Truth of the Myths of Nature :: Philosophy Nature Papers

Truth of the Myths of NatureThe term temperament myths designates narratives presenting what-is as limpid in terms of esteem and meaning. Such narratives function to motivate bionomic activism by articulating such presuppositions as the conviction that what we do matters, destruction of disposition is intrinsically wrong, and the possibility of nondestructive human beings. However, such narratives motivate only if they argon regarded in some reason as true. The question is, in what sense? non in an objectivist sense (e.g. von Ranke), since value-even if intrinsic-is a subject related reality. Not in an i big moneyist sense (e.g. Cassirer), since they respect the autonomy of reality. Nor in a depth sense of expressing an alleged essential condition of guilt (e.g. Heidegger and Patocka), since this would delay a positivist description, albeit one level removed. Instead, I propose treating genius myths as orienting the world (e.g. Jaspers) and guiding human components therein. A s such, record myths can be said to be true (as in Ricoeurs adamic myth) or false (as in the myth of Man the Master) inasmuch as they provide or fail to provide adequate guidance for sustain fit coexistence with all of the Earth. The purpose of this paper is to ask in what sense, if any, ecological nature myths can be said to be not only exalting and moving, but also in some significant sense true, able to claim a validity independent of the assent of those who tell and run into them.I wish to use the term myth rather loosely to indicate not only the alleged spontaneous outpourings from the depth of our psyche, erotic love to romantically inclined philosophers and psychologists, but rather all narratives which describe the population and the place of existence therein in terms of relations of value and meaning rather than in terms of mathematico-causal relations in spacetime. (1) In the quaint terminology of Husserls Ideen II, they are personalistic narratives, rendering real ity intelligible in terms of personal that is, intrinsically subject-related categories. (2)Such narratives in fact campaign a crucial role in the effort to forge a sustainable mode of coexistence between humans and the rest of the creation. Humans whitethorn select the means for dealing with ecological damage in the sluttish of natural scientific analysis but they are moved to deal with it at all by mythico-poetic articulation rather than by theory-based reconstruction of their lived experience.Thus Rachel Carson, rigorous analytical chemist, moved her fellow humans by evoking their empathy through value laden poetic imagery.