In the middle of things is an environmental discussion about pickers, gathers and forest employees. The story starts with a meeting between the forest employees and an organization of the pickers. Misunderstanding between the two comes up due to poor listening skills from the organization of pickers. The meeting is held in legacy of Brown who was a tireless organizer with good communication skills. At last, the two groups are able to negotiate. The next chapter talks about a group called Matsutake crusaders (Lowenhaupt 272). The group consists of volunteers who are willing to redeem the extinction of mushrooms and pines in the forest. They decide to disturb the forest the forest in despair of getting matsutake. The chapter mainly talks about woodland revitalization groups. The next chapter ordinary assets talks about making matsutake forest properties. It talks about the forest being personal and during matsutake seasons, auction is done in a whole village and one person is given the responsibility of harvesting matsutake. The next chapter, anti-ending is about the few persons who are passionate about mushrooms and are in contrary opinion about the ending mushrooms in the mountains of Matsutake forests. It is all about Matsiman who they describe as anybody who loves learning, hunting, respecting and protecting matsutake mushroom habitat.
The research has several problems affecting it. Just to begin with, in the first chapter, there is a problem between the crusaders and the forest officers. The first problem is low attendance at the meeting where they conclude that Cambodians do not attend meetings. The second problem is that of misunderstanding (Lowenhaupt 265). The sloggers are not good listeners and therefore fail to understand what the forest officers say. Another problem is lack of knowledge by the volunteer crusaders. They do trial and error process of recovering the mushrooms. The next problem comes after privatization where poachers illegally access the matsutakes forest and harvesting without permission from the owners.
The reading is tied together in a fluent and logical manner right from the first chapter, In the Middle of Nothing. The author is very clear and logical in the manner of choosing his words and topics. In the first chapter we are told of a forest existing in the middle of nowhere and due to the introduction of forest rangers, a meeting is held between the rangers and the pickers. He brings up the story well up to the last chapter where the matsutake forests are ending but there are few lovers of mushrooms, who stand against its ending.
Work Cited
Tsing, Anna Lowenhaupt. The mushroom at the end of the world: On the possibility of life in capitalist ruins. Princeton University Press, 2015. Pp 258-281.
