Reinventing Eden: The Fate of Nature in Western Culture - Hardcover

Merchant, Carolyn

9780415931649: Reinventing Eden: The Fate of Nature in Western Culture

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0415931649 ISBN 13: 9780415931649

Publisher: Routledge, 2003

Visionary quests to return to the Garden of Eden have shaped Western Culture. This book traces the idea of rebuilding the primeval garden from its origins to its latest incarnations and offers a bold new way to think about the earth.

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Review:

"[Merchant] covers a wealth of information and sheds light on the thinking of generations of scientists, philosophers, and environmentalists." -"Publishers Weekly "Fascinating and enjoyable reading. Merchant provides a richly documented analysis of the shifting rationales for dominating, degrading and reinventing the natural world." -Devra Davis, author of "When Smoke Ran Like Water: Tales of Environmental Deception and the Battle Against Pollution "A sparkling, wide-ranging meditation on Western Civilization's relationship to nature. Merchant calls for a new environmental ethic based on partnership. This learned and readable book asks each of us to live in nature in new ways. A partnership ethic leads to greater health for individuals and for our planet. This book is a treat--a sacred tale that inspires each of us to imagine new ways of cultivating our garden planet." -Londa Schiebinger, author of "Has Feminism Changed Science? "In an age dominated by violence, conflict, disharmony, and terror, "Reinventing Eden offers an alternative to 'either you're with us or you're our enemy' logic and could help create harmony out of disharmony, a peaceful order out of violent chaos. A timely book for our troubled times and troubled thinking." -Vandana Shiva, author of "Water Wars: Privatization, Pollution, and Profit ""Reinventing Eden is fascinating, extensively researched, and historically comprehensive. Merchant's vision for a partnership ethic, in which nature and humanity are equal, healthy, and mutually responsive partners in ecologically sound and just relationships is brilliant. This book is a must-read for anyone interested in philosophically sound, ethicallyjust, and ecologically sustainable solutions to the current environmental crisis." -Karen J. Warren, editor of "Ecofeminism: Women, Culture, Nature

Synopsis:

Visionary quests to return to the Garden of Eden have shaped Western culture from Columbus' voyages to today's tropical island retreats. Few narratives are so powerful and, as Carolyn Merchant shows, so misguided and destructive, as the dream of recapturing a lost paradise. A sweeping account of these quixotic endeavours by one of Amercia's leading environmentalists, Reinventing Eden traces the idea of rebuilding the primeval garden from its origins to its latest incarnations in shopping malls, theme parks and gated communities. With flair and insight, Merchant shows how the drive to conquer nature, to explore and settle the globe, springs from this utopian pastoral impulse throughout Western history. She also illustrates the counter narrative that emerged when the conservation movement of the 19th century asserted that man's manipulation of the environment is our downfall: Eden is achieved by fencing off pristine beauty in national parks and wildlife preserves. Challenging both narratives, Merchant argues that the green veneer of city-park conservation has become a cover for the corruption of the earth and the neglect of its poor.

Reinventing Eden is a bold new way to think about the earth that includes green political parties, sustainable development and a partnership between humans and earth that is nothing short of an ecological revolution.

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