Flight Ways

Thom Van Dooren, Flight Ways: Life and Loss at the Edge of Extinction (Columbia University Press, 2014)

An important early work in the field of Environmental Humanities, Flight Ways focuses on the meaning of extinction in the current age.  It examines the plight of five species of birds: albatross, vultures, penguins, cranes, and crows on the edge of extinction.  The argument is that extinction is not a one-time event in which a species that once existed ceases to exist, but much more of an ongoing process.  Although perhaps not developed quite as fully as it could be, the concept of ‘flight ways’ is used to summarise the evolutionary history of a particular species and the myriad of intersections with other life on earth.  Van Dooren’s approach is sometimes quite theoretical, but mostly very readable and easy to follow.  This is a good introduction to the field of environmental humanities that asks some important questions about the relationship between humans and non-human animals over time.