Futures Studies Economics Ecology

Making Sense of Nature

by Noel Castree Review by David Lorimer, April 2014

Published: 2013
Publisher: Routledge
Format: Paperback
Pages: 347
ISBN: 9781134613830

Publisher’s description

We listen to a cacophony of voices instructing us how to think and feel about nature, including our own bodies. The news media, wildlife documentaries, science magazines, and environmental NGOs are among those clamouring for our attention. But are we empowered by all this knowledge or is our dependence on various communities allowing our thoughts, sentiments and activities to be unduly governed by others? Making Sense of Nature shows that what we call ‘nature’ is made sense of for us in ways that make it central to social order, social change and social dissent. By utilising insights and extended examples from anthropology, cultural studies, human geography, philosophy, politics, sociology, science studies, this interdisciplinary text asks whether we can better make sense of nature for ourselves, and thus participate more meaningfully in momentous decisions about the future of life – human and non-human – on the planet. This book shows how ‘nature’ can be made sense of without presuming its naturalness. The challenge is not so much to rid ourselves of the idea of nature and its ‘collateral concepts’ (such as genes) but instead, we need to be more alert to how, why and with what effects ideas about ‘nature’ get fashioned and deployed in specific situations. Among other things, the book deals with science and scientists, the mass media and journalists, ecotourism, literature and cinema, environmentalists, advertising and big business. This innovative text contains numerous case studies and examples from daily life to put theory and subject matter into context, as well as study tasks, a glossary and suggested further reading. The case studies cover a range of topics, range from forestry in Canada and Guinea, to bestiality in Washington State, to how human genetics is reported in Western newspapers, to participatory science experiments in the UK. Making Sense of Nature will empower readers from a wide range of fields across the social sciences, humanities and physical sciences.

This accessible and interdisciplinary textbook shows how wide and contested the term nature can be, indicating how epistemically dependent the general public is on a small number of specialists - epistemic workers working in epistemic communities. Our understanding is shaped by these communities, and in turn by how their views are represented in the media. This then affects the way in which ordinary people think, feel and act, which has implications for freedom and democracy as well as the overall quality of our lives. To take just two meanings of the term nature, we have the nonhuman world and the use of the term intrinsic nature as defining the essence of something. How we see and relate to nature is also critical, representing manipulation at one end and participation at the other. The author has a useful analysis of the relationship between the scientific and entertainment communities whereby specialist knowledge has to be condensed and then translated into a visual narrative. This leaves considerable latitude for interpretation, and is illustrated with various themes including forests, genes, dingoes, patents and bestiality. Further on, there is an extended discussion of the role of the media and the difficulties raised by the journalistic ethic of balance, which can morph into a hidden bias or give airtime to extreme views. In this respect, the controversy over climate change science is used to excellent effect.

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