1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910789699803321

Autore

Larson Brendon

Titolo

Metaphors for environmental sustainability [[electronic resource] ] : redefining our relationship with nature / / Brendon Larson

Pubbl/distr/stampa

New Haven, Conn., : Yale University Press, 2011

ISBN

1-283-15054-9

9786613150547

0-300-15154-3

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (224 p.)

Disciplina

304.2

Soggetti

Nature - Effect of human beings on

Sustainability

Metaphor

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Nota di contenuto

Front matter -- Contents -- Preface -- Acknowledgments -- I. Metaphor and Sustainability -- II. Progress A Web of Science and Society -- III. Competitive Facts and Capitalist Values -- IV. Engaging the Metaphoric Web -- V. When Scientists Promote -- VI. Advocating with Fear -- VII. Seeking Sustainable Metaphors -- VIII. Wisdom and Metaphor -- Notes -- Bibliography -- Index

Sommario/riassunto

Scientists turn to metaphors to formulate and explain scientific concepts, but an ill-considered metaphor can lead to social misunderstandings and counterproductive policies, Brendon Larson observes in this stimulating book. He explores how metaphors can entangle scientific facts with social values and warns that, particularly in the environmental realm, incautious metaphors can reinforce prevailing values that are inconsistent with desirable sustainability outcomes. Metaphors for Environmental Sustainability draws on four case studies-two from nineteenth-century evolutionary science, and two from contemporary biodiversity science-to reveal how metaphors may shape the possibility of sustainability. Arguing that scientists must assume greater responsibility for their metaphors, and that the rest of us must become more critically aware of them, the author urges more



critical reflection on the social dimensions and implications of metaphors while offering practical suggestions for choosing among alternative scientific metaphors.