Key Terms

Chaos and Complexity Theory: the idea that we cannot predict nature and therefore cannot control it

Conservationist narrative: the idea that we should protect the existing natural environment

Declensionist histories: the idea that human interaction with nature has caused a decline in the abundance and health of natural systems

Ecofeminism: describes women and nature as dominated entities, and investigates their histories as connected narratives

Ecology: the study of relationships of organisms to each other and their environment

Environmental history: the history of the environment and humans and how they affect and alter one another

Environmental philosophy: the philosophy of the interactions between humans and the environment, one particularly important area is environmental ethics

Environmentalism: a general term used to describe human concern for natural elements or issues

Global capitalism: a global system of ever-increasing growth that relies on the domination and use of natural resources

Global ecological crisis: the crisis that the world is in ecologically, Merchant concludes that global warming is one of the main causes, or “complexes” (pg. 3), for the global ecological crisis

Global warming: a theory that because of pollution, particularly greenhouse gasses, heat is trapped in the atmosphere which results in unstable weather conditions and increased temperature, with disastrous results for the planet

Mother Nature: Nature is viewed as female; a mother. The move to a “partnership ethic” would require that nature not be gendered

Natura: a feminine noun describing nature that further links the feminine with nature

Partnership ethic: states that men and women can be partners, as can humans and the earth, it focusses on sustainable partnerships

Progressive narrative: the idea that we can control, dominate and interact with nature through technology

Recovering Eden: the idea that through controlling Nature we can recreate the Garden of Eden

Recovery narrative: the idea that we can get our natural systems back to where they were

Scientific Revolution: scientific discoveries that began towards the end of the Renaissance that brought a change to the way people saw and interacted with nature

Silent Spring: The 1962 book by Rachel Carson which first introduced many people to environmental issues

The Feminine Mystique: A book by Betty Friedan that discusses feminism

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