Aristotle’s Powers and Responsibility for Nature

Description

This book addresses the theme of what «nature» is and humans’ obligations toward the natural world. It demonstrates that an approach based in metaphysics can help us to understand better what nature is and our obligations to the natural world. Beginning with ideas traced from Aristotle through some of the signifcant figures in European philosophy, the author shows that each living thing is a unique source of value. He then argues that this value puts humans under an obligation and that adopting an attitude of responsibility to living things is an essential part of what it means to be human. CONTENTS Introduction 9 Part I: The Heritage of Aristotle 1 Aristotle’s Biological Teleology 23 Introduction 23 The Concept of Teleology in the Philosophy of Biology 24 Aristotle’s Teleology 31 Three Key Aristotelian Concepts 34 Aristotle’s Powers and Change 42 The Nature of Ph sis 48 Conclusion 50 2 Persevering in Being: Conatus and D namis 51 Introduction 51 Origins of Spinoza’s Conatus 52 Desire and Will: a Taxonomical Comparison 74 Conatus and ‘Change’ in Aristotle 80 Physics B and an Internal Principle of Movement 87 Part II: Moral Considerability 3 The Status of Organisms and Ecosystems 95 Introduction 95 Parts and Wholes 98 Ends-in-themselves 108 Intrinsic Value 112 Interest 115 Intrinsic Value Theories in Environmental Philosophy 121 Third-order Autopoiesis and Ecosystems 127 Summary 137 4 Nature, Moral Considerability and Respect 139 Introduction 139 Taylor’s Biocentric Ethic 140 Moral Considerability 144 Living Things as (Aristotelian) Teleological Centres of Activity 151 Addressing the Paradox of Individual ‘Unity’ 155 Inherent Worth and ‘Good’ 161 Moral Persons 166 Conflict and Resolution 168 Moral Significance and Merit 173 Conclusions 175 5 Selves, Conatus and Aristotle 177 Introduction 177 A Cosmological Approach 178 Individuation 184 Conatus 191 Interest 195 Individuals 198 An Aristotelian Umbrella 202 Part III: Value and Responsibility 6 Value, Complexity and Obligation 205 Introduction 205 Value Enters the World 206 Complexity is Relevant 209 Responsibility 223 Human-nature Dualism 230 Forms of Substantive Responsibility 234 7 Feeling, Responsibility and Virtue 241 From the Nature of Things to an Ethical Standpoint 241 Responsibility, Virtue, Feeling 248 Love of a Special Sort 251 Jonas’ Ethic of Responsibility Revisited 253 8 Finally 271 References 281 Subject Index 295 Name Index 301