![]() ![]() Walkers writes that the ungulate prey species likely traveled to the Pacific-side of the islands in winter because these held less snow and forage was found more easily, and the wolves followed the prey seasonally. These animals historically followed prey like red deer and several now-extinct variety of large deer, as well as (possibly) boar, fish and the occassional beached whale. He concludes that true wolves of the Canis lupus variety migrated to the Japanese archipelago from mainland Siberia and underwent evolutionary insular dwarfism, resulting in a smaller-statured wolf than found on the mainland. Walker first investigates the taxonomy of Japanese wolves, which was disputed and left unclear (similar to the red wolf) because there were so few whole specimens to study prior to their extinction around 1905 (though some say this date is wrong and they survived until the mid-1940s, post World War II). He examines the near-myth of Japanese “oneness” with nature the culture of the Ainu (an indigenous people group in the Japanese archipelago) and their spiritual reverence for wild wolves, and their close relationship with domesticated hunting dogs how early Japanese naturalists classified the wolves and mountain dogs that populated their islands the Japanese government’s quest to modernize their society through ranching during the early years of the Meiji Restoration (ca. He pokes and prods the relationships of these entitites to each other by using various historical lenses. Walker explores many different themes in The Lost Wolves of Japan, most of which are centered around people, culture, wolves and nature. If you like historical detail, this book serves it up in helping after generous helping. ![]() He used historical research methodologies to frame an inquiry into what the Japanese wolf was, and what led to its extinction. Author Brett Walker is a professor of history at Montana State University who specializes in Japanese history this book was published by the Univ. The Lost Wolves of Japan is a first-rate academically-oriented text that combs through the natural and cultural history of wolves on the Japanese archipelago. He finds that family legacies shape us both physically and symbolically, forming the root of our identity and values, and he urges us to renew our interest in the past or risk misunderstanding ourselves and the world around us.The Lost Wolves of Japan, by Brett Walker In his own search, Walker soon realizes that this broader scope is more valuable than a strictly medical family history. In this deeply personal narrative, he constructs a history of his body to understand his diagnosis with a serious immunological disorder, weaving together his dying grandfather's sneaking a cigarette in a shed on the family's Montana farm, blood fractionation experiments in Europe during World War II, and nineteenth-century cholera outbreaks that ravaged small American towns as his ancestors were making their way west.Ī Family History of Illness is a gritty historical memoir that examines the body's immune system and microbial composition as well as the biological and cultural origins of memory and history, offering a startling, fresh way to view the role of history in understanding our physical selves. While in the ICU with a near-fatal case of pneumonia, Brett Walker was asked, "Do you have a family history of illness?"-a standard and deceptively simple question that for Walker, a professional historian, took on additional meaning and spurred him to investigate his family's medical past. ![]()
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