{"product_id":"the-retreat-of-the-elephants-by-mark-elvin-9780300119930","title":"The Retreat of the Elephants","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThis landmark account of China’s environmental history, written by an internationally pre-eminent China specialist, \u003cem\u003eshould stand for decades to come as a unique statement on motives, processes, perceptions and consequences of environmental change in China.” (Jennifer L. Mnookin, \u003cem\u003eAmerican Scientist\u003c\/em\u003e)\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Retreat of the Elephants\u003c\/em\u003e is the first environmental history of China during the three thousand years for which there are written records. It is also a treasure trove of literary, political, aesthetic, scientific, and religious sources, which allow the reader direct access to the views and feelings of the Chinese people toward their environment and their landscape.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eElvin chronicles the spread of the Chinese style of farming that eliminated the habitat of the elephants that populated the country alongside much of its original wildlife; the destruction of most of the forests; the impact of war on the environmental transformation of the landscape; and the re-engineering of the countryside through water-control systems, some of gigantic size.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eHe documents the histories of three contrasting localities within China to show how ecological dynamics defined the lives of the inhabitants. And he shows that China in the eighteenth century, on the eve of the modern era, was probably more environmentally degraded than northwestern Europe around this time.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIndispensable for its new perspective on long-term Chinese history and its explanation of the roots of China’s present-day environmental crisis, this book opens a door into the Chinese past.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Unknown","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47603269107948,"sku":"9780300119930","price":47.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9780300119930-the-retreat-of-the-elephants.jpg?v=1778059340","url":"https:\/\/bookhero.co.nz\/products\/the-retreat-of-the-elephants-by-mark-elvin-9780300119930","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}