Disenchanting the rhetoric: human uniqueness and human responsibility
Date
2006
Authors
Rolston, Holmes, 1932-, author
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Abstract
The trial before the Congress of all Beings is David Orr's heuristic device, used effectively to stimulate thought. How would the myriad other creatures judge human behavior? What would the butterflies and ants think? This is, of course fanciful metaphor. Neither butterflies nor ants have brain enough to engage in such concerns. Humans alone on Earth can take a transcending overview of the whole. Humans alone can know they are on a planet. Humans alone have escalated their powers to the point of placing the welfare of the planet in jeopardy. Humans are standouts on Earth. That does give us prominence of place, both of privilege and of responsibility. Only one species has ever wondered about its place in the world, because only one evolved the ability to do so.
Description
Includes bibliographical references.
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Subject
Council of all Beings
human uniqueness
butterflies
ants
planet in jeopardy