- The Fifth Sacred Thing
infobox Book |
name = The Fifth Sacred Thing
title_orig =
translator =
image_caption = Cover of trade paperback edition
author = Starhawk
illustrator =
cover_artist = Keith Batcheller
country = United States of America
language = English
series =
genre = Post Apocalyptic
publisher = Bantam
release_date = 1993
english_release_date =
media_type = Print (Hardcover, Trade Paperback & Mass Market Paperback)
pages = 486
isbn = ISBN 0553373803
preceded_by =
followed_by ="The Fifth Sacred Thing" is a 1993 post-apocalyptic novel written by
Starhawk .Plot
It describes a world set in the year 2048 after a catastrophe which has fractured the
United States into several nations. The protagonists live inSan Francisco and have evolved in the direction ofEcotopia , reverting to asustainable economy , using wind power, local agriculture, and the like. To the south, though, an overtly-theocraticChristian fundamentalist nation has evolved and plans to wage war against the San Franciscans. The novel explores the events before and during the ensuing struggle between the two nations, pittingutopia anddystopia against each other.The story is primarily told from the points of view of 98-year-old Maya, her nominal granddaughter Madrone, and her grandson Bird. Through these and other characters, the story explores many elements from
ecofeminism andecotopian fiction .The title is derived from the four elements of fire, earth, air, and water, plus an additional element revealed as the plot unfolds.
This novel predicts the efforts of corporations to control water; for example, figureheads in
Bolivia 'sold' the city ofCochabamba 's water rights toBechtel , a private corporation. The people rebelled and declared the sale both unethical and fundamentally impossible and created the Cochabamba declaration.In the novel, San Francisco is a mostly
pagan city where the streets have been torn up for gardens and streams, no one starves or is homeless, and the city's defense council consists primarily of nine elderly women who "listen and dream". The NeighboringChristian Fudamentalist Nation possesses very advanced technology such asNuclear Power ,Computers and EvenGenetic Engineering and otherBiotechnology . Despite this the majority of it's citizens live in poverty and many starve as a result of both drought and it's natural desert conditions, the only people allowed food and water are the ones who accept its state religion. It has a very powerful military with state of the artMilitary technology and soldiers trained from birth to fight. Its Boundaries aren't made clear but taking into account it encompasses the modern day cities ofLos Angeles andSan Diego (Renamed Angel City and San Diablo), Its Desert conditions and it's Military Power, it likely encompasses all of what was oncesouthern california and perhaps some or all of what were the The States ofArizona , andNevada .In 1997, Starhawk wrote a
prequel , "Walking to Mercury" (ISBN 0-553-10233-8).
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