Chapter 2 - Order and place in environmental ethics and esthetics

Abstract

The concepts of “order” and “disorder” have played important—if underappreciated—roles in the history of Western thought, often through such related concepts as “cosmos” and “chaos,” “form” and “matter,” or “whole” and “part.” Beneath the surface, they continue to play important roles in contemporary environmental ethics and esthetics. But these concepts are problematic, especially when used to shape environmental values. An examination of their history, use, and problems suggests a need for a new approach in both environmental ethics and esthetics. After discussing these concepts, I briefly sketch the conceptual and metaphysical background of a possible alternative that centers on the interconnected concepts of “place” and “landscape.” I then apply it to geoethics, geoesthetics, and geotourism.