Anatomy of Restlessness is a collection of articles and short stories written by Bruce Chatwin, who died in 1989. During his life Chatwin pursued several careers including those of art critic and travel writer. This meant that he got a look into the collecting habits of the rich and famous, but he was also fascinated by the life of the nomad, with a minimum of possessions. This gave him a unique insight into the contrasts between the two, and in his article
The Morality of Things he explores where our acquisitive tendencies originated.
The middle section of the book is called The Nomadic Alternative and represent the start of a book of that title. In a way it's understandable that this longer work was never finished, as much of Chatwin's writing in this book seems to show a rather brief - and indeed restless - style in which he rather dogmatically states what he sees as the facts, without the discussion which is needed to persuade the reader. (I need to read some of his full length books to see how he gets on when he has more space). But overall I felt that the book was a rewarding read, with much thought-provoking material.
home
