Product Description
The most comprehensive introduction to environmental ethics available, ENVIRONMENTAL ETHICS offers students a current look at the issues and topics that dominate the field today, organized into two main parts that take students seamlessly from theory to application. This Fifth Edition of the Pojmans' popular anthology, like its predecessors, includes numerous topic areas not covered in other anthologies-including an all-new section on Climate Change. Featuring articles carefully selected for clarity and accessibility, the text follows a dialogic pro-con format presenting divergent positions on each topic, ensuring that students are both exposed to and understand both sides of every topic so they can develop their own informed positions. The bulk of royalties for this book are donated to groups dedicated to protecting the environment, such as the Wilderness Society and the Sierra Club. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

A very informative book

This book is very informative and important for anyone working in the environmental field.

Textbook Review
This book was for a class I'm taking this semester and all of the articles in it have been really interesting. Environmental Ethics encompasses so many different subject areas and this book has incorporates so many different points of view that I feel like both sides of each topic covered have been equally represented.

The best among a bad bunch
This anthology is well organized and contains a few gems, but many of the articles and book excerpts are terribly outdated, and some read like bad op-ed pieces in a local newspaper.This is unfortunate, since the subject is an important one.

AMAZING!
When I first looked over the book, I wasn't overly impressed at first and thought that it was going to be a hard and boring read.I was completely wrong! It is the favorite among my textbooks now. ... Read more

Product Description
Consisting of an assortment of landmark essays and the best in contemporary scholarship, this anthology delves deeply into the most pressing environmental issues of our times. Articles included in this anthology are distinguished for their relevance to real-life policy making and for their ability to promote rich and lively discussion about controversial matters. In addition, the editors' careful organization of the topics and illuminating section previews keep students focused on the most essential points of current environmental debates. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

New as promised!
The book arrived brand-new, just as promised, and it came in a timely manner. The price was extremely reasonable, too.

Slow delivery, Questionable Condition.
It took several weeks for the book to arrive and when it did it was, in my opinion, in worse condition than the description claimed. It wasn't dysfunctional, but if you are a stickler for the quality of condition I would be wary or question the descriptions given. Then again, it could have been a one time thing and I was just a little disappointed a chunk of the pages fell out when I opened the book.

Second-hand, third-hand..
What I ordered was a used book and that is what I received. Satisfied customer

The price is almost worth it...
I used this book for years in teaching environmental ethics.I believe it is the single-best text out there for such a class.However, that price is astounding, and for the first time in a decade, I have switched textbooks.

The contents are almost worth it, though, and richly interdisciplinary, collecting together economic, biological, religious and philosophical perspectives.I highly recommend this for those who want to know what a nearly perfect environmental ethics textbook would look like, and who want the best regardless of the price.

I lament the necessity of not inflicting such a cost on my students.

It's not just "environmental" ethics...
This book provides an extraordinary place for any individual looking to understand and hone their ethics and values, it just happens to useenvironmental issues as its context.The editorial comments are conciseand probing, and the illustrative articles and essays are classic andthought provoking.Although the reading is generally a bit dense for pageturning on one's way to bed, that's even viable for individuals looking fora bit of intensity prior to sleep.An excellent, well rounded, explorationinto earth's environment and human roles and perceptions regarding it. ... Read more

Product Description
In this expanded and revised edition of a fresh and original case-study textbook on environmental ethics, Christine Gudorf and James Huchingson continue to explore the line that separates the current state of the environment from what it should be in the future. "Boundaries" begins with a lucid overview of the field, highlighting the key developments and theories in the environmental movement. Specific cases offer a rich and diverse range of situations from around the globe, from saving the forests of Java and the use of pesticides in developing countries to restoring degraded ecosystems in Nebraska. With an emphasis on the concrete circumstances of particular localities, the studies continue to focus on the dilemmas and struggles of individuals and communities who face daunting decisions with serious consequences. This second edition features extensive updates and revisions, along with four new cases: one on water privatization, one on governmental efforts to mitigate global climate change, and two on the obstacles that teachers of environmental ethics encounter in the classroom."Boundaries" also includes an appendix for teachers that describes how to use the cases in the classroom. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

An insightful and scholarly read, highly recommended
As the world expands, its natural resources are in more debate than ever. "Boundaries: A Casebook in Environmental Ethics" discusses the current environmental landscape in the eyes of business and the law and how respect for the environment and maintaining its integrity and allowing it to continue to provide for it in the future. But privately owned water, climate change, forests, and more are the topics that will plan the world and its growth in the future. "Boundaries" is an insightful and scholarly read, highly recommended.
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Product Description

Environmental Ethics: An Anthology brings together both classic and cutting-edge essays which have formed contemporary environmental ethics, ranging from the welfare of animals versus ecosystems to theories of the intrinsic value of nature. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

The flaky kind of environmentalism
Environmental ethics is an extremely important subject, but it is not best served by squishy articles about deep ecology and ecofeminism.Philosophers from David Schmidtz to Carol Rose have written brilliantly about pollution, climate change, and conservation.Unfortunately, none of these articles are represented in this volume.If you're in the market for a serious discussion of environmentalism, and environmental policy, check out Eban Goodstein's Economics and the Environment.Unlike most of the articles in this volume, it is both sympathetic to environmental goals and clearly written.

This is a Must-Have!!!
This is a compilation of numerous important and influential articles published in the field of environmental ethics.To fully understand and contribute to the field of environmental ethics, (I think) one should read most (if not all) of the articles published in this anthology. Furthermore, if you're teaching a course on environmental philosophy, this anthology will save you precious time and energy since it contains many of the paradigmatic works within the field. ... Read more

Product Description
Featuring sixty-two accessible selections--from classic articles to examples of cutting-edge original research--Environmental Ethics: What Really Matters, What Really Works addresses both of the principal areas of inquiry in the field: the exploration of morality from an environmental perspective and the analysis of the current state of our environment. Aiming to determine what issues really matter, the first section of the book responds to such questions as: What is value? What types of things have value? Is the value of a human being fundamentally different from the kind of value we find elsewhere in nature? What role do consumer goods and services play in a good life? and Is there room for environmental consciousness in a good life? The second section turns to the question of what it would take to solve our environmental problems. It strives to go beyond the "hype" to present informed perspectives on the true nature of those problems and investigates important questions like: What is causing or exacerbating these problems? and What solutions have been tried? The selections present philosophical, biological, and social scientific approaches to the major issues. Environmental Ethics features first-hand descriptions from people who have actually been involved in such projects as wildlife management in Africa, ecofeminist initiatives in India, and radical activism on the high seas. It also provides up-to-date data on population issues and community-based wildlife initiatives. Ideal for undergraduate courses in environmental ethics, environmental issues, and applied ethics, this unique text will also be a helpful resource for graduate students and professors, as it retains most of the footnotes from the original articles. ... Read more

Product Description
How can you use philosophical to make progress toward solving environmental problems? ENVIRONMENTAL ETHICS: AN INTRODUCTION TO ENVIRONMENTAL PHILOSOPHY introduces you to ethical theory in new and easily understood ways. But most of all, this environmental ethics textbook shows you how we can work together to build a better future. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Absolute Gibberish!
I had to buy this 4th edition book for an environmental ethics class. I find the author's attempt to make the book long enough to be qualified as a text book down right PATHETIC. He adds way too many "big" words and unnecessary sentances. I'm sure he has some good points.But his endless babble will completely throw you off the trial, it's not worth the effort.It is a very difficult to read book, and even my professor admited that each chapter has to be read about 4 times to actually understand that point.Why my professor still uses this book is beyond me.By the way, this book is rediculously priced.I have to take this class for my environmental sustainability degree, but if that were't the case, you couldn't pay me $70 to read it. THIS BOOK IS A WASTE OF TIME.

Interesting topics, very thought provoking
I purchased this book for an environmental ethics class, and found it to be very interesting!The many changes in our environment are truly thought-provoking, and to look at them through the eyes of an ethicist was enjoyable.The reading is compelling, and good fodder for many interesting dinner table conversations.

Environmental Ethics: An Introduction to Environmental Philosophy
Book arrived in great shape and in a very timely fashion

Well written outlines of major ideas
This review is based on the 2nd edition. This book presents a good introduction to the major ideas of ethical thinking about the environment. He presents ideas on how rights might be derived as a gradation from purely human interest, rights based on whether animals suffer, and nature with its own right.Throughout the book questions of individual versus community rights are discussed. Each chapter starts with a short essay that highlights some of the complexities; for example whether Mountain Goats should be introduced or eliminated in Olympic National Park. Each chapter is concluded with discussion questions that also help the reader grapple with the issues.

He presents many of the major ideas and criticisms of animal rights, energy use, the land ethic, deep ecology, and ecofeminism.Particularly in the areas of deep ecology he presents the diversity of views. Perhaps he is weak in presenting third world views and the impact that "Deep ecology" might have on poor and agrarian populations. He is lacking discussion of religious based environmental ethics ("Theocentric ethics"). Christian Ecology seeks to develop a stewardship view, and Native American, and Eastern religions center on respect for nature.I think this book works best when read with selections from the authors discussed; for example read some of Leopold's "Sand County Almanac", then read the chapter on "The Land Ethic."

Thinking Deeply about the Environment, and Why it Matters
I read the first edition of this book (1993) and have no doubt that the third edition will surpass its scope and clarity.In a few hundred pages, Joseph Des Jardins unspools the thread of western philosophical tradition and makes it relevant for today's urgent environmental issues.Each chapter begins with a timely case study--salmon and economic develoment, nuclear waste and the rights of future generations to a clean environment--then develops the philosophical arguments required to more deeply understand just what is at stake in these and similar issues.Des Jardins' style is easy-going and eminently accessible.He wastes no words, gets to heart of the matter, and leaves the reader wanting more.Footnotes and additional readings lead to original material if the reader wants to delve more thoroughly into the topics.But you can just stop with Des Jardins if you are not a scholar, and still gain a firm grasp on how the big thinkers of western philosophy brought us to a critical divide in our environmental future.Edition One included late-breaking news from the social environmental and eco-feminist fronts, and I am confident the 2000 edition will be just as current. ... Read more

Product Description
Through a series of multidisciplinary readings, Environmental Ethics: The Big Questions contextualizes environmental ethics within the history of Western intellectual tradition and traces the development of theory since the 1970s.

• Includes an extended introduction that provides an historical and thematic introduction to the field of environmental ethics
• Features a selection of brief original essays on why to study environmental ethics by leaders in the field
• Contextualizes environmental ethics within the history of the Western intellectual tradition by exploring anthropocentric (human-centered) and nonanthropocentric precedents
• Offers an interdisciplinary approach to the field by featuring seminal work from eminent philosophers, biologists, ecologists, historians, economists, sociologists, anthropologists, nature writers, business writers, and others
• Designed to be used with a web-site which contains a continuously updated archive of case studies

Customer Reviews (1)

Essential book
It arrived a few days after I had hoped it would, but still in time. It's a fabulous book, combining esoteric philosophical underpinnings of ethics with justifications for and arguments against direct action, and addressing pragmatic consequences of ethical positions. ... Read more

Product Description
Environmental issues can be complex. You need an environmental ethics textbook that you can actually understand. WATERSHEDS 4: TEN CASES IN ENVIRONMENTAL ETHICS provides ten fascinating case studies of real-life environmental conflicts and explains the principles involved in an easy-to-understand, impartial way. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

An Axe To Grind
A previous reviewer of this book called it "objective," I find that analysis utterly laughable. I purchased this book for a class, if you are doing so as well be aware that the professor very likely has an axe to grind and is wishing to push their views upon you through the use of this book. I am of the belief that a class should be taught as objectively as humanly possible (my criterion for a good professor,) when objectivity is absent the student is essentially being indoctrinated and fed their views as if a baby chick hungrily accepting food from their mother. This book, with one chapter being the exception, is completely slanted--opposing sides of an issue are never presented. In short, this book SUCKED!

Compelling cases, interesting reading
This book discusses various ethical situations regarding environmental issues, which could be rather dry material.However, the author writes in a more down-to-earth style, which makes it more enjoyable.The topics are certainly thought-provoking, and made for many interesting discussions at the dinner table.

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This book is nice if you're looking for nice little vignettes on varied environmental subjects. But it is overtly biased politically, asides and analogies that have a left leaning are used throughout the text unnecessarily. Otherwise the information is pretty broad and it is not a bad little book. ... Read more

Product Description
Nature, this book reminds us, is a rough and predatory place. Recent efforts by both religious and secular thinkers to develop an environmental ethic that is consistent with our understanding of the natural sciences and free of anthropocentrism have foundered on the rocks of a Romantic, pre-Darwinian idea of nature as intrinsically harmonious and interdependent. Such an idea has lead to two abusive extremes, one, of malign neglect, and the other, of the misguided manipulation of nature in an effort to make it more humane. Lisa Sideris proposes a new way of thinking about the natural world, an environmental ethic that incorporates the ideas of natural selection and values the processes rather than the products of nature. Such an approach encourages us to take a minimally interventionist approach to nature. Only when the competitive realties of evolution are faced squarely, Sideris argues, can we generate practical environmental principles to deal with such issues as species extinction and the relationship between suffering and sentience. ... Read more

Product Description
This collection of essays and articles surveys multidisciplinary approaches to environmental ethics by leading writers, and provides an historical survey of thought on our responsibility to the environment. It includes non-Western as well as Western religious and cultural perspectives. Readers are encouraged to develop their own environmental ethic by the presentation of a number of differing but viable theories in the readings. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

This is not a textbook.
As textbooks go, this is probably one of the worst I've ever encountered. The author distorts and over-simplifies theories which are in opposition to his own views, setting up what are otherwise complex and sophisticated moral theories as straw men that can be blown over with a few patronizing thought experiments. If you are looking for a book to reinforce environmentalist beliefs, then this is your book. However, if you seek to understand environmental ethical theory in a critical, thoughtful setting, you'd be better served by taking your money elsewhere. This book shouldn't be used as a textbook, and should probably be filed under the same propaganda heading as "An Inconvenient Truth".

Shipped fast. Book a little beat up
Book has a good amount of wear and tear. Few rips and water damage but completely readable. Shipped fast!

An Excellent introduction to key environmental debates
A very useful undergraduate level reader in environmental ethics. I use it in the course I teach in the UK. It would also make a good tool for self-teaching or for self-led small group study. For each chapter ofreadings there are discussion topics, an exercise, suggestions for a debateand a selection of further reading. The wide-ranging readings are carefullychosen, edited and arranged into key themes such as morality, aesthetics,ecofeminism and environmetnal ethics in society. The only other book tocover similar material in a similar manner is Louis Pojman's 'EnvironmentalEthics: Readings in Theory and Practice'. In my opinion they are equallyvaluable, making it difficult (should it be neccessary) to choose betweenthem. From a British perspective they both lack historical depth. Botzlerand Armstrong's book has only two readings from the eighteenth century orearlier (St Francis and Kant) but this can be supplied from elsewhere ifneeded. ... Read more

Product Description
Earth is imperiled. Human activities are adversely affecting the land, water, air, and myriad forms of biological life that comprise the ecosystems of our planet. Indicators of global warming and holes in the ozone layer inhibit functions vital to the biosphere. Environmental damage to the planet becomes damaging to human health and well-being now and into the future - and too often that damage affects those who are least able to protect themselves.Can religion make a positive contribution to preventing further destruction of biological diversity and ecosystems and threats to our earth? Jame Schaefer thinks that it can, and she examines the thought of Christian Church fathers and medieval theologians to reveal and retrieve insights that may speak to our current plight.By reconstructing the teachings of Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, and other classic thinkers to reflect our current scientific understanding of the world, Schaefer shows how to 'green' the Catholic faith: to value the goodness of creation, to appreciate the beauty of creation, to respect creation's praise for God, to acknowledge the kinship of all creatures, to use creation with gratitude and restraint, and to live virtuously within the earth community. ... Read more

Product Description
What is the environment, and how does it figure in an ethical life? This book is an introduction to the philosophical issues involved in this important question, focussing primarily on ethics but also encompassing questions in aesthetics and political philosophy. Topics discussed include the environment as an ethical question, human morality, meta-ethics, normative ethics, humans and other animals, the value of nature, and nature's future. The discussion is accessible and richly illustrated with examples. The book will be valuable for students taking courses in environmental philosophy, and also for a wider audience in courses in ethics, practical ethics, and environmental studies. It will also appeal to general readers who want a reliable and sophisticated introduction to the field. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Without illustration, this is a boring textbook
The book is a great read for textbook about philosophical questions of ethics on environment. It goes through several division and subdivisions of philosophy. Normative, virtue ethics, Kantianism, Singer's perspectives, and Regan's perspectives on animal rights and equality based on moral agents and patients. It goes well with currently updated carbon dioxide that affects the atmosphere and temperature rise on global scale. This book concentrates on the ethical dilemma like should kill cows and pigs for food? Is that an ethical issue? If it is, are we right? What if we become invaded by powerful foe who sees human beings as food resource? Is same perspective applicable for the invaders? Are they in the right? ... Read more

Product Description
The first on the topic of environmental virtue ethics, this book seeks to provide the definitive anthology that will both establish the importance of environmental virtue in environmental discourse and advance the current research on environmental virtue in interesting and original ways. The selections in this collection, consisting of ten original and four reprinted essays by leading scholars in the field, discuss the role that virtue and character have traditionally played in environmental discourse, and reflect upon the role that it should play in the future. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A Timely and Stimulating Anthology
There are few issues in the national debate as important for the future as the health of the environment. In addition to access to all the best science, we need to know how philosophers are grappling with the subject. Smartly edited by Ronald Sandler (author of CHARACTER AND ENVIRONMENT) and Philip Carafo, this important anthology assembles essays by 12 of the most energetic minds in the field. Readers and viewers of Al Gore's INCONVENIENT TRUTH can explore in this collection some of the deeper intellectual ramifications of environmental ethics. The book is accessible to a general readership, but it could also serve as a stimulating text for courses and seminars dealing with the relation between man and his environment, the importance of character in inspiring the duties required to preserve it, and the organized apathy that threatens the balance of Nature itself. Highly recommended, and an excellent companion volume to Sandler's Character and Environment: A Virtue-Oriented Approach to Environmental Ethics. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Too Much Criticism Too Little Hope
According to the introduction, Diversity and Dominion is the fruit of a series of inter-disciplinary lectures which took place at Duke Divinity School in 2005. The motivation behind the lectures was the belief that purely descriptive science is inadequate to protect the environment from continued degradation. What society needs it the coupling of the descriptive elements of science with the motivational power of human-attitudes and values. Since human beliefs encompass a broad range of ideas, the lectures, and resulting articles, centered on Christian beliefs in the American context.

Space doesn't permit comments on every article, I have focused on a few articles deemed to be the most significant.

William H. Schlesinger's article, Eyes Wide Shut, decries the lack of urgency in the contemporary environmental movement. He blames our passivity on a continually "shifting baseline." Like the proverbial camel, every concession to expanding urbanization is minimized as "it's just an acre" that when seen over time becomes vast swaths of land.

Lisa Sideris attempts to harmonize the role of suffering and death within evolutionary development with Christianity's view of redemption and individual significance. Put another way, "How can a good God allow so many creatures to die (as Evolution teaches) for no apparent reason?"Sideris suggests two options: 1. the ecosystem is greater than the sum of the individual creatures within it and 2. humans should be humble and recognize that our concerns and judgments should not be the final word on environmental and environmental ethical issues.

Norman Wirzba identifies the vice of ingratitude as the reason for our continued neglect and abuse of the environment. He notes that years of environmental teaching have failed to produce proper motivation to act on what we know. More importantly, he provides a suggestion as to how schools can work to inculcate gratitude amongst our students.

Finally, Michael Northcott accuses Millennial theology for its anti-environmental views. As the most strident of all the articles, readers, particularly those within the Christian Right, should be prepared for a host of critical words. As a Christian, with Conservative political views, I was disappointed at Northcott's simplistic treatment of the adherents of Millennial theology. This is not say that his accusations are completely wrong as I have personally heard comments like, "Why worry about the environment, Jesus is coming soon." However, it is to say that Northcott would have been more convincing if he confronted the thought of the Acton Institute which shares many of the ideas held by Millennialists. I consider myself a rather radical environmentalist (my modest proposal is to ban the construction of new roads), however, I know that liberals are not innocent of loving big corporations (just ask Hollywood, Harvard, Yale, and most universities). The only difference is that liberals love different corporations than conservatives. It seems to me that answer lies in the Christian notion of personal responsibility. Systems mayreduce evil behavior, but evil people can always manipulate the system. The answer still lies in a regenerated heart.

While elements of this book are worthy of engagement, its value was ultimately hindered by trying to address too many diverse ideas (most of which are too abstract to apply) and failing to engage Christians with alternative visions of environmental protection and use. Speaking of the latter issue, the writers of this volume essentially espoused the same mantra: capitalism is evil, the world has too many people, and humanity should stop seeing itself as separate from creation. Perhaps most disheartening was discovering how their appeal to theology was bereft of solid Scriptural reflection and practical application. Encouraging the recognition of guilt for wrongful deeds is important. But without practical ways to 1. Be forgiven that guilt and 2. Demonstrate improved behavior with concrete benchmarks, readers are left with feeling bad and with no hope.

Stephen M. Vantassel, author of Dominion over Wildlife: An Environmental Theology of Human-Wildlife Relations (Wipf and Stock, 2009) is an environmental-theologian who is also an expert in wildlife damage management. He is a tutor of theology at King's Evangelical Divinity School in the U.K.
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Product Description
Although much has been written on the subject of environmental impact, little attention has been given to the psychology behind decisions that affect the environment. "Environment, Ethics, and Behavior" demonstrates how understanding the psychological determinants of environmental behavior may be the key to saving the earth for future generations. In this unique collection of essays, many of the leading social, cognitive, and decision psychologists offer revealing insights from their own research on environmental behavior. Their scholarly perspectives shed light on the interaction between psychological theory and contemporary environmental and ethical issues and stimulate discussion on future research topics. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Env Ethics and behaiour
I love to look at others differently in terms of their ethical standards. Environmental impacts is something that people do not normally think about and it is wonderful to read this book. ... Read more

Product Description
Zen Buddhism and Environmental Ethics explores the implications of Zen Buddhist teachings and practices for our moral relations with the natural world. At once an accessible introduction to Zen and an important contribution to the debate concerning the environmental implications of the tradition, this book will appeal both to readers unfamiliar with East Asian thought and to those well versed in the field.

In elucidating the philosophical implications of Zen, the author draws upon both Eastern and Western philosophy, situating the Zen understanding of nature within the Buddhist tradition, as well as relating it to the ideas of key Western philosophers such as Aristotle, Kant and Heidegger. These philosophical reflections on Zen are used to shed light on some prominent debates in contemporary environmental ethics concerning such issues as the intrinsic value of nature. ... Read more

Product Description
Four biologists say we can face environmental crises with hope. Moving beyond a mere survey of our planet's ills, Redeeming Creation brings Scripture into fruitful dialogue with current scientific findings. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

Thoughtfully written
A very thoughtfully written book on the use of scripture to support, rather than trash our environment and ecological systems. Very pleased.

Quite Weak
This is a subject about which I am passionate.Nevertheless, within the first 20 pages my wife and I both found it almost unreadable.If anyone has finished it, go with their review, but beware, this book works like Sominex!

This is a book everybody should read and follow
This is without exception, the best book I have ever read giving evidence of the immortaility of animals but also the crucial need for man to start taking our responsibility in caring for creation as God so instructed and commanded us to do. This book will shock Christians, environmentalist, and anyone who does not know the real truth about what is happening due to the sins of man and the plight of all creation both man and beast if man does not change our ways. The attitude that "Well Jesus is going to return anyway" is a selfish and sinful excuse. What we are leaving our children is hopelessness should we not make some simple self-sacrificing changes in our life style in the way we treat creation and view the Creator of all.

Redeeming Creation: The Biblical Basis for Environmental Stewardship
the book was on good condition and quickly delivered

One of the best Christian books on the environment
I'm the director of a Christian environmental website, and I've read dozens of Christian books on ecology and the environment.This is one of my all-time favorites.I love this book!It may very well be the best book on the Biblical basis for environmental stewardship!Buy it for yourself, or buy it as a textbook for environmental study.Outstanding!What makes it particularly unique and special is that it is written by 4 biologists!My only complaint is that there is little or no mention of the great Christian conservationist, John Paul II.It's still very much worth a read. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Major work in Environmental Philosophy
Hargrove, as editor of the journal Environmental Ethics, is arguably the
most influential philosopher in the field---yet this is the first book
length statement of his position. The status of the author alone would be
enough to make this an important contribution to the field of environmental philosophy, but this is also a powerful argument concerning the roots of environmental ideals in the Western tradition. In part, the book answers John Passmore's contention that a philosophy of nature preservation is alien or marginal to Western culture. The rebuttal of Passmore involves a far-ranging investigation of the intellectual history of environmental attitudes, both those that have inhibited environmental thought (notably, the Western philosophical tradition of idealism, and the Anglo-Saxon conception of property rights) and those that have supported preservationist intuitions (primarily, scientific and aesthetic ideals). Based on the demonstrated existence of Western aesthetic intuitions, Hargrove presents a detailed argument for the ethical foundations of preservationist policy. He argues against the justification of preservation based on "therapeutic nihilism:" since we cannot know precisely how nature operates, we should let it alone. This prevalent ideal is expressed as Barry Commoner's "third law" of ecology: "nature knows best," a platitude which Hargrove convincingly rejects. The central problem with the preservationist argument based on therapeutic nihilism is that its force is contingent upon developments in the science of ecology and technological power. If we do learn more about nature, so that we may re-create it, then the preservationist position loses its support. Much better, argues Hargrove, to ground environmentalist policy
on the aesthetic values we discover in nature. Nature, even more than
human-created art, is beautiful and good; and moral agents have an
obligation to preserve and promote goodness in the world. Nature is
beautiful (and hence good) by its mere existence; Hargrove thus terms his
argument "an ontological argument" for environmental ethics. Central to this discussion is an excellent analysis of the attempted human domination of nature and how this destroys the beauty and autonomy of the natural world. "The authenticity of nature arises out of the fact that its existence precedes its essence" (p. 195). In sum, Hargrove attempts to create a middle position between an instrumental justification for environmental policy based on human interests and an intrinsic justification based on the direct consideration of non-human value. The aesthetic value for nature is an intrinsic value for humans; it thus is intrinsic and anthropocentric, with a secure place in Western traditions. The central problem for Hargrove's argument is the claim that aesthetic value is intrinsic and not instrumental. Although he is careful to distinguish higher level aesthetic experience from the mere "consumption" of natural beauty, the possibility remains that any human interest in aesthetic experience is primarily (and exclusively) an instrumental good. ... Read more