Overview

Contemporary environmental crises and general feelings of estrangement from the earth and its creatures can be traced, at least in part, to deficiencies in intimacy. This book begins from Merleau-Ponty's descriptions of the origins of animal desire, then advocates for transformation of the human-animal relation in a manner that pushes further toward ethical conclusions than did Merleau-Ponty himself. Shifting from analysis first in an aesthetic, then in an ethical, and finally in an ethico-religious register, with contemporary environmental concerns in mind, it charts a path for healing the human-animal relation both within, with respect to one's own animality, and without, with respect to animals of other species, based on the maturation of desire from eros to environmental responsibility.

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9781399544375

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Reviews

Merleau-Ponty and the Human-Animal Relation is a work of remarkable synthesis and impressive originality. Rogers helps us to understand our humanity in ways that are both more fully animal and more fully human, developing ideas like solicitation-and-response, animauxdenial, and others that deserve wide readership and discussion. A brilliant, challenging, and inspiring work. -- Brian Treanor, Loyola Marymount University

Merleau-Ponty and the Human-Animal Relation is a work of remarkable synthesis and impressive originality. Rogers helps us to understand our humanity in ways that are both more fully animal and more fully human, developing ideas like solicitation-and-response, animauxdenial, and others that deserve wide readership and discussion. A brilliant, challenging, and inspiring work. -- Brian Treanor, Loyola Marymount University A new thinking of nature is emerging in Continental Philosophy, with Merleau-Ponty at its center. The human is no longer conceived as nature’s other, nor can the non-human animal be so easily denigrated. What binds all life together is a shared grounding in desire. Rogers takes us deep into this crucial reappraisal of the late Merleau-Ponty and deftly reveals its significance for environmental ethics. -- Sean J. McGrath, Memorial University, Canada.

Author Information

Chandler D. Rogers is Lecturer in Philosophy at Gonzaga University. His interests are in environmental philosophy, 19th-century philosophy, phenomenology and the philosophy of religion. His work has been published in journals such as International Journal for Philosophy of Religion, Philosophy and Theology, Environmental Philosophy, Journal for Critical Animal Studies, and Worldviews: Global Religions, Culture, and Ecology.

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