Literature and Philosophy

Literature and Philosophy

Introduction

The book, Original Wisdom by Robert Wolff, revolves around his experience with the Senoi (spelled Sng'oi by the author) people, the natives of Peninsular Malaysia. The Sng'oi, as described by the Robert Wolff, are shy and peace seeking people who live without what we today call the basic necessities of life. Despite the rapid worldwide technological advancements and resulting massive transformation in the cultural and social values of world population, the Sng'oi people has been, somewhat, immune to these changes. In his narrative, Mr. Wolff described the Sng'oi people's centuries old way of living, their unique and, somewhat, strange ways of natural healing and their dedication to preserving old traditions and knowledge orally and through word of mouth. The stories explain how the aboriginals of Malaysia, live in harmony with nature and with each other, in a lush green place surrounded by jungles where hurry and haste, competition and suspicion are unknown to the people. This nature oriented living is also the theme of David Abram's “The Spell of the Sensuous” in which the philosopher is in search of an answer to what he consider as a dilemma of modern world especially the western civilization which has become so alienated from nature that it condones the ongoing destruction of forests, rivers, valleys, species and ecosystems. The paper attempts to find a relation between “Original Wisdom” and “The Spell of the Sensuous” and seek to demonstrate how the stories by Robert Wolff complement the arguments put forward by David Abram.

Discussion

Robert Wolff, a government psychologist and educator, who spent a considerable time with Senoi or Sng'oi people studying them, learning their language and culture. In every story of the book, the author seems to have been greatly inspired and impressed by the ways Senoi are integrated themselves with the ...