Reading Spinoza in the Anthropocene
Reading Spinoza in the Anthropocene
Emeritus Professor in Philosophy
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Abstract
This book offers a reading of Spinoza’s distinctive treatment of human presence in Nature, bringing his philosophy to bear on contemporary climate change debate. Centred on close commentary on The Ethics – with some diversions into Spinoza’s political writings – it highlights the contrasts with Descartes’s treatment of the nature of human knowledge and of mind-body relations, arguing that a Cartesian framework has profoundly influenced current ways of thinking of Reason’s supremacy over Imagination and Emotion, and of the supremacy of human beings within the totality of Nature. Reading the less familiar philosophy of Spinoza now, in the context of climate change, can be a source of insight into the contingency and changeability of those Cartesian ways of thinking.The book thus aims to bring Spinoza’s critique of Descartes into the discussion of conceptual aspects of climate change. A subsidiary, but related, theme is a revaluation of the common belief that Spinoza’s philosophy is a paradigm of rationalism. The book argues that Spinoza offers a more nuanced treatment of Reason – integrated with Imagination and Emotion, rather than dominating them within a hierarchical model. The Chapters are structured around close readings of the five Parts of The Ethics, each of which is brought to bear on themes in current climate change debate. Themes addressed include: the relations between human and non-human; human-centredness and the concept of the Anthropocene; climate change emotions: fear, hope grief, and wonder; Indigenous knowledge and cross-cultural communication about climate change.
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