Morel Tales: The Culture of MushroomingIn this thoughtful book, Gary Fine explores how Americans attempt to give meaning to the natural world that surrounds them. Although nature has often been treated as an unproblematic reality, Fine suggests that the meanings we assign to the natural environment are culturally grounded. In other words, there is no nature separate from culture. He calls this process of cultural construction and interpretation, naturework. Of course, there is no denying the biological reality of trees, mountains, earthquakes, and hurricanes, but, he argues, they must be interpreted to be made meaningful. Fine supports this claim by examining the fascinating world of mushrooming. Based on three years of field research with mushroomers at local and national forays, Morel Tales highlights the extensive range of meanings that mushrooms have for mushroomers. Fine details how mushroomers talk about their finds--turning their experiences into fish stories (the one that got away), war stories, and treasure tales; how mushroomers routinely joke about dying from or killing others with misidentified mushrooms, and how this dark humor contributes to the sense of community among collectors. He also describes the sometimes friendly, sometimes tense relations between amateur mushroom collectors and professional mycologists. Fine extends his argument to show that the elaboration of cultural meanings found among mushroom collectors is equally applicable to birders, butterfly collectors, rock hounds, and other naturalists. |
Contents
1 | |
1 Being in Nature | 27 |
2 Meaningful Mushrooms | 57 |
3 Sharing the Woods | 93 |
4 Talking Wild | 134 |
5 Organizing Naturalists | 164 |
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activity aesthetic Amanita birdwatching boletes Brian chanterelles Chicago claim club members cohesion collecting collectors common names Conservation consume cultural danger Dave David Arora described edible mushrooms emotional environmental experience feel fieldguides foray fungi fungus Gary Alan Gary Alan Fine genus going human humor hunting identify mushrooms individuals Interaction interest Jerry joked knowledge leisure groups leisure organizations leisure world linked look Maggie Rogers meaning ment metaphorical Minnesota Mycological Society Molly moral morels mush mushroom hunters mycelium Mycena Mycological Association mycologists narratives natural environment natural objects naturalists naturework Newsletter novices one’s organizational oyster mushrooms participants percent perspective pick poisonous professional mycologists quotation reality relationship roomers rooms Russulas scientific secrecy shared social world Sociology species specimens Spore Print spots Spring stinkhorn stories suggests talk taste there’s things tion told treasure trust University Press voluntary wild mushrooms wilderness woods York York Mycological Society