Environmental Ethics

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: environmentalethics.info

Preface xi List of Sources xiii Introduction: What is Environmental Ethics? 1 Part I Why Study Environmental Ethics? 25 George Sessions Emily Brady John Granrose Frederick Ferré J Baird Callicott Warwick Fox Eugene C Hargrove Ian Smith Isis Brook Holmes Rolston III Clare Palmer Kristin Shrader-Frechette Victoria Davion Greta Gaard Peter Singer James P Sterba Michael E Zimmerman Bryan G Norton Anthony Weston David Rothenberg Contributors to Part I 53 Part II What Is Anthropocentrism? 57 Introduction 59 1 Humans as Moral Ends 63 Thomas Aquinas 2 The Mastery of Nature 65 Francis Bacon 3 Nonhumans as Machines 69 René Descartes 4 Mechanistic Metaphysics 72 Isaac Newton 5 The Amoral Status of Nature 73 John Stuart Mill 6 Nature as Economic Resource 77 John Locke 7 Indirect Duties to Nonhumans 82 Immanuel Kant 8 In Defense of Anthropocentrism 83 Wilfred Beckerman and Joanna Pasek Part III What Is Nonanthropocentrism? 89 Introduction 91 9 Walking 93 Henry David Thoreau 10 The Wild Parks and Forest Reservations of the West and Hetch Hetchy Valley 96 John Muir 11 Is There a Need for a New, an Environmental, Ethic? 98 Richard (Routley) Sylvan 12 Attitudes to Nature 103 John Passmore 13 Should Trees Have Standing? Toward Legal Rights for Natural Objects 110 Christopher D. Stone 14 The Varieties of Intrinsic Value 120 John O’Neill 15 Value in Nature and the Nature of Value 130 Holmes Rolston iii 16 The End of Anthropocentrism? 137 Mary Midgley 17 Is the Crown of Creation a Dunce Cap? 143 Chip Ward Part IV What Is the Scope of Moral Considerability? 147 Introduction 149 A Individualism (Polycentrism) 154 Hierarchical Biocentrism 154 18 Persons in Nature: Toward an Applicable and Unified Environmental Ethics 154 Frederick Ferré Psychocentrism 161 19 Animals as Subjects-of-a-Life 161 Tom Regan 20 All Animals are Equal 169 Peter Singer Egalitarian Biocentrism 175 21 The Ethics of Respect for Nature 175 Paul W. Taylor 22 Kantians and Utilitarians and the Moral Status of Nonhuman Life 182 James P. Sterba B Holism (Ecocentrism) 193 23 The Land Ethic 193 Aldo Leopold 24 The Conceptual Foundations of the Land Ethic 201 J. Baird Callicott 25 Gaia As Seen Through the Atmosphere 211 James E. Lovelock C General Ethics 213 26 Developing a General Ethics (with Particular Reference to the Built, or Human-Constructed,Environment) 213 Warwick Fox Part V What Are the Prominent Alternatives to Grounding Environmental Ethics in Axiology? 221 Introduction 223 A Environmental Psychologism 230 27 The Shallow and the Deep Ecology Movement 230 Arne Naess 28 The Heart of Deep Ecology 235 Andrew McLaughlin 29 The Deep Ecological Movement: Some Philosophical Aspects 240 Arne Naess 30 Transpersonal Ecology 245 Warwick Fox B Environmental Virtue Ethics 252 31 Environmental Virtue Ethics 252 Ronald Sandler C continental Environmental Ethics 257 32 On Environmental Philosophy and Continental Thought 257 Steven Vogel D Political Environmental Ethics 268 Social Ecology 268 33 What Is Social Ecology? 268 Murray Bookchin 34 Socialism and Ecology 275 James O’Connor Ecological Feminism 281 35 The Power and the Promise of Ecological Feminism 281 Karen J. Warren 36 Feminism and the Philosophy of Nature 291 Carolyn Merchant 37 Nature, Self, and Gender: Feminism, Environmental Philosophy, and the Critique of Rationalism300 Val Plumwood E Environmental Pragmatism 311 38 Beyond Intrinsic Value: Pragmatism in Environmental Ethics 311 Anthony Weston 39 Methodological Pragmatism, Pluralism, and Environmental Ethics 318 Andrew Light F Direct Action 327 40 Earth First! 327 Dave Foreman The Ethics of Ecological Sabotage: An Exchange 333 41 Ecological Sabotage: Pranks or Terrorism? 333 Eugene Hargrove 42 Earth First! and The Monkey Wrench Gang 334 Edward Abbey 43 More on Earth First! and The Monkey Wrench Gang 335 Dave Foreman 44 Editor’s Response 336 Eugene Hargrove Part VI What Are the Connections Between Realism, Relativism, Technology, And Environmental Ethics? 337 Introduction 339 A Subjectivist Environmental Ethics 342 45 Meta-Ethics and Environmental Ethics 342 Robert Elliot B The Social Construction of Nature 352 46 How To Construe Nature: Environmental Ethics and the Interpretation of Nature 352 Roger J. H. King 47 The Trouble With Wilderness 359 William Cronon C Ecological Realism 362 48 Virtually Hunting Reality in the Forests of Simulacra 362 Paul Shepard D Environmental Ethics and the Philosophy of Technology 368 49 Technology and the Limits of Nature 368 David Rothenberg Part VII What Are the Connections Between Ecological Science and Environmental Ethics? 377 Introduction 379 50 Ecology – A Subversive Subject 380 Paul B. Sears 51 What is Conservation Biology? 384 Michael E. Soulé 52 Environmental Ethics and Ecological Science 392 Mark Sagoff 53 The Metaphysical Implications of Ecology 400 J. Baird Callicott 54 The Ends of the World as We Know Them 409 Jared Diamond Part VIII What Are Some Ethical Dimensions Of Environmental Public Policy? 413 Introduction 415 A The Population/Poverty Debate 422 55 An Essay on the Principle of Population 422 Thomas Robert Malthus 56 Impact of Population Growth 426 Paul R. Ehrlich and John P. Holdren 57 The Ecological Necessity of Confronting the Problem of Human Overpopulation 434 Garrett Hardin 58 How Poverty Breeds Overpopulation 443 Barry Commoner 59 More People, Greater Wealth, More Resources, Healthier Environment 447 Julian L. Simon 60 Population: Delusion and Reality 454 Amartya Sen 61 A Special Moment in History 469 Bill McKibben B Industrial Agriculture 476 62 Nature as the Measure for a Sustainable Agriculture 476 Wes Jackson 63 Putting Food Production in Context: Toward a Postmechanistic Agricultural Ethic 481 David R. Keller and E. Charles Brummer C Socioeconomic Environmental Justice 491 64 Environmental Justice for All 491 Robert D. Bullard 65 Just Garbage 501 Peter S. Wenz D Environmental Ethics and Economic Policy 509 66 A Declaration of Sustainability 509 Paul Hawken 67 The Steady-State Economy 516 Herman E. Daly 68 Making Capitalism Sustainable 525 John Elkington 69 The Ignorance Argument: What Must We Know to be Fair to the Future? 534 Bryan Norton 70 Environmental Justice and Intergenerational Debt 545 Clark Wolf E Globalization 551 71 The Environmental Limits to Globalization 551 David Ehrenfeld Part IX What Is the Future of Environmental Ethics? 559 72 The Future of Environmental Ethics 561 Holmes Rolston III Bibliography 575