Post-Ecologist Politics: Social Theory and

This book questions why radical ecological criticism has had such little impact on contemporary society, despite the urgency of the issues it highlights, and offers a challenging theoretical critique of ecological thought itself.

Ingolfur Bluhdorn is a Lecturer in European Politics at the University of Bath

Acknowledgements

x

Preface

xi

PART I Preliminaries

1

(54)

Ecological concern and theoretical enquiry

3

(10)

Sociological and philosophical abstinence

4

(1)

The non-negotiability of nature

5

(4)

The false promise of empiricism

9

(4)

Ecology in crisis

13

(22)

An ecological ideology?

17

(6)

The eco-movement in transformation

23

(7)

A rearguard battle?

30

(5)

Towards post-ecologism

35

(20)

The abolition of nature

37

(3)

Ecological constructionism

40

(8)

A post-ecologist research agenda

48

(7)

PART II Understanding ecologism - critical theory

55

(50)

Alienation and reconciliation - Horkheimer and Adorno

57

(24)

The Self and the Other

60

(4)

The dialectic of enlightenment

64

(2)

The project of reconciliation

66

(4)

The pre-ecological imperative

70

(3)

Lessons to learn

73

(6)

Theoretical limitations

79

(2)

Pluralisation and reflexivity - Ulrich Beck

81

(24)

The risk society

83

(4)

Reflexive modernisation and second modernity

87

(3)

Environmental problems and systemic problems

90

(1)

The reinvention of politics

91

(6)

A theory of societal self-critique?

97

(2)

Final assessment

99

(6)

PART III Deconstructing ecologism - systems theory

105

(44)

Autopoietic systems and functional differentiation - Niklas Luhmann I

107

(19)

Systems and environments

110

(2)

Communication and meaning

112

(3)

Autopoiesis and self-referentiality

115

(2)

Temporalization and differentiation

117

(3)

Operation and observation

120

(2)

Provisional assessment

122

(4)

Ecological communication - Niklas Luhmann II

126

(23)

A revised concept of the environment

128

(2)

A revised understanding of the environmental problem

130

(3)

Confronting environmental problems

133

(2)

Ecological communication as a function system

135

(4)

The code of the eco-movement

139

(4)

Eco-ehtics and the communication of Angst

143

(2)

Conclusions

145

(4)

PART IV Post-ecologism

149

(52)

Ecology without identity

151

(22)

Core ingredients

153

(6)

Post-ecologist explanations

159

(6)

Post-ecologist perspectives

165

(8)

Avoiding ecologist fallacies

173

(17)

Is post-ecologism uncritical?

174

(6)

Is post-ecologism anti-ecological?

180

(5)

Is post-ecologism pessimistic or cynical?

185

(5)

Managing the transition to post-ecologist politics

190

(11)

Ecological modernisation and ecological modernisation theory

191

(2)

The ecologist critique of ecological modernisation

193

(3)

A post-ecologist reassessment of ecological modernisation

196

(5)

Epilogue

201

(3)

References

204

(11)

Index

215

What is included with this book?

The New copy of this book will include any supplemental materials advertised. Please check the title of the book to determine if it should include any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.

The Used, Rental and eBook copies of this book are not guaranteed to include any supplemental materials. Typically, only the book itself is included. This is true even if the title states it includes any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.

FREE SHIPPING

Amazon no longer offers textbook rentals. We do!

Post-Ecologist Politics: Social Theory and the Abdication of the Ecologist Paradigm

Summary

Author Biography

Table of Contents

Supplemental Materials