Enlivenment

Toward a Poetics for the Anthropocene

Nonfiction, Science & Nature, Nature, Environment, Ecology, Religion & Spirituality, Philosophy
Cover of the book Enlivenment by Andreas Weber, The MIT Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Andreas Weber ISBN: 9780262352284
Publisher: The MIT Press Publication: February 8, 2019
Imprint: The MIT Press Language: English
Author: Andreas Weber
ISBN: 9780262352284
Publisher: The MIT Press
Publication: February 8, 2019
Imprint: The MIT Press
Language: English

A new understanding of the Anthropocene that is based on mutual transformation with nature rather than control over nature.

We have been told that we are living in the Anthropocene, a geological era shaped by humans rather than by nature. In Enlivenment, German philosopher Andreas Weber presents an alternative understanding of our relationship with nature, arguing not that humans control nature but that humans and nature exist in a commons of mutual transformation. There is no nature–human dualism, he contends, because the fundamental dimension of existence is shared in what he calls "aliveness." All subjectivity is intersubjectivity. Self is self-through-other. Seeing all beings in a common household of matter, desire, and imagination, an economy of metabolic and economic transformation, is “enlivenment.” This perspective allows us to move beyond Enlightenment-style thinking that strips material reality of any subjectivity.

To take this step, Weber argues, we need to supplant the concept of techné with the concept of poiesis as the element that brings forth reality. In a world not divided into things and ideas, culture and nature, reality arises from the creation of relationships and continuous fertile transformations; any thinking in terms of relationships comes about as a poetics. The self is always a function of the whole; the whole is equally a function of the individual. Only this integrated freedom allows humanity to reconcile with the natural world.

This first English edition of Enlivenment has been expanded and updated from the German edition.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

A new understanding of the Anthropocene that is based on mutual transformation with nature rather than control over nature.

We have been told that we are living in the Anthropocene, a geological era shaped by humans rather than by nature. In Enlivenment, German philosopher Andreas Weber presents an alternative understanding of our relationship with nature, arguing not that humans control nature but that humans and nature exist in a commons of mutual transformation. There is no nature–human dualism, he contends, because the fundamental dimension of existence is shared in what he calls "aliveness." All subjectivity is intersubjectivity. Self is self-through-other. Seeing all beings in a common household of matter, desire, and imagination, an economy of metabolic and economic transformation, is “enlivenment.” This perspective allows us to move beyond Enlightenment-style thinking that strips material reality of any subjectivity.

To take this step, Weber argues, we need to supplant the concept of techné with the concept of poiesis as the element that brings forth reality. In a world not divided into things and ideas, culture and nature, reality arises from the creation of relationships and continuous fertile transformations; any thinking in terms of relationships comes about as a poetics. The self is always a function of the whole; the whole is equally a function of the individual. Only this integrated freedom allows humanity to reconcile with the natural world.

This first English edition of Enlivenment has been expanded and updated from the German edition.

More books from The MIT Press

Cover of the book Language, Consciousness, Culture by Andreas Weber
Cover of the book The The Parallax View by Andreas Weber
Cover of the book Keynes by Andreas Weber
Cover of the book Ethical Adaptation to Climate Change by Andreas Weber
Cover of the book Getting it Wrong by Andreas Weber
Cover of the book Elbow Room by Andreas Weber
Cover of the book Recycling Reconsidered by Andreas Weber
Cover of the book Broadcasting Buildings by Andreas Weber
Cover of the book The View from Above by Andreas Weber
Cover of the book Plantations and Protected Areas by Andreas Weber
Cover of the book Dream Chasers by Andreas Weber
Cover of the book Out of the Shadows, Into the Streets! by Andreas Weber
Cover of the book Sustainability in Higher Education by Andreas Weber
Cover of the book The Fabric of Interface by Andreas Weber
Cover of the book Rules of Play by Andreas Weber
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy