A World Of Snakes: A Preview Of Life Among The Amazonian Tribes

Don't Sleep, There Are Snakes: Life and Language in the Amazonian Jungle is a book by linguist Daniel Everett, detailing his experiences living with the Pirahã, a small tribe of Amazonian Indians in central Brazil. Everett, a Christian missionary, travelled to the Amazon with his wife and three young children, intending to convert the tribe to Christianity. However, he soon became fascinated by the Pirahã's unique language and way of life.

The Pirahã's unique language

The Pirahã people, a small tribe of Amazonian Indians in central Brazil, have a language that defies all existing linguistic theories. The Pirahã language has no fixed terms for colours, no counting system, no concept of war, and no personal property. They have no creation myths or origin stories about where their people came from. They do not plan more than a day ahead, do not store food and rarely talk about the future or the distant past. They have a very simple kinship group that only extends to children, siblings, parents and grandparents.

The Pirahã language has only 3 vowels and 8 consonants, one of which is a glottal stop. It does not contain cardinal or ordinal numbers. Most significantly, Pirahã sentences only ever contain one verb and the language does not allow for linguistic recursion. This is described as a major challenge to Chomsky’s theory of universal grammar, since it is recursion that allows for the formation of an infinite number of sentences.

The Pirahã language is spoken among intimates who know the context of each utterance and do not need special grammatical constructions. The Pirahã people have an empirical approach to the world and only concern themselves with directly experienced events, or at least those within living memory. They may believe something that they are told, but only if the person telling the story directly witnessed the event themselves. This is linked to what Everett terms 'The Immediacy of Experience Principle' (IEP).

The Pirahã language is also expressed in whistling or humming. Everett describes the Pirahã as having a "very conservative" culture, in that they are unwilling to consider innovation. They are also remarkably and genuinely happy. They are tolerant, patient, and content with their way of life.

The Pirahã's way of life

The Pirahã are a small tribe of Amazonian Indians in central Brazil. They have a unique way of life that differs significantly from Western culture.

The Pirahã live in the present moment and have no concept of the future or the distant past. They do not plan ahead and have no creation myths or origin stories. They live very simply, hunting, fishing, foraging, and growing manioc. They have no concept of war or personal property, and they do not store food. They are remarkably content, living without envy, violence, or vengeance. They have no leaders or hierarchy, and children are treated as equals.

The Pirahã language is profoundly unusual and unrelated to any other. It has only three vowels and eight consonants, and it lacks cardinal or ordinal numbers. It also does not contain conjunctions or recursion, challenging Chomsky's theory of universal grammar. The Pirahã have a unique way of communicating direction, oriented by the river rather than cardinal directions. They also have multiple "language channels," including normal speech, hum speech, whistle speech, yell speech, and musical speech.

The Pirahã have a deep connection to the spiritual world and often see and speak with spirits. They only accept direct, first-hand experiences as valid, which is why they have been resistant to conversion by Christian missionaries for over 200 years. They are also resistant to adopting Western ways of life and consumerism, maintaining their traditional culture and way of living.

The Pirahã way of life offers a unique perspective on language, thought, and life itself, challenging common assumptions and offering valuable insights into the nature of human existence.

Everett's loss of faith

In his book, *Don't Sleep, There Are Snakes: Life and Language in the Amazonian Jungle*, Daniel L. Everett recounts his experience living with the Pirahã people of the Amazon. Everett, a missionary, spent seven years over three decades with the Pirahã, studying their language and culture.

The Pirahã live a simple life, without the concepts of war or personal property, and with no creation myths or origin stories. They claim to see spirits but have no reigning god figure. Everett became obsessed with their language and its cultural and linguistic implications, and with their remarkable contentment. He also observed how well they functioned without the concept of God, and this, along with his study of their language, led him to lose his Christian faith and become an atheist.

The book provides an engrossing exploration of language and an anthropological investigation of the Pirahã people, as well as a personal account of Everett's life and how it was profoundly affected by his exposure to a different culture.

Everett's scientific discoveries

Daniel Everett's book "Don't Sleep, There Are Snakes" is a memoir of his time spent with the Pirahã, a small tribe of Amazonian Indians in Brazil. Everett, a linguist and former missionary, details his experiences living with the Pirahã and studying their unique language and culture. Here are some of his scientific discoveries:

• The Pirahã language has no fixed terms for colours, no counting system, no concept of war, and no personal property.
• The Pirahã live entirely in the present and value direct, first-hand experiences. They have no creation myths or origin stories and rarely discuss the future or distant past.
• Everett discovered that the Pirahã language does not contain recursion (the ability to embed clauses with new information within sentences), challenging Noam Chomsky's theory of universal grammar.
• The Pirahã communicate on multiple "channels", including normal speech, hum speech, whistle speech, yell speech, and musical speech.
• The Pirahã have an "Immediacy of Experience Principle" (IEP), where facts are only considered valid if they are witnessed first-hand or by someone trusted. This made it difficult for Everett to introduce the concept of Jesus to the Pirahã.
• The Pirahã have a conservative culture and are resistant to innovation. They are content with their simple, sustainable way of life and are not interested in accumulating material possessions.
• Everett observed that the Pirahã were a peaceful and happy people, with little aggression or violence. They were tolerant, patient, and treated children as equals.
• The Pirahã language has only 11 phonemes and does not use cardinal or ordinal numbers.
• Everett noted that the Pirahã had a different sense of direction, oriented towards the river rather than using cardinal directions.
• The Pirahã have a unique way of referring to quantities, using phrases like "a group of people" or "a group of fish" instead of specific numbers.
• The Pirahã have a unique kinship system, with groups extending only to children, siblings, parents, and grandparents.

Everett's personal life

In 'Don't Sleep, There Are Snakes', Daniel Everett recounts his experiences as a Christian missionary in the Amazonian jungle in the late 1970s. Everett, who was 26 when he first ventured into the Amazon, spent a total of seven years over three decades living with and studying the Pirahã, a small tribe of Amazonian Indians in central Brazil. Everett's initial goal was to convert the Pirahã to Christianity, but he ended up losing his faith as a result of his experiences with the tribe.

Everett's journey began when he travelled deep into the Amazon with his wife and three young children. There, he embedded himself with the Pirahã, a group of indigenous people who have maintained a distinct language and culture. As a missionary, Everett's intent was to convert the Pirahã to Christianity. However, he quickly encountered challenges as he had to first convince the Brazilian authorities that he had a legitimate purpose for being in the country. To do this, he registered as a language student studying the Pirahã language.

Over the course of his seven years with the Pirahã, Everett became obsessed with their language and its cultural and linguistic implications. He discovered that the Pirahã language defied all existing linguistic theories and reflected a way of life that was vastly different from his own. The Pirahã had no counting system, no fixed terms for colour, and no concept of war or personal property. They lived entirely in the present and had a remarkable sense of contentment, which Everett found intriguing.

During his time with the Pirahã, Everett also faced physical challenges and health issues. He contracted malaria multiple times and had to adapt to the tribe's unique sleeping patterns, noting that they rarely slept for several hours at a time. Despite these difficulties, Everett gained valuable insights and had life-changing experiences that profoundly impacted his personal and spiritual life.

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