The Nutmeg's Curse: Parables for a Planet in Crisis - Amitav Ghosh
- booksandpulsations
- Mar 16, 2024
- 3 min read
Amitav Ghosh's "The Nutmeg's Curse" dives deep into the dark waters of Dutch colonial history, unearthing the roots of modern ecological and social crises. At the heart of Ghosh's narrative is the chilling account of ecocidal and genocidal acts on the Banda Islands, where approximately 95% of the native population and forests were exterminated in the pursuit of nutmeg, a commodity then more precious than gold. This brutal conquest, Ghosh argues, was not an isolated incident but a foundational element of the European colonial endeavor, justified under the guise of 'progress.'
Ghosh deconstructs the notion of progress, tracing its origins to a mid-18th-century French economist's vision that all the horrors perpetrated by colonial powers were sacrifices at the altar of a higher purpose. This ideology of progress, solidified by the formalization of history as a discipline in the late 18th century, has perpetuated a narrative where history is a linear trajectory of improvement, conveniently glossing over the atrocities committed in the name of advancement.
Ghosh highlights the most crucial method of colonialism, whether it be settler or not. He says that colonizers' first goal is to "capture" the land, which they see as wild/unknown but also inanimate nature. This capturing results in two things: objectification of nature for the purpose of the colonizers, (as Aimé Césaire argues, colonialism is thingification). Back then, it was massacring the nutmeg tree and using the nutmeg in trade and enhancing the colonizers' wealth; now, the same logic and method carry on in burning fossil fuels, deforestation, etc. The second point of capturing the land is to cut Indigenous people's bond with nature, with which they live enmeshed, resulting in them becoming weakened, killed, and dependent on the colonizers. Ghosh theorizes this intertwined colonization technique as terraforming. In terraforming, both the land/nature and Indigenous populations are under attack and forced to change.
Once again, Ghosh traces the importance of the language we use. He sheds light on the various techniques employed to deny agency and absolve colonizers of accountability—be it through the passive voice in historical narratives, blaming diseases, or alleging mismanagement of the land by Indigenous peoples. Ghosh extends this argument to the philosophical systems that acknowledge only a small group of the elite as truly "rational and capable of agency," which leaves nonwhite people and nonhumans outside of the Human category - i.e., beings deemed unworthy of a life considered valuable.
Central to Ghosh's thesis is the commodification of nature—exemplified by the nutmeg trade—as a reflection of a broader historical disregard for the natural world, driven by a desire to engineer and dominate it. This disregard is sharply critiqued in the context of modern endeavors, such as Elon Musk's ambitions in space, which Ghosh sees as a continuation of the colonial mindset of remaking territories in one's own image, ignoring their inherent meanings and the consequences of such engineering on the Earth.
The narrative then expands into a broader critique of the modern world's detachment from the Earth, highlighting how everything from energy consumption patterns to climate migration is symptomatic of a deeper planetary crisis. Ghosh emphasizes the interconnectedness of all things, arguing against the compartmentalization of climate change as a separate issue and advocating for a holistic understanding of it as part of a broader ecological and societal upheaval.
"The Nutmeg's Curse" is a compelling call to recognize and rectify the centuries-old ideologies that have led to the current planetary crisis. Through the lens of the nutmeg's bloody history, Ghosh invites readers to rethink their relationship with the biosphere, urging a shift towards a more interconnected and respectful engagement with the world. The book stands as a reminder of the urgent need for a new way of looking at the world, one that learns from the past and is informed by the wisdom of Indigenous peoples and their more harmonious ways of coexisting with nature.
In "The Nutmeg's Curse," Ghosh combines historical analysis with philosophical inquiry, presenting a powerful and provocative critique of the colonial underpinnings of the modern environmental crisis. It is a must-read for anyone interested in understanding the deep historical roots of today's ecological challenges and contemplating the paths toward a more equitable and sustainable future.
