicate across great distances.
(p. 38)
Chapter three
addresses the hunting and territory of wolves. “The wolf spends perhaps
one-third of his life in pursuit of food. It is a task for which he evolved and
to which he is well suited” (p. 54). Wolves will commonly take the young, sick
or injured when hunting, and “vary their tactics slightly to hunt each species
of prey, adapting primarily to terrain and somewhat less to the sort of prey”
(p.59). Wolf territories are fluid and depend on many factors, such as prey
availability, seasons, and denning sites.
A pack at the edge of its
territory might permit a wounded prey animal to escape if it flees across that border into another
pack’s territory. A wolf pack is
repelled by the fresh scent marks of a neighboring pack. The boundary is defined from both sides of the fence;
that is not an idea to be taken lightly is evidenced
by the number of trespassing wolves that are killed. (p. 64)
As he wraps up part
one, Lopez writes about the unique and varying relationships wolves have with
the other species. Using caribou as both prey and snowplows, feasting on other
animals’ kills, using fox burrows for their dens, and their rather odd social
repertoire with ravens. “The wolf seems to have few relationships with other
animals that could be termed purely social, though he apparently takes pleasure
in the company of ravens” (p. 67). From these descriptions of normal ecological
relationships, Lopez introduces us to the one relationship that has never
ceased to cause strife for the wolf: “the wolf’s most important and dangerous
relationship must be his relationship with man” (p. 69).
The brilliant
narratives about the wolf as a complex, intelligent, beautiful, whimsical, mysterious,
and social creature that is an important top predator in its environment serve
as a foundation for the rest of the book. Lopez describes the numerous ways in
which it has been misunderstood and persecuted throughout history. He seeks to bring an awareness to the
plight of the wolf, attempting to weave an understanding of their significance and
presence in the natural world.
Throughout folklore of
the Middle Ages, religious writings, the settlement of North America, and the
more recent history of the 19th and 20th centuries,
wolves have been described as cowardly, bloodthirsty, evil, killing machines.
They have been condemned by ranchers, religion, hunters, and even children’s
stories. The stories of how and why wolves have been killed throughout history
were very hard for me to read. It was not just killing, it was also a torturous
massacre.
I will not go in to
depth about these stories as they are disheartening in that I am sure some of
these practices continue today. It is disturbing that for thousands of years
people were so full of hate for another living creature about which they knew nothing.
What they did know, however, was fear of the unknown.
[Killing wolves] is the violent
expression of a terrible assumption: that men
have the right to kill other
creatures not for what they do but for what we
fear they may do. Killing wolves
has to do with fear based on superstitions…
At a more general level it had to
do, historically, with feelings about
wilderness. To celebrate
wilderness was to celebrate the wolf; to want an
end to wilderness and all it
stood for was to want the wolf’s head. (p.140)
Wolves were and
continue to be killed for numerous reasons, including protection of livestock
and domestic animals, bounties, hunting and sport, saving wildlife that is
unable to defend themselves (yes, people actually believe this), and for
nothing more than someone feels like doing it.
It was against a backdrop
of…taming wilderness, the law of vengeance, protection of property, an
inalienable right to decide the fate of all animals without incurring moral
responsibility, and the strongly American conception of man as the protector of
defenseless creatures, that the wolf became the enemy. (p. 148)
On a positive note,
Lopez goes in to great detail about the Eskimos and Native Americans cultures
and their relationships with wolves. They have a deep reverence and respect for
these creatures that goes beyond the basics of their biology and hunting
abilities. Their kinship with wolves has been born from keen observation and an
understanding and awareness of the wolf’s place in nature, their environment,
and the universe as a whole. These cultures seek to learn from the wolf, its
interactions with the land and each other, how they hunt and work together, and
their spiritual connectedness to their surroundings.
We do not know very much at all
about animals. We cannot understand them except in terms of our own needs and
experiences. And to approach them solely in terms of the Western imaginations
is, really, to deny the animal. It behooves us to visit with a people with whom
we share a planet and an interest in wolves but who themselves come from a
different time-space and who, so far as we know, are very much closer to the
wolf than we will ever be. (p. 86)
Although the
optimistic viewpoints on wolves are increasing, there are still an overwhelming
number of people that see them as a nuisance animal that has no logical or
necessary place in this world. The mystery of an animal or part of nature
should be admired, not feared. Everything has its place and is intimately
interconnected.
Hopefully, with
continued education, and books such as Of
Wolves and Men, these outlooks can be gradually altered and overcome. In
his epilogue, Lopez leaves us with a thought provoking and impactful statement:
To allow mystery, which is to say
to yourself, ‘There could be more, there could
be things we don’t understand,’ is not to damn knowledge. It is to take a wider view. It is to permit yourself an
extraordinary freedom: someone else does
not have to be wrong in order that you may be right. (p.284)
The
following are excerpts from other reviews of Of Wolves and Men:
Of Wolves and Men is
not just about wolves, but about how little is actually known about wolves—in
other words, Lopez is interested in the mythologies that circulate around
wolves. And, of course, humans are the creators of mythologies, so the book is
just as much about humans. The book is also about how humans visualize wolves:
Lopez’s writing is woven around visual culture, from historical photographs, to
an Eskimo print of wolves eating a caribou, to illustrations of the wolf and
the crane attached to the eponymous Aesopian fable. (Schaberg, 2010)
Of Wolves and Men has helped raise our awareness of animals as
fellow
sentient
beings with whom we share our planet and sharpened our
understanding
of how all creatures play essential roles in the spectacular,
infinitely
complex dance of life. (Seaman, 2004)
References:
Lopez, Barry. (1978). Of Wolves and Men.
Touchstone, New York, NY.
PBS. (2010). Bill Moyer’s Journal: Barry Lopez.
Retrieved November 2014 from http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/04302010/profile.html
Steven Barclay Agency. (2009-2014). Barry Lopez:
National Book Award Winner,
Author of Arctic Dreams and Resistance. Retrieved
November 2014 from
