Building Receptivity

Leopold’s Land Ethic and Critical Feminist Interpretation

Authors

  • Kathryn J. Norlock Trent University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1558/jsrnc.v5i4.491

Keywords:

Aldo Leopold, ecofeminism, receptivity, Nel Noddings, ethics of care

Abstract

Aldo Leopold’s A Sand County Almanac emphasizes values of receptivity and perceptivity that appear to be mutually reinforcing, critical to an ecological conscience, and cultivatable through concrete and embodied experience. His priorities bear striking similarities to elements of the ethics of care elaborated by feminist philosophers, especially Nel Noddings, who notably recommended receptivity, direct and personal experience, and even shared Leopold’s attentiveness to joy and play as sources of moral motivation. These commonalities are so fundamental that ecofeminists can and should see Leopold as a philosophical ally. The three ecofeminist scholars who have devoted the most concerted attention to Leopold’s work argue that his Land Ethic is not, and does not provide a basis for, an ecofeminist ethic. I dispute the main criticisms of these scholars, and conclude that ecofeminists should attend more often to Leopold’s work, which extends possibilities for excellent praxis.

Author Biography

  • Kathryn J. Norlock, Trent University
    The Kenneth Mark Drain Endowed Chair in Ethics and Professor of Philosophy, and author of Forgiveness from a Feminist Perspective (Lexington Books, 2008)

References

Baier, Annette C. 1985. ‘What Do Women Want in a Moral Theory?’ Noûs 19.1: 53-63. Doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/2215117.

Curtin, Deane. 1996. ‘Toward an Ecological Ethics of Care’, in Karen J. Warren (ed.), Ecological Feminist Philosophies (Bloomington: Indiana University Press): 66–81.

Davis, Karen. 1995. ‘Thinking Like a Chicken’, in Carol Adams (ed.), Animals and Women (Durham and London: Duke University Press): 192-212.

D’Eaubonne, Francoise. 1974. Le Féminisme ou La Mort [Feminism or Death] (Paris: Pierre Horay).

Diehm, Christian. 2007. ‘Identification with Nature: What it Is and Why it Matters’, Ethics & the Environment 12.2: 1-22. Doi:

Published

2011-12-28

How to Cite

Norlock, K. J. (2011). Building Receptivity: Leopold’s Land Ethic and Critical Feminist Interpretation. Journal for the Study of Religion, Nature and Culture, 5(4), 491-509. https://doi.org/10.1558/jsrnc.v5i4.491