The Beginning Was the End

The Beginning Was the End

Price: $200.00

Author: Oscar Kiss MaerthPublisher: Praeger PublishersRelease Date: December 29, 1973

Attributes: First American (“Devo”) edition; Hardcover; Rare

Condition: Good. Some chipping of dust jacket, no interior markings; prior owner’s stamp imprinted on flyleaf.

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This is the first American hardcover edition (Praeger, 1973; translated by Judith Hayward) of Maerth’s crackpot/cult classic — significantly, the one made famous by the band DEVO, who, per Wikipedia, “…incorporated several elements of the book into their concept of ‘de-evolution’ and even adopted the book’s title for their short film, In the Beginning was the End: The Truth About De-evolution.” Of course, you already know that, since you’ve done your homework and have seen the cover image appropriated in the design for DEVO’s 1989 album, Now It Can Be Told. Anyway, this edition is really hard to find now. Apart from the legendary DEVO connection, Maerth’s peculiar thesis is generally dismissed as racist pseudoscience, but I think there is value in approaching it as a sub-species of “insight porn,” maybe a few clicks downstream of such “outsider” evolutionary theories that have been exposited by Julian Jaynes and Elaine Morgan. The dust jacket has some crimps and chipping (the worst of which are visible in the image), but the binding is tight and the interior is clean (except for a small stamp on the flyleaf). Additional photos will be provided to prospective buyers upon request.

 

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Description

This is the first American hardcover edition (Praeger, 1973; translated by Judith Hayward) of Maerth’s crackpot/cult classic — significantly, the one made famous by the band DEVO, who, per Wikipedia, “…incorporated several elements of the book into their concept of ‘de-evolution’ and even adopted the book’s title for their short film, In the Beginning was the End: The Truth About De-evolution.” Of course, you already know that, since you’ve done your homework and have seen the cover image appropriated in the design for DEVO’s 1989 album, Now It Can Be Told. Anyway, this edition is really hard to find now. Apart from the legendary DEVO connection, Maerth’s peculiar thesis is generally dismissed as racist pseudoscience, but I think there is value in approaching it as a sub-species of “insight porn,” maybe a few clicks downstream of such “outsider” evolutionary theories that have been exposited by Julian Jaynes and Elaine Morgan. The dust jacket has some crimps and chipping (the worst of which are visible in the image), but the binding is tight and the interior is clean (except for a small stamp on the flyleaf). Additional photos will be provided to prospective buyers upon request.

  • Attributes: First American (“Devo”) edition; Hardcover; Rare
  • Condition: Good. Some chipping of dust jacket, no interior markings; prior owner’s stamp imprinted on flyleaf.
  • US Shipping: Free First Class shipping and insurance to US customers.
  • International Shipping: Shipping rates for international customers will have to be determined

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