Emerson and Environmental Ethics

My copy of Emerson's Essays is dated 1890 and is inscribed by my grandmother. This new book on Emerson is equally informative for Emerson aficionados as well as those whose interest lies principally in environmental ethics, and indeed aesthetics, given his enthusiasm for the good, the beautiful and the true. The five chapters cover his notion of nature literacy, values related to ethics and aesthetics, comparisons with strands of contemporary environmentalism, the garden and the wilderness, and Emerson's preoccupation with nonviolence both as a romantic and a reader of Hindu scriptures. His 'original relation' is with nature in the context of oneness - as in his essay on the Oversoul - and wholeness implying an attitude that is attentive, relational, empathetic and aesthetically sensitive. Here one can also see his influence on Thoreau, Muir and more recently Loren Eiseley and EO Wilson.

In terms of the contemporary scene, there are interesting discussions on the interface between Emerson and eco-feminism, systems theory and indigenous environmental philosophy, where I was struck by the writings of Gregory Cajete, who characterises humans as the Earth becoming conscious of itself… Its most highly developed sense organ. He rightly points out that Western science needs native science with its cultural context of kinship with the Earth and therefore a valuation of feelings. He characterises this as an attitude of attention, empathy and respect similar to how we would like our own bodies treated. Instead, really have a Faustian will to power in the mainstream, although environmental activists share the native scientific perspective. This highlights the need for a philosophy of wholeness and oneness in ontological, epistemological and ethical terms so that we no longer see ourselves as separate from nature and acting on it – a principle of harmony rather than domination. This is an inspirational and important contribution to contemporary environmental thinking.