1 / 10

Chapter 2

Chapter 2. ~ The Nature of Western Thought ~ Amber Gilewski Tompkins Cortland Community College. Dominant Social Paradigm (DSP) reflects : A belief in abundance and progress Support for the status quo Distrust of government Support for private property Faith in science and technology

isla
Télécharger la présentation

Chapter 2

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Chapter 2 ~ The Nature of Western Thought ~ Amber GilewskiTompkins Cortland Community College

  2. Dominant Social Paradigm (DSP) reflects: • A belief in abundance and progress • Support for the status quo • Distrust of government • Support for private property • Faith in science and technology • Support for economic growth and prosperity • An assumption that humans are meant to rule over the rest of nature • A belief that the so-called ecological crisis facing humankind has been greatly exaggerated (Boomsters)

  3. New Environmental Paradigm reflects: • Opinions that ecological issues are pressing • We’re approaching the limit of people the earth can support • If things continue on their present course we will soon experience a major catastrophe (Doomsters)

  4. The intellectual roots of the DSP and psychologyis the product of centuries of Western intellectual and cultural history: • Philosophical shifts • The Scientific Revolution • The Protestant Revolution • The Industrial Revolution

  5. Humans are approaching planetary limits in carrying capacity at least in part because the modern worldview (DSP) provides a set of beliefs that encourages people to use and abuse natural resources ARE HUMAN BEINGS A “CANCER” TO THE PLANET?

  6. A few caveats: • Although human assumptions are potent, those that become popular and deeply embedded in culture are in turn shaped by institutions and cultural events • Ideas shape history, and history affects which ideas become powerful • Not all environmental problems stem from this history

  7. The Western view of nature embraces the following four assumptions about the natural world: • Nature is composed of inert, physical elements • Nature can and should be controlled • Individual human beings seekprivate economic gain • We must progress

  8. The nature of non-industrialized thought In most traditional (non-industrialized) societies, people: • Live in small groups of close-knit relationships • Derive a sustained subsistence from the land The events of the natural world therefore: • Have enormous and direct impact on their well-being • People immediately experience the rhythms and changes in weather • A key part of cultural and family life WADE DAVIS – DREAMS FROM ENDANGERED CULTURES

  9. In most preindustrial societies, nature is seen as a living organism, often like a mother: • Nurturing • Beneficent • Ordered • At times, wild, violent, and chaotic TRADITIONAL ECOLOGICAL KNOWLEDGE (TEK)

  10. If the natural world is alive: • People live in kinship with it • People develop responsibility and protect it • People listen to and learn from it People can’t replace worldviews; but we can: • Tweak them • Modify them • Analyze them critically Vandana Shiva and Maude Barlow - Rights of Mother Earth

More Related