Volume This article was originally published in. Article Contents Abstract. Department of Biological Sciences, University of California. Oxford Academic. Google Scholar. Select Format Select format. Permissions Icon Permissions. Abstract Paul Sears identified ecology as a subversive science; William Ophuls, referring primarily to its human applications, called it a conservative science. Their "oikos" -- the root for the word "ecology" -- was home.
Goddess Hestia was the hearth of Greek homes. Their relationships with Hestia spilled over to their connections with nature. Goddess Artemis was the queen of the natural world. Demetra reigned over grains, agriculture, civilization; Dionysos protected the grape vines and wine; Athena gifted the olive tree to the Athenians.
Pan was the god of sheep, goats, hogs and cattle; Aristaios was the god of honeybees and beekeeping. Aristotle loved animals. In fact, he studied them thoroughly and he pioneered zoology; his student, Theophrastus, invented botany. Neither Aristotle nor Theophrastus named what they did ecological, though their writings are full with ecological insights. So why are our modern ecologists removed from ecology? Why don't they have a deep understanding of nature, but rely primarily on technics in their assessment of risk?
The rise of Christianity in the fourth century had a deleterious impact on Greek culture. The Christians smashed more than the temples and altars of the gods. They made Greek science invisible. It took almost a millennium for Europe to start healing itself from the blow of Christianity.
Greek texts reentered Europe in the fifteenth century, triggering a scientific Renaissance. Those texts were also full of natural philosophy and, hence, ecological insights, but the moderns blocked nature from their vision.
The Greeks were right, however. Animals and plants matter. The Earth is alive and sacred. It nourishes all animals, including the human animal. Ecology comes from that understanding. News U. Politics Joe Biden Congress Extremism. Your rating has been recorded. Write a review Rate this item: 1 2 3 4 5. Preview this item Preview this item. In this book we find instead a number of clear, calm discussions of environmental problems, providing information and ideas without excessive emotional appeal.
The 37 papers, chosen from a wide variety of journals, such as Human Biology, Daedalus, Landscape, American Scientist, are obviously intended for the nonspecialist intelligent reader. They are divided into five groups, of which the first deals with population problems, both human and animal. Here are included comments on American front yards, the shapes of roofs in different European countries, the importance of sacred places, and an essay by Alan Watts reprinted from The Psychedelic Review.
A hopeful note appears in a discussion of the use of solar energy. The final part, called "Ethos, Ecos, and Ethics," includes more philosophical commentaries. Read more Allow this favorite library to be seen by others Keep this favorite library private.
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