Five years ago, the edited collection on Deep Adaptation, from Polity Press, explored the implications of collapse anticipation for a variety of intellectual fields, from climatology to psychology, and from education to politics. One area that editors Rupert Read and I did not include was archaeology, particularly insights from the collapse of past civilisations. As the topic of societal decline and collapse has grown in the public conversation over recent years, so has curiosity about past civilisations. Therefore Rupert and I teamed up again to review the relevant scholarship, and how it might help inspire and inform conversations today about how to respond to societies that appear to be breaking down, or are about to. You can read the full article on Resilience, and then join the first open salon of the Metacrisis Initiative. On July 7th you can join us online as we discuss ideas for positive collective action, beyond the pretence that the current socio-economic systems can continue. We will be joined by Helena Norberg-Hodge and other guest experts. Below is a summary of the article.
Summary of “Inspirational Collapses”.
In their article, Professors Jem Bendell and Rupert Read argue that discussions of the relevance of ancient collapses for understanding our current predicament must now evolve from simplistic warnings. They see an enhanced role for historians and archaeologists: helping the public to reflect on how past civilizations softened collapse, by intentionally adapting to contraction, and transforming aspects of life, while maintaining some social coherence.
The authors argue this could help an essential expansion of our imagination beyond two dominant narratives: perpetual progress (the impossible assumption of endless growth) and defensive nostalgia (attempts to fortify power and return to mythologized pasts). What is missing are narratives of intentional contraction, adaptive simplification, and dignified loss. They discuss the concept of “thrutopia”— where visions combine optimism of the will with pessimism of the intellect, grounded in a more honest acknowledgment of both tragedy and opportunity.
Bendell and Read offer three historical examples for reflection: the Byzantine Empire after the 7th century, which voluntarily reorganized and localized; the Mayan civilisation, which appears to have experienced urban-rural migration and re-localization rather than outright failure; and Post-Roman Britain, where new forms of social organization and local resilience emerged in the context of collapse of dominant systems. Common themes include scale-reduction, cultural portability, and elite loss with popular survival.
They point to some existing scholarship in the field but argue it needs greater attention and an explicit acknowledgement of a role for prompting social dialogue on the current predicament. The authors encourage readers to approach societal disruption and descent with courage, care, and creativity, rather than denial, defence, or violence. They invite readers to a free open salon.
Note to members of the Metacrisis Initiative: this salon is with a different time and format to the usual monthly meetings. It occurs on a Tuesday and is not suited for all time zones. It will involve a panel and Q&A. The normal salons return in August.
