Introducing geological wonder: Planetary thinking as a disruption of narcissism

Jeremy Bendik-Keymer and Stefan Pedersen
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Jeremy Bendik-Keymer: 2546Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USA
Stefan Pedersen: 1948University of Sussex, Brighton, UK

Environmental Values, 2024, vol. 33, issue 6, 648-664

Abstract: Since its origin in 15th century European imperialism, the globe has been an object of conquest involving regimes of territorial exclusion and various forms of land abstraction now known as nationalism, colonialism, capitalism, and industrialism. Coming to think like the Earth system and generating politics grounded in it could pose a welcome disruption of these systematically controlling orders only if such planetary thinking is grounded in a nondominating orientation. We propose that this grounding be geological wonder , the open consideration of Earth as a system exceeding human narcissism. Following Dipesh Chakrabarty's distinction between the globe and the planet, we articulate planetarism in an emerging cosmology decentering human life while emphasizing human limits. Globality, by contrast, is a modern, narcissistic formation that geological wonder unsettles. We draw on Martha C. Nussbaum's politics of wonder to articulate a postglobal, disruptive virtue.

Keywords: Wonder; planetarism; narcissism; virtue; Dipesh Chakrabarty; Martha C. Nussbaum (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:envval:v:33:y:2024:i:6:p:648-664

DOI: 10.1177/09632719241266276

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