

Dirt
A Social History as Seen Through the Uses and Abuses of Dirt
Author: Terence McLaughlin
Narrator: Todd Belcher
Unabridged: 6 hr 35 min
Format: Digital Audiobook Download
Publisher: Echo Point Books & Media, LLC
Published: 06/04/2024
Categories: Nonfiction, Social Science, Anthropology, Customs & Traditions
Synopsis
In this engaging and often humorous study of life’s imperfections, public health and hygiene authority Terence McLaughlin dissects our attitudes toward the filth that has accompanied society throughout human history. According to him, “dirt” is a matter of opinion.
Cultural attitudes about everything from factory smoke to personal hygiene are constantly shifting with the economic and political exigencies of the era. McLaughlin cites Old Testament examples of cleanliness which, unbeknownst at the time, helped protect the observant from the plague. The famous baths of ancient Rome were seen as progress for personal hygiene, and later scorned by Christians who rejected all things Roman.
With a litany of fascinating examples, McLaughlin sheds light on how we accept or reject substances. Dirt is essential listening for anyone wishing to understand how we shape our environment.
©1971 Terence McLaughlin. Produced and published by Echo Point Books & Media, an independent bookseller in Brattleboro, Vermont.