Eco-communities as a social vision

Eco-communities as a social vision
Egalitarian and ecological communities, like the pictured East Wind (www.eastwind.org), are very close to our vision of an ecological society

28 June, 2008

Trees by Rush, Album: Hemispheres, 1978


There is unrest in the forest,
There is trouble with the trees,
For the maples want more sunlight
And the oaks ignore their pleas.

The trouble with the maples,
(And they're quite convinced they're right)
They say the oaks are just too lofty
And they grab up all the light.
But the oaks can't help their feelings
If they like the way they're made.
And they wonder why the maples
Can't be happy in their shade.

There is trouble in the forest,
And the creatures all have fled,
As the maples scream "Oppression!"
And the oaks just shake their heads

So the maples formed a union
And demanded equal rights.
"The oaks are just too greedy;
We will make them give us light."
Now there's no more oak oppression,
For they passed a noble law,
And the trees are all kept equal
By hatchet, axe, and saw.


We read in wikipedia

"The Trees" is one of Rush's more popular songs. A fable told through fantasy lyrics, a forest suffers from the competition of tall oak trees and shorter maple trees for sunlight. In the end, no one wins as the "trees are all kept equal by hatchet, axe, and saw." The song's meaning is often debated by fans. Peart has been quoted as saying that the lyrics for this song were inspired by a cartoon and that the song has no deep meaning, but also has said that it is about collectivism.

We believe that this song is probably a naturalistic/environmental metaphor for the “equality” of Communist regimes. The two kinds of trees that have conflict represent the war of classes and the exploitation of the poor by the rich. But the most famous revolution in order to stop class division and exploitation has lead to an unbearable uniformity and total oppression through violence and terror.

You can hear this song in youtube

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Put the lyrics of Natural Science
Thanks
Γιώργος