The Natural and the Artefactual
Summary
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The Natural and the Artefactual by Keekok Lee
In this book, philosopher Keekok Lee challenges one of the central assumptions of contemporary environmentalism: that if we could reduce or eliminate pollution we could 'save' the planet without unduly disrupting our modern, industrialized societies. Lee argues instead that the process of modernization, with its attendant emphasis on technological innovation, has fundamentally transformed 'nature' into just another manmade 'artefact.' Ultimately, what needs to be determined is if nature has value above and beyond human considerations, whether aesthetic, spiritual, or biological. This provocative book attempts to reconfigure environmental ethics, positing the existence of two separate ontological categories-the 'natural' and the 'artefactual.' Natural entities, be they organisms or inert matter, are 'morally considerable' because they possess the ontological value of independence, whereas artefacts are created by humans expressly to serve their own interests and ends.
Lee has undoubtedly contributed to the ongoing philosophical discussion about the relation between the axiological and the ontological status of nature* Environmental Values *
This is an impressive book... there is much of value here. * Environmental Ethics *
Philosophically wide-ranging and scholarly, this book maintains that environmental philosophy must begin with ontology rather than axiology and expand its concerns to include abiotic nature....Interesting for its attempt to keep humans and the nonhuman connected while acknowledging differences. * CHOICE *
This is an impressive book... there is much of value here. * Environmental Ethics *
Philosophically wide-ranging and scholarly, this book maintains that environmental philosophy must begin with ontology rather than axiology and expand its concerns to include abiotic nature....Interesting for its attempt to keep humans and the nonhuman connected while acknowledging differences. * CHOICE *
Keekok Lee is Reader in Philosophy at the University of Manchester, where she was also Director of the Centre for Philosophy and the Environment.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780739100615 |
| ISBN 10 | 0739100610 |
| Title | The Natural and the Artefactual |
| Author | Keekok Lee |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Hardback |
| Publisher | Bloomsbury Publishing Plc |
| Year published | 1999-06-10 |
| Number of pages | 300 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |