Dialectical naturalism
Encyclopedia
Dialectical naturalism is a term coined by American philosopher Murray Bookchin
to describe the philosophical underpinnings of the political program of social ecology
. Dialectical naturalism explores the complex interrelationship between social problems, and the direct consequences they have on the ecological impact of human society. Bookchin offered dialectical naturalism as a contrast to what he saw as the "empyrean, basically antinaturalistic dialectical idealism" of Hegel
, and "the wooden, often scientistic
dialectical materialism
of orthodox Marxists
."
However, in contrast with its forebears in Hegel and Marx, dialectical naturalism "does not terminate in a Hegelian Absolute at the end of a cosmic development path, but rather advances the vision of an ever increasing wholeness, fullness and richness of differentiation and subjectivity." Thus, in the dialectical naturalist framework, there is no "End of History
," only the advancement of a continued march of human social and individual self-understanding.
As a philosophy, dialectical naturalism stresses the incorporation and advancement of scientific understanding as an integral part of the development of an ecological human understanding. Bookchin rejected "the revival of 'pre-scientific' archaisms," and stressed the importance of incorporating a broad scientific understanding from the literature of multiple disciplines. As such, the project of social ecology is a holistic one, dealing with communities and ecosystems in their totalities not just as the sum of their parts, but as the fullness of the interdependence of the many diverse and special parts make, as the saying goes, the whole become more than the sum of its parts. The dialectical unfolding of evolution, both biological and cultural, leads to greater complexity and thus greater subjectivity. Humans, the product of nature made self-aware, cannot be conceived as the pinnacle of a food chain, but only one result of the biological process. A process, which is so fundamentally dependent on diversity among organic lifeforms and biospheres, requiring a "prudent rescaling of man's hubris."
Murray Bookchin
Murray Bookchin was an American libertarian socialist author, orator, and philosopher. A pioneer in the ecology movement, Bookchin was the founder of the social ecology movement within anarchist, libertarian socialist and ecological thought. He was the author of two dozen books on politics,...
to describe the philosophical underpinnings of the political program of social ecology
Social ecology
Social ecology is a philosophy developed by Murray Bookchin in the 1960s.It holds that present ecological problems are rooted in deep-seated social problems, particularly in dominatory hierarchical political and social systems. These have resulted in an uncritical acceptance of an overly...
. Dialectical naturalism explores the complex interrelationship between social problems, and the direct consequences they have on the ecological impact of human society. Bookchin offered dialectical naturalism as a contrast to what he saw as the "empyrean, basically antinaturalistic dialectical idealism" of Hegel
Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel
Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel was a German philosopher, one of the creators of German Idealism. His historicist and idealist account of reality as a whole revolutionized European philosophy and was an important precursor to Continental philosophy and Marxism.Hegel developed a comprehensive...
, and "the wooden, often scientistic
Scientism
Scientism refers to a belief in the universal applicability of the systematic methods and approach of science, especially the view that empirical science constitutes the most authoritative worldview or most valuable part of human learning to the exclusion of other viewpoints...
dialectical materialism
Dialectical materialism
Dialectical materialism is a strand of Marxism synthesizing Hegel's dialectics. The idea was originally invented by Moses Hess and it was later developed by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels...
of orthodox Marxists
Marxism
Marxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
."
Overview
The roots of dialectical naturalism are found in Hegel's own writings on dialectical methodology, which lent it self to an organic, even ecological interpretation. Bookchin interpreted the dialectical method's strength as its unity of "developmental causality" with ontology. "Dialectic," he notes, "is simultaneously a way of reasoning and an account of the objective world, with a developmental ontology."However, in contrast with its forebears in Hegel and Marx, dialectical naturalism "does not terminate in a Hegelian Absolute at the end of a cosmic development path, but rather advances the vision of an ever increasing wholeness, fullness and richness of differentiation and subjectivity." Thus, in the dialectical naturalist framework, there is no "End of History
End of history
End of history may refer to:* The advent of a particular political and economic system as a signal of the end point of humanity's sociocultural evolution and the final form of human government, as posited by Thomas More in Utopia, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, Karl Marx and Francis Fukuyama*The...
," only the advancement of a continued march of human social and individual self-understanding.
As a philosophy, dialectical naturalism stresses the incorporation and advancement of scientific understanding as an integral part of the development of an ecological human understanding. Bookchin rejected "the revival of 'pre-scientific' archaisms," and stressed the importance of incorporating a broad scientific understanding from the literature of multiple disciplines. As such, the project of social ecology is a holistic one, dealing with communities and ecosystems in their totalities not just as the sum of their parts, but as the fullness of the interdependence of the many diverse and special parts make, as the saying goes, the whole become more than the sum of its parts. The dialectical unfolding of evolution, both biological and cultural, leads to greater complexity and thus greater subjectivity. Humans, the product of nature made self-aware, cannot be conceived as the pinnacle of a food chain, but only one result of the biological process. A process, which is so fundamentally dependent on diversity among organic lifeforms and biospheres, requiring a "prudent rescaling of man's hubris."
See also
- Dialectical materialismDialectical materialismDialectical materialism is a strand of Marxism synthesizing Hegel's dialectics. The idea was originally invented by Moses Hess and it was later developed by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels...
- Eco-anarchism
- Libertarian socialismLibertarian socialismLibertarian socialism is a group of political philosophies that promote a non-hierarchical, non-bureaucratic, stateless society without private property in the means of production...
- MarxismMarxismMarxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...