H2o and The Waters Of Forgetfulness

This book describes the shift in the symbolic meaning of water through western history. Essentially, water has gone from being a magical substance to, as Ivan Illich describes it, "a man-made cleaning fluid". Much of the book focuses on the changing views towards excretion and body odor because these changing views influenced humanity's relationship to water. Also discussed are historic sources of water for cities and how that shaped the human-water relationship.

outstandingly revealing