Ecofeminism & Radical Green Thinking
What is radical green thinking?
Radical is often associated with Left politics & philosophies
Inspired in some fashion by Marxist or Marxian approaches
Focuses on the relations of power expressed through material conditions of social being
All radical green thought originates in 19th century philosophies
Their roots are in liberalism
They are humanistic rather than organic
They derive from marxist & socialist theories
They tend to be somewhat economistic & materialistic
Radical green thought sees domination as a primary problem
Modern society is primarily capitalist
Capitalism is driven by profit motive
Capitalism is based on surplus value
Surplus value comes from labor & nature
Labor comes in many forms: workers, women, minorities
Domination of labor leads to domination of nature
Accumulation of power & capital are parallel
Power is embedded in specific social relations, which allows domination & exploitation
Such relations of domination are present in many spheres of social life
Who or what is responsible for such domination and injustice?
Capitalists, most of whom (but not all) are men though system logic
Men, most of whom (but not all) are patriarchal through socialization
Society, most of which perpetuates injustice through naturalization
Modernity, which perpetuates illusion of management & control
Ideology, which legitimates & perpetuates hegemony by calling it natural
Radical green philosophies see such domination in human-nature relations, in
particular, as a threat & injustice Nature is an object of
human desire, rather than a subject of our respect
This may be the result of material factors or ideological ones
The result is that nature is exploited & ultimately destroyed
Second contradiction of capitalism
Thus, the environmental crisis arises out of the class and competitive elements of capitalism, the domination
of human by human, and the domination of nature by "man"
Does this, therefore, imply that nature will eventually rise up and overthrow human
domination?
Depends who you ask
Eco-feminism comes out of this philosophical vein, but in several varieties: The domination of
women & nature are linked due to
Valuing of both as providing freeresources
Deep institutionalization of patriarchal relations & property rights of men
Emphasis on rationality, which prizes calculation & demeans emotion
Naturalizes inferiority of both
Consider the following ecofeminisms:
Essentialistaccept the caring element in the mother-child relationship
Religiousrestore pagan pantheist womens worship
Post-moderndowngrade rationality as the measure of everyday life
Structuralistcritique & deconstruct naturalized power relations
Essentialist eco-feminism (Nel Noddings)
Women are naturally more sensitive to nature
This is seen in the mother child relationship
That is an emotional bond, and not a contractual one
Boys are taught to demean this bond & be rational
Women must take the lead in restoring proper human-nature relations
Religious ecofeminism (Starhawk)
In prehistoric times, human bands were matriarchal
Earth Goddess(es) were heads of pantheist religions
Protection of Earth was the primary command
Return to Goddess worship (or Gaia) is a way out of our dilemma
Post-modern ecofeminism (Carolyn Merchant)
The scientific revolution saw nature as a bundle of secrets to be revealed by research & reason
This could be done only by reducing nature to its constituent parts
Reason thus became highly valued, as opposed to intuition, emotion & chaos
We must give up the notion of progress and revelation of natures secrets to restore proper human-nature relations
Post-structural ecofeminism (Nol Sturgeon)
Domination is naturalized through ideology & practice
It is through naturalization that power is both rational-ized and exercised
Relentless critique of beliefs & practices will reveal how this is happening
Ultimately, such critique will reveal the truth, and people will change for the better
Peterson
Motherhood is a social, not just biological, fact
Boys reject their relation-ship with their mother; girls do not
Conviction of separateness is a male illusion
Knowledge is contextual and embodied/bodily
Women measure themselves through relationships & an ethic of care
This should be the basis of an ecological ethic
Mellor
Mellor focuses on the gender-ing of economic systems & effects on the natural world
Most economies are dualist & gendered, & devalue womens work ($15-45 trillion/yr.)
This is concerned with the human body & basic needs
Link of humanity with natural being is thereby diminished
Both nature and women are diminished and degraded
Provisioning offers an alternative
Dobson
Dobson is contrasting ecologism with ecofeminism
Identifies different forms of ecofeminism: Difference feminism Deconstructive feminism Materialist feminism
And distinguishes ecologismfrom these because They are andocentric and Dont address limits to
growth Ecologism does not seem too
concerned about domination
Philosophical standpoint
Representative author
Central argument or concern
Primary goal Means of achieving goal
Critique
Essentialist Nel Noddings Mother-child relationship = "natural caring"
Replacement of male-dominated ethical systems
A society with "mothers of both sexes"
Only addresses close relationships
Romantic Joanna Macy Indigenous women are closer to nature
Establishing a closer bond with nature
Learning beliefs & practices of indigenous women
Tends towards essentialism
Cultural-religious Starhawk Goddess worship was/is ecofriendly
Recreate pagan pan-theist feminism
Practice Celtic, Wiccan religions
Anti-rationalist magical thinking
Psycho-social Carol Adams Patriarchy is psycho-socially reproduced in individuals
Eliminate binary socialization of boys & girls
Non-gendered environment in home & elsewhere
Fails to address societys role in reproduction
Liberal Karen Warren Unequal representation of women
Equal political and economic power for women and men
Affirmative action, political access, economic success
Individualistic; does not address structural issues
Distributionist Vandana Shiva Unequal distribution of resources to women & children
Just distribution of resources and power
Greater access for women to economic resources
Distributive justice offers weak structural critique
Materialist Mary Mellor Sex/gendered division of labor subordinates women and nature
Eliminate domination of women & nature by men
United struggle to end male domination; womens decolonization
Why should move-ment coalitions be Green?
Post-modern Carolyn Merchant Science sees nature as female & women as natural
Eliminate dominance of rationalism in analysis & action
Restore holism & organicism to life & action
Here there be dragons!
Post-structural Nol Sturgeon Ecofeminisms must be deconstructed so as to not be essentialist
Denaturalize all categories so that power is exposed
Relentless critique of ideological positions
No political program, only critique
Ecofeminism & Radical Green ThinkingWhat is radical green thinking?All radical green thought originates in 19th century philosophies Radical green thought sees domination as a primary problem Power is embedded in specific social relations, which allows domination & exploitationSuch relations of domination are present in many spheres of social lifeWho or what is responsible for such domination and injustice?Radical green philosophies see such domination in human-nature relations, in particular, as a threat & injusticeThus, the environmental crisis arises out of the class and competitive elements of capitalism, the domination of human by humaDoes this, therefore, imply that nature will eventually rise up and overthrow human domination?Eco-feminism comes out of this philosophical vein, but in several varieties: The domination of women & nature are linked due tConsider the following ecofeminisms:Essentialist eco-feminism (Nel Noddings)Religious ecofeminism (Starhawk)Post-modern ecofeminism (Carolyn Merchant)Post-structural ecofeminism (Nol Sturgeon)PetersonMellorDobson