To mark Earth Day 2009, here is an observation from Mary Midgley's introduction to a recent collection of reflections on James Lovelock's GAIA hypothesis.
"Personifying the earth means that it is not just a miscellaneous heap of resources but a self-maintaining system which acts as a whole. It can therefore be injured; it is vulnerable, capable of health or sickness. And, since we are totally dependent on it, we are vulnerable too. Our deep, confident, seventeenth century conviction--expressed in a lot of space literature-- that we are really independent minds, essentially detached from a planet which we can easily exchange for another one, has been a fantasy. Like babies, we are tiny, vulnerable, dependent organisms, owing our lives to a tremendous whole. That is surely what the Greeks meant to acknowledge, and what our own ancestors meant when they spoke of Mother Nature."
Midgley, Mary (2007), Earthy Realism: The Meaning of Gaia (Societas)
"Personifying the earth means that it is not just a miscellaneous heap of resources but a self-maintaining system which acts as a whole. It can therefore be injured; it is vulnerable, capable of health or sickness. And, since we are totally dependent on it, we are vulnerable too. Our deep, confident, seventeenth century conviction--expressed in a lot of space literature-- that we are really independent minds, essentially detached from a planet which we can easily exchange for another one, has been a fantasy. Like babies, we are tiny, vulnerable, dependent organisms, owing our lives to a tremendous whole. That is surely what the Greeks meant to acknowledge, and what our own ancestors meant when they spoke of Mother Nature."
Midgley, Mary (2007), Earthy Realism: The Meaning of Gaia (Societas)
I believe that this quote is a very interesting one for many reasons. I feel that Midgley is correct by saying that the earth is,"a self maintaining system which acts as a whole." The Earth can be injured and destroyed. We are dependent on it and if the earth is injured it will affect us. I feel the quote "we are tiny, vulnerable, dependent organisms, owing our live to a tremendous whole" is very interesting. We are like tiny babies to the earth. We rely so much upon the earth. We must take care of it.
ReplyDeleteHappy Kant's birthday!
ReplyDeleteI think Midgley makes a very good point.. However, i also think that by personifying the earth this forces the individual to act because by seeing the earth in human contexts the individual is able to understand the connection between the earth and herself.
ReplyDeleteobviously after our discussion in todays class about global warming shows that we are not taking care of our Earth. And I think it is already damaged but the question is - is it so damaged that it can not be repaired? If it can or if the global warming can be slowed down at any rate then I think we as humans even though we are as Midgley puts it tiny, vulnerable, and dependant organisms need to get busy helping our MOther Earth heal herself.
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