Bodian/Naess Slide Show

HMXP 102

Dr. Fike

Arne Naess

• Top Norwegian philosopher of the 20th century. See details from the link below.

• Naess cited Rachel Carson’s 1962 book Silent Spring as being a key influence in his vision of deep ecology.

Source: http://0-www.xreferplus.com.library.winthrop.edu/entry.do?id=8026970&hh=1&secid

Naess’s Thesis?

• If you were asked to identify one sentence as Naess’s thesis, which one would you select?  Which sentence best encapsulates his main point?

Answer

• End of par. 2: “I never have had the feeling that nature is something to be dominated or conquered; it is something with which we coexist.”

• Middle of par. 12: “And if we make that shift toward a life simple in means but rich in goals, we are not threatened by plans for saving the planet elaborated by environmentalists.”

Bodian/Naess: Terminology

• Group work for 10 minutes: Get with 3-4 others and find (or construct) definitions of the following terms. Also, try to put them together into a summary of what Naess advocates.

– Deep ecology (esp. pars. 14-22)– Shallow ecology (par. 15)– Shallow ecology:________::deep ecology:________. – Conservation (par. 15)– Ecosophy (pars. 8 and 10)– Paradigm shift (pars. 11-12)– Self-realization (pars. 19-20 and 23)– The Self vs. the ego (pars. 17 and 20)– Tao (par. 20)

Question

• Identify characteristics of deep ecology in pars. 14-22.

• Do this for the next 5 minutes with a partner or partners.

Characteristics of Deep Ecology

• Reverence for all of life

• An emotional connection to other species

• Democratic spirit• Reduction of human

population to sustainable numbers

• Reversal of damage• Biodiversity and

symbiosis• Long-range view• The Self > the ego• Religious/ethical

component

Next Question

• What is the difference between deep ecology and shallow ecology?

• How do the terms three slides above relate to the distinction between deep and shallow ecology?

Shallow vs. Deep Ecology

SHALLOW• Conservation• Short-term measures• Ego• Cost-benefit analysis• Only humans benefit

DEEP• Preservation• Restoration• Cohabitation• Long-term measures• Self• Difficult questions• Symbiosis/coexistence• “Leaky margins” (Peter

Russell)

Deep Ecology

• “ . . . the ‘Deep Ecology movement’ is concerned with the following; ‘(1) rejection of the man-in-environment image in favour of the relational, total-field image; (2) biospherical egalitarianism—in principle; (3) principles of diversity and of symbiosis; (4) anticlass posture; (5) fight against pollution and resource depletion; (6) complexity not complication; (7) local autonomy and decentralization.’”

• Source: http://0-www.xreferplus.com.library.winthrop.edu/entry.do?id=8026759&hh=1&secid

From Credo Reference• “A radical form of environmentalism which argues that nature has inherent rights to

existence which are as, if not more, important than those of humans. Deep ecology is both a philosophy and a practice associated with the western environmental movement. It emerged in the early 1970s when ecologist Arne Naess (1973) made a distinction between 'shallow' and 'deep ecology', although it draws upon much older traditions of thought. For Naess the outpouring of government, business and government concern over the environment in the late 1960s and early 1970s amounted to a shallow ecology, or what Luke (1988, p. 66) calls 'reform environmentalism'. Reform environmentalism was fundamentally technocentric - it sought managerial solutions to environmental problems within existing socio-economic frameworks - and also anthropocentric - in that it both saw human values as the source of all values and saw nature and environment as but means to human ends. Against this, deep ecology is ecocentric and also advocates dismantling the dominant socio-economic systems through which humans appropriate nature. As Naess (1973, p. 100, italics added) put it, deep ecology calls for a post-anthropocentric 'biospherical egalitarianism' to create 'an awareness of the equal right (of all things) to live and blossom'. Subsequently, Bill Devall and George Sessions (1985) laid out the philosophical tenets of deep ecology in much more detail” (my emphases).

•Source: http://0-www.xreferplus.com.library.winthrop.edu/entry.do?id=734084&hh=1&secid

For Our Purposes

• Humans are part of nature/the biosphere.

• The rights of all living things must be considered.

• Ecocentrism rather than anthropocentrism: The ecosystem is a priority.

• Fundamental questions about humans’ role with respect to the natural world must be posed.

Al Gore

• “ . . . the new story of the Deep Ecologists is dangerously wrong. . . .”

• Now that you know what deep ecology IS, do you agree with Gore?

Ishmael

• Is Quinn’s Ishmael a deep ecologist?

More Discussion: Clouds Talk?

• How do clouds talk to us (par. 2)? • Does this strike you as a dumb thing for Naess

to say? • Is it a metaphor? • Do you understand it in some other way? • For example, do you make any connection with

his statement in the next column: “We are completely free, our imagination is free”?

• How does N’s comment on clouds relate to deep ecology?

“religious component”?

• Par. 21: “deep ecology has a religious component.”

• What does this statement mean?

• In particular, how does it relate to Naess’s statements about Rachel Carson, Buddhism, and Tao?

Tao

• “Tao” is a Chinese character “often translated as ‘Way’ or ‘Path.’ In ancient China Tao gained a special currency referring to the Way of Nature or Heaven. This Great Way was considered the source of the order that could be seen in Nature and the Cosmos. The concept of the Tao and its relationship to yin and yang heavily influenced Chinese philosophy and continues to this day.”

• Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tao

More on Tao• “Chinese term meaning ‘path’, ‘way’, ‘account’. From the sense of a

literal path, road, or way, the term comes to mean a way of doing something (e.g., living one’s life or organizing society), especially the way advocated by a particular individual or school of thought (the way of the Master, the way of the Mohists, etc.). Frequently, it refers to the way of doing something, the right way (e.g., The Way has not been put into practice for a long time ). Tao also came to refer to the linguistic account that embodies or describes a way. Finally, in some texts the tao is a metaphysical entity. For example, in Neo-Confucianism, tao is identified with li (principle). In some contexts it is difficult to tell what sense is intended” (my emphasis).

• Source: http://0-www.xreferplus.com.library.winthrop.edu/entry.do?id=830732&hh=1&secid

Buddhism• “Major world religion and philosophy founded in northeastern India in the 5th century

BCE. Based on the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama, called the Buddha, Buddhism takes as its goal the escape from suffering and from the cycle of rebirth: the attainment of nirvana. It emphasizes meditation and the observance of certain moral precepts. The Buddha's teachings were transmitted orally by his disciples; during his lifetime he established the Buddhist monastic order (sangha). He adopted some ideas from the Hinduism of his time, notably the doctrine of karma, but also rejected many of its doctrines and all of its gods. In India, the emperor Ashoka promoted Buddhism during the 3rd century BC, but it declined in succeeding centuries and was nearly extinct there by the 13th century. It spread south and flourished in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia, and it moved through Central Asia and China (including Tibet; see Tibetan Buddhism), Korea, and Japan (see Pure Land Buddhism; Zen). In the 19th century, Buddhism spread to Europe and the United States, and it became increasingly popular in the West in the second half of the 20th century. Buddhism's main teachings are summarized in the Four Noble Truths, of which the fourth is the Eightfold Path. Buddhism's two major branches, Mahayana and Theravada, have developed distinctive practices and unique collections of canonical texts. In the early 21st century, the various traditions of Buddhism together had more than 375 million followers.”

• Source: http://www.answers.com/topic/buddhism

Four Noble Truths, etc.• “All Buddhism is based on doctrine known as the “four noble truths”:

existence is suffering (dukhka); suffering has a cause which is craving and attachment (trishna); there is a cessation of suffering (nirvana); and there is a path to the cessation of suffering. The path to the cessation of suffering includes eight aspects: right views, right resolves, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration. Other general Buddhist tenets include the concept of reality as process and relationship, rather than substance or material entity. Buddhism also teaches the concept of non-self, or the idea that all happenings are related and dependent on cause. The concepts of reincarnation and karma are a part of Buddhist doctrine; Buddhists believe that the practice of emptying one’s self can free a person from an endless cycle of reincarnation” (my emphases).

• Source: http://0-www.xreferplus.com.library.winthrop.edu/entry.do?id=4785112&hh=1&secid

Buddhism (appears not to be currently on Credo Reference)

• “The primary tenet of Buddhism is the cessation of ‘suffering’ (duhkha) in all its different forms. Duhkha is something more than the everyday suffering that most people encounter at some time or other. To Buddhists, the entire universe is subject to duhkha, and none-neither gods nor demons, neither those dwelling in hell or heaven-are exempt from it. Joys are always transient; life always ends in death and decay. Even death itself offers no salvation, since all sentient beings are constantly reborn into the endless cycle of death and rebirth. This understanding of the world is neither pessimistic nor nihilistic. Indeed, all the teachings of Buddhism point to the possibility of the cessation of duhkha. This cessation is what comprises the Buddhist notion of salvation-nirvana.

• “How is nirvana achieved? The Buddhist path to salvation or enlightenment is a matter of perfecting three essentials: (1) Morality, which involves the correct way of living, through the exercise of universal love and compassion toward all living beings. (2) Wisdom, which requires seeking an understanding and knowledge of things as they are, through thought and critical investigation. (3) Practice, involving mental development, through meditative exercises, concentration and insight aimed at a direct apprehension of reality” (my emphases).

My Sister’s Take on Buddhism and Deep Ecology

• “There are two main Buddhist concepts that I see as connecting strongly with deep ecology. 

• “The first is the idea of emptiness - that is - there is nothing that has an independent self.  Or to put it another way, all things are connected.  The great teacher Thich Naht Hahn uses the example of a piece of paper.  He explains how it contains everything - sun, moon, wind, rain, earth, all of the foregoing trees that led to the birth of the tree from which the paper came, the person who cut down the tree and all her/his relatives, and so forth. 

• “The second is the idea that all sentient beings have within them Buddha nature, basic goodness, and hence the ability to reach enlightenment.  All beings include insects, plants, animals, fish, and more. 

• “The first idea suggests that I am not separate from the salmon in the northwest, the whales in the ocean, the birds in the sky, the air, the earth, so to take care of one is to take care of all, to take care of self, to take care of those to come.  The second idea adds the sense of the reverent or holy to all beings in that they are to be revered and cared for, given every opportunity possible to obtain enlightenment because the potential exists within each.  These ideas call for a Buddhist to treat all beings with equity and hold all as equally valuable, holy, deserving of a right to live, a chance to grow and be happy.”

--Deborah Brower

Question

• So do you agree that deep ecology has a religious component?

Large-group Discussion on Consumerism

• Do you agree that “instead of an energy crisis, we have a crisis of consumption” (par. 12)?

• What point does Naess make about Rachel Carson (par. 21)?  You should look back and see what Swimme says about her.

• Does what Swimme says about spirituality in his final paragraph relate to Naess’s outlook?

• If Naess, Swimme, and Marx were having a conversation, what opinions would they share or not share?

• What values do you believe should govern your individual life and the life of American society?

Alternatives

• Are we limited only to the two options that Naess mentions on par. 12:  “A ‘smooth’ way, involving harmonious living with nature, or a ‘rough’ way, involving a dictatorship and coercion”?

Final Question

• Answer this question on page par. 12:  “‘In what situations do I experience the maximum satisfaction of my whole being?’”

• Write your answer in your notebook. If we have time, I may ask you to share your response.

END