Beyond Biocentrism: Cavell, Thoreau, and Transcendence in the Ordinary
Beyond Biocentrism: Cavell, Thoreau, and Transcendence in the Ordinary
Author(s): Naoko SaitoSubject(s): Philosophy, Ethics / Practical Philosophy, Political Philosophy
Published by: Институт по философия и социология при БАН
Keywords: biocentrism; humanism; political education; Stanley Cavell; Henry D. Thoreau
Summary/Abstract: In this paper I aim at questioning L. Buell’s politics of the environment, which relies on the assumption of unproblematic coexistence between man and nature. Analyzing Stanley Cavell’s reading of Henry D. Thoreau, I try to show that the natural is always already cultural and that a reengagement with nature in itself is the very process of becoming political. In this context, I will examine why Cavell’s Thoreau redirects us from biocentrism to humanism and provocatively turns political education away from anodyne aspirations for coexistence and towards a qualified isolation.
Journal: Balkan Journal of Philosophy
- Issue Year: VIII/2016
- Issue No: 1
- Page Range: 13-18
- Page Count: 6
- Language: English