The domination of nature

by William Leiss

The last three decades have seen increasing concern over ecology and environmental problems. Scientists, social thinkers, public officials, and the public have been aroused by the recognition that failure to understand the destructive impact of industrial society and advanced technologies on the delicate balance of organic life in the global ecosystem may result in devastating problems for future generations. William Leiss argues that this global predicament must be understood in terms of deeply rooted attitudes towards nature. He traces the origins, development, and social consequences of an idea whose imprint is everywhere in modern the idea of the domination of nature. In Part One Leiss traces the idea of the domination of nature from the Renaissance to the nineteenth century. Francis Bacon's seminal work provides the pivotal point for this discussion and, through an original interpretation of Bacon's thought, Leiss shows how momentous ambiguities in the idea were incorporated into modern thought. By the beginning of the twentieth century the concept had become firmly identified with scientific and technological progress. This fact defines the task of Part Two. Using important contributions by European sociologists and philosophers, Leiss critically analyses the role of science and technology in the modern world. In the concluding chapter he puts the idea of mastery over nature into historical perspective and explores a new approach, based on the possibilities of the "liberation of nature." Originally published in 1972, The Domination of Nature was part of the first wave of widespread interest in environmental issues. These issues have reemerged in many industrialized countries, reinforced by planetary dynamics such as threats of global warming (or cooling) and ozone depletion. In an extensive new preface Leiss explains why his study is as relevant as ever.

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction, Ecology, Technology, Politics, Environment

242 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1972

Reviews

[Brent Ranalli · Rating 5 out of 5]

Liess demonstrates that when it comes to our relationship with the environment, ideas matter. If you want to understand why a culture is environmentally rapacious, you need to ask where it got its ideas about nature. If it is your own culture, and you want to change it, your soul-searching has to begin with a historical critique. Liess provides a sketch of that critique, and he was one of the first to do so. (Lynn White's famous article on Christianity and the environment came out a few years earlier, I think. Carolyn Merchant's "Death of Nature" covered a lot of the same ground in the 1980s, and did it well, but Leiss doesn't nearly enough credit as a pioneer. And his analysis still holds up very well.)

This was one of three books, as I recall, that profoundly influenced me after I randomly stumbled across them in the college library. Liess linked up my studies in intellectual history with my nascent environmental interests, setting me on the path, more or less, to the career I have today.

[Toon Pepermans · Rating 3 out of 5]

The reason why this book is neglected these days is no doubt its Marxist point of view. But some parts are still really interesting, for example the one about Max Scheler.