On the verge of a planetary civilization : a philosophy of integral ecology

270 Pages·2014·1.288 MB·English

by  Sam Mickey

On the Verge of a
Planetary Civilization

On the Verge of a
Planetary Civilization
A Philosophy of Integral Ecology
Sam Mickey
London•NewYork
PublishedbyRowman&LittlefieldInternational,Ltd.
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Copyright©2014bySamMickey
Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthisbookmaybereproducedinanyformorbyany
electronicormechanicalmeans,includinginformationstorageandretrievalsys-
tems,withoutwrittenpermissionfromthepublisher,exceptbyareviewerwhomay
quotepassagesinareview.
BritishLibraryCataloguinginPublicationInformationAvailable
AcataloguerecordforthisbookisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary
ISBN:HB978-1-7834-8136-1
PB978-1-7834-8137-8
EB978-1-7834-8138-5
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Mickey,Sam,1981–
Onthevergeofaplanetarycivilization:aphilosophyofintegralecology/SamMickey.
pagescm
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
ISBN978-1-78348-136-1(cloth:alk.paper)—ISBN978-1-78348-137-8(pbk.:alk.
paper)—ISBN978-1-78348-138-5(electronic)
1.Deleuze,Gilles,1925–1995.2.Ecology—Philosophy.I.Title.
B2430.D454M532014
194—dc23
2014017957
TMThepaperusedinthispublicationmeetstheminimumrequirementsof
AmericanNationalStandardforInformationSciencesPermanenceofPaperfor
PrintedLibraryMaterials,ANSI/NISOZ39.48-1992.
PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica
Contents
Acknowledgements vii
1 Introduction 1
BecomingEcological 10
BecomingIntegral 16
BecomingHumourous 24
BecomingSpeculative 29
Notes 35
2 Beginning 45
Opening 47
Decision 55
Examples 63
Chorology 73
Chaosmos 79
Notes 87
3 Middle 101
Sense 105
Rhizomes 112
Nomads 122
Omnicentric 128
Anthropocosmic 135
Notes 144
4 Ending 161
Apocalypse 167
FromGlobetoPlanet 172
PlanetaryLove 177
Cosmopolitics 183
Notes 192
5 Conclusion 207
Refrain 209
Compost 212
TheSFMode 219
OntheVerge 223
v
vi Contents
Notes 230
References 239
Index 257
Acknowledgements
Philosophy is a joint effort. This book would not be possible with-
out support and collaboration provided by so many who have
sharedinthelovingstruggleofphilosophywithme.Firstly,writing
a work on ecological and planetary issues, I have been continually
reminded that I live on a planet. It is a wondrous and humbling
reminder of the immense support granted to me by water, plants,
respiration, sunlight, bacteria, soil, gravity, and innumerable other
featuresofexistenceonEarth.Regardinginstitutionalsupport,Iam
gratefultofaculty,students,andstaffattheUniversityofSanFran-
cisco, Pacifica Graduate Institute, Dominican University of Califor-
nia,andtheCaliforniaInstituteofIntegralStudies,andIamgrate-
fultoSarahCampbellandeveryoneatRowman &LittlefieldInter-
national. I am also indebted to everyone involved with the Forum
onReligionandEcologyatYale,withparticularthankstothedirec-
tors of the Forum, Mary Evelyn Tucker and John Grim, two living
examplesofintegralecologists.IcannotforgetGeorgeJames,Irene
Klaver, and Keith Wayne Brown, without whom I would never
have found my way to phenomenology. I am still learning from
themandfromtheotherenvironmentalphilosophersattheUniver-
sity of North Texas. Much appreciation goes to Sean Kelly, Brian
Swimme, and Catherine Keller for their encouraging guidance and
for their extensive comments on earlier drafts of this work. Many
thanks go to Sean Esbjörn-Hargens for supporting my work with
integralstudiesandwelcomingmyparticipationinconferencesand
publications on that topic. Many dear friends have wandered with
mealongthemeanderingpathofthegeophilosophyofDeleuzeand
Guattari.Alongthoselines,AdamRobbert,WhitneyBauman,Eliz-
abeth McAnally, and Luke Higgins all deserve special thanks for
reading, writing, and talking with me. Extra special thanks go to
KimberlyCarforeforherlove,partnership,andintellectualsolidar-
ity throughout the writing and publication of this work. I want to
expressdeepgratitudetoallthosewhohavenurturedmeandsup-
ported this work, all those nearest and dearest to me, my family,
vii
viii Acknowledgements
friends, loved ones, and so many others who have been my com-
panions and coconspirators—too many others to name, multiplic-
itiesofmultiplicitiesfoldedtogetherinthechaosmos.