Polarization often results from deficient forms of social belonging, caused primarily by stark social inequalities. These inequalities then generate psychological responses that both create and worsen polarization. Yet social stability is possible. In this provocative and original book, Nilson Ariel Espino argues that our current ideological polarizations can be best analysed as springing from the contradictions of modernity and its obsessions. Using culture as a founding and organizing dimension, the author disassembles the typical dichotomies of left versus right, or conservatism versus progressivism, and reveals the opposing sides as mutually interdependent positions that struggle with cultural paradoxes they are ill-suited to address. Written with clarity and verve for the general reader, this book brings classic concepts of cultural anthropology to bear on the key preoccupations of today's world, from poverty and inequality, to political instability and the environmental crisis.

‘The book adopts a highly interdisciplinary approach to deciphering how our societies are operating. The goal here is to propose alternatives that could help us achieve truly sustainable development pathways. Dr Espino’s proposal is actionable. It provides a bit of fresh air amidst the many crises of our time.’

Catherine Potvin - FRSC, Canada Research Chair (Tier 1) on Climate Change Mitigation and Tropical Forests, and Professor, Department of Biology, McGill University

‘Conversations with the Turtles is the best of anthropology, and all the better because the author forges graceful lines of flight that extend beyond the portals of disciplinary ivory towers to the busy avenues and gritty streets of life as we live it. The author’s lamplights will shine on you and leave you more awake than you might care to be. The brilliance is harsh; it is inescapable.’

James D. Faubion - Radoslav Tsanoff Chair and Professor of Anthropology Emeritus, Rice University