PHILOSOPHY 498D/4 A Environment and Technology: Philosophical Perspectives 2009/2010 TueThu 16:15-17:30 V. Zeman, PR 301, ext.2508 zemvlad@alcor.concordia.ca It is generally assumed that on these issues philosophers either took a conservative, romantic and basically negative approach or that they have uncritically accepted the benefits of modern civilisation without subjecting our situation to a critical scrutiny. In this seminar, we will discuss some central points of this problem area and shall acquaint ourselves with some representative positions within contemporary philosophy. Required texts: Drengson, A. and B.Devall The Ecology of Wisdom: Writings of Arne Naess.Berkeley: Counterpoint, (eds.) 2008. ISBN 978-1-58243-401-8 Mitcham, Carl Thinking through Technology: The Path between Engineering and Philosophy. Chicago: Univ. of Chicago Press, 1994. ISBN 0-226-53198-8 Zimmerman, M.E. Contesting Earth's Future: Radical Ecology and Postmodernity. U. of Cal. Press, 1997. ISBN 0-520-20907-9 Recommended reading : The New Ecological Order. transl. by C. Volk; Chicago: Univ. of Chicago Ferry, Luc Press, 1995. ISBN 0-226-24483-0 Postphenomenology and Technoscience. Albany: SUNY Press, 2009. Ihde, Don ISBN 978-1-4384-2622-8 Jonas, Hans The Imperative of Responsibility. Chicago: The U. of Chicago Press, 1985. Naess, Arne Ecology, Community and Lifestyle. Cambridge: Cambridge U. P., 1989. ISBN 0-521 34873 0 Olsen, J. & al. (eds.) A Companion to the Philosophy of Technology. Oxford: Blackwell, 2009. ISBN 978-1-4051-4601-2. Passmore, John Man's Responsibility for Nature: Ecological Problems and Western Traditions. 2nd ed., London: Duckworth, 1980. ISBN 0-7156-0819-3 Rothenberg, David Is It Painful To Think? Conversations With Arne Naess. Minneapolis: Univ. Of Minnesota Press, 1993. ISBN 0-8166- 2152-7; B 4445 N344R68 1993 Note: some of these books are on reserve in our library.
Evaluation: book report or class presentation 25% two class tests 30% short research paper 45% Grading scale will be presented in the first class. Please note: In the event of extraordinary circumstances beyond the University's control, the content and/or evaluation scheme in this course is subject to change. List of suggested titles for book reports: Note: feel free to choose another title; if you do, an approval from your teacher is required. Achterhuis, Hans American Philosophy of Technology: The Empirical Turn. Bloomington: Indiana U.P., 2001. Barrett, William Illusion of Technique: A Search for Meaning in a Technological Civilization. NY: Anchor/Doubleday, 1979. Borgmann, Albert Technology and the Character of Contemporary Life: A Philosophical Inquiry. Chicago: The U. of Chicago P., 1984. Diamond, Jared Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed. New York: Viking, 2004. Dyson, F. The Sun, the Genome, and the Internet. New York: Oxford U. P., 1999. Feenberg, A. Questioning Technology. Routledge, 1999. Higgs, Eric et al. Technology and the Good Life. University of Chicago Press, 2000. Ihde, Don Technology and the Lifeworld: From Garden to Earth. Bloomington: Indiana U.P., 1990. King, A. & B. Schneider The First Global Revolution: A Report by the Council of the Club of Rome. Pantheon, 1991. Kohak, E.V. The Embers and the Stars. Chicago: The U. of Chicago Press, 1984. Kueng, Hans & Manifeste pour une éthique planétaire. Les editions CERF, 1995. K.J.Kuschel Lovelock, James The Revenge of Gaia. London: Penguin Books, 2006. ISBN 978-0-02597-1 McWhorter L. & Heidegger and the Earth: essays in environmental philosophy. Toronto : University of G. Stenstad Toronto Press, 2009. B 3279 H49H3463 2009. (eds.) Rothenberg, Hand's End: Technology and the Limits of Nature. Univ. of Cal. Press, 1993. David Skolimowski, Henryk Living Philosophy: Eco-Philosophy as a Tree of Life. Penguin Books, 1992. ISBN 0-14-019308-1 Zimmerman, M.E. Heidegger's Confrontation with Modernity: Technology, Politics, and Art. Bloomington: Indiana U. P., 1990.
List of seminars by weeks: [reading for the given week: Rr = required, Rc = recommended] 01 Jan. 5, 7 02 Jan. 12, 14 03 Jan. 19, 21 04 Jan. 26, 28 05 Feb. 2, 4 06 Feb. 9, 11 07 Feb. 16, 18 The central character of phil. question on the sense of human life and its quality. General concepts of culture and nature, civilisation, science, technology and environment. Traditional answers vs. radically new problems. Individual and community. Philosophy of... Rr Mitcham, Thinking through, Ch. 1. Traditional phil. conceptions of technology and nature I. Knowledge and nature as a tool: Francis Bacon, New Atlantis. Marx, Economico-Philosophical Manuscripts. Rr Mitcham, Thinking through, Ch. 2. Rc Passmore, Man's Responsibility... Part 1.1. Traditional phil. conceptions of technology and nature II. Stewardship and harmonious co-existence: Rousseau; Thoreau, Walden; Kohak, The Embers and the Stars. The ambivalent approach of the religion. Rr Mitcham, Thinking through, Ch.3&4. Rc Passmore, Man's Responsibility... Part 1.2. Wendell Berry, 'God and Country,' from What Are People For? Breaking down of traditional conceptions. Concept of crisis. Rr Husserl, The Crisis.., par.8-9. Rc Passmore, Man's Responsibility... Part 3 and Appendix. Recent radical reactions to optimism: Spengler, Heidegger, Adorno. Rr Heidegger, The Question Concerning Technology. Zimmerman, Contesting Earth s Future, Ch. 3. Rc Heidegger, Why Do I Stay in the Provinces? Heidegger, Der Spiegel Interview. Various conceptions of ecology. Ecological problem, the type and scope of its possible solution. Individualistic and holistic approaches to environmental ethics. Rr Zimmerman, Contesting Earth s Future, Ch. 4-5. Rc Zimmerman, Contesting Earth s Future, Ch. 6. Deep ecology. Rr Zimmerman, Contesting Earth s Future, Ch. 1 & 2. Rc Luc Bejin, 'La nature comme sujet'. Dialogue XXX, 1991. Nielsen, Technology as Ideology.
08 March 2, 4 09 March 9, 11 10 March 16, 18 11 March 23, 25 12 March 30, April 1 13 April 6, 8 Ecophilosophy of Arne Naess. BOOK REPORT DUE Rr Drengson & Devall, The Ecology of Wisdom. Section 1; from Section 2 pp.105-119, 141-2. Naess, Ecology..., Ch. 8. Rc Naess, Ecology..., Ch.2. Rothenberg D., Is It Painful to Think? Conversations with Arne Naess. Ch. VII VIII. Selected Problems I: knowledge, hope vs. fear. Knowledge as power; a major benefactor of and a major threat for mankind. TEST1 (covers all readings up to this point) Rr H.Jonas, The Imperative of Responsibility, p.130-204. Mitcham, Thinking through.., Epilogue. Rc tba Selected Problems II: lifeworld and technology, landscape and home, communal and private space (the tragedy of commons), urban life, lifestyle. Rr Thinking through.., Ch.5 & 6. Drengson & Devall, The Ecology of Wisdom. Section 2 pp. 141-2. Rc Naess, Ecology..., ch.4. Habermas, Theory of Communicative Action. Vol.2, Ch. 6. Wellmer, A. Architecture and Territory. Endgames. MIT 1998. Selected Problems III: context/system descriptive and normative, quality of life, progress and preservation. Rr Drengson & Devall, The Ecology of Wisdom. Section 3. Passmore, Man's Responsibility.., Ch.4-5. Rc Naess, Ecology..., ch.3. Proposed Solutions I: new context of labour and technology, the idea of sustainable society. TEST 2 (covers all readings from March 2 on) Rr Mitcham, Thinking through, Conclusion and Epilogue. Rc Naess, Ecology..., Ch. 5 & 6. Passmore, Man's Responsibility.., Ch. 7. Proposed Solutions II: new philosophy and new science. Rr Drengson & Devall, The Ecology of Wisdom. Section 5. Zimmerman, Contesting Earth s Future, Ch. 8. Rc Ferry, The New Ecological Order. Skolimowski, Living Philosophy, p.223-250. Toulmin, Cosmopolis, p.175-210.
April 11 TERM PAPER DUE Final paper: You can take one of two routes: 1/ select topic contained in one of the books listed above but supplement it with additional literature; 2/ make your choice from the following list of suggested topics: 01 The idea of sustainable society and the possible limits of its application. 02 Can the 19th century concepts of labour and alienation be retained? 03 Are the various forms of radical ecology compatible with our idea of democracy? 04 Is rationality in all its forms incompatible with new conceptions of ecology and technology? 05 Is the responsibility towards nature a purely ethical concept? 06 What are the possible lifestyle implications of the value change proposed by either environmental ethics or deep ecology (choose one author only)? 07 Is it possible that radical ecology overestimates the role of ideology and underestimates the importance of some basic human needs? 08 Interpret critically the claim that nature and life are gestalt concepts. 09 Albert Schweitzer s philosophy of life and its critics. 10 Considering our present philosophical ideas on technology and ecology, what sort of adjustments to our traditional conception of humanism might be required? 11 Which, if any, might be the limits society should impose on technological innovation? 12 Present, support and criticize the Romantic conceptions of nature and technology. However, whichever way you choose, supply me with a one page long outline before March 2! Rule of thumb for avoiding plagiarism charge: do not copy, paraphrase or translate anything from anywhere without saying from where you obtained it!