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2 - Why Does Nature Matter?

Paths to an Environmental Ethic

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 February 2019

Roger S. Gottlieb
Affiliation:
Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Massachusetts
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Summary

Beginning with an exploration of how humanity is both part of and distinct from nature, the chapter describes different routes to a realization of nature’s moral value. These routes include a direct and intuitive appreciation for nature’s worth and revulsion over what humanity has done to it; the way a recognition of our dependence on nature signals both our connections to it and the way it cares for us; appreciation of nature’s complexity and beauty; a deep moral gratitude for how nature—from evolution to our own bodies’ functioning—is essential to virtually every aspect of life; a conventionally religious belief that nature is a gift from God; and a recognition that in the way it functions without an ego nature can serve as a spiritual teacher.
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Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2019

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  • Why Does Nature Matter?
  • Roger S. Gottlieb, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Massachusetts
  • Book: Morality and the Environmental Crisis
  • Online publication: 18 February 2019
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316493083.003
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  • Why Does Nature Matter?
  • Roger S. Gottlieb, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Massachusetts
  • Book: Morality and the Environmental Crisis
  • Online publication: 18 February 2019
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316493083.003
Available formats
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Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Why Does Nature Matter?
  • Roger S. Gottlieb, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Massachusetts
  • Book: Morality and the Environmental Crisis
  • Online publication: 18 February 2019
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316493083.003
Available formats
×