Pabon Thesis Draft 2.0

7/23/2019 Pabon Thesis Draft 2.0

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Learning to See: Harnessing a Biocentric Environmental Ethics in Avatar

A Thesis Proposal Submittedto the

Division o Philosoph!Department o Humanities

"ollege o Arts and Sciences#niversit! o the Philippines Los Banos

$n Partial %ulillment o the &e'uirementsor the Degree o Bachelor o Arts

in Philosoph!

Pabon( )ustin Eric T*a!(+,-.


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$/ THE P&0BLE*

A/ $ntroduction

B/ Statement o the Problem

"/ Signiicance o the Stud!

D/ Scope and *ethodolog!

E/ &evie1 o &elated Literature

$$/ B$BL$02&APH3

$$$/ &ELATED &E4#$&E*E5TS

A/ Proposed 0utline o the Thesis

B/ Timetable or &esearch


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"HAPTE& -

LEA&5$52 T0 SEE $5 A6ATA&

The Movies Perspective

Avatar is one o the highest grossing ilms o its time/ $t is considered to be a pioneer

movie as it 1as the irst that did a movie 1ith the 7D animation eect in mind/ The movie 1as

able to gross more than 8+ Billion/ Avatar9s development 1as started in-. and 1as supposed

to be released on the !ear o - ater )ames "ameron had inished his other bloc;buster

Titanic1. "ircumstances made it that the movie 1as dela!ed and 1as onl! sho1n in the !ear

+,,/


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to1ards the conse'uences 1e do 1ith nature/ As long as 1e can get 1hat 1e need rom nature(

the atermath o our actions is oten loo;ed past be!ond/ 2eorge Dunn provides the discussion

on ho1 1e can learn rom the 5avi on ho1 to guide our actions/

Learning to see means that 1e learn to perceive the interconnectedness o the

environment 1ith us( at a irst glance 1e might see this as a 2aia H!pothesis as it also can be

vie1ed as the planet being one big organism 1ith us being its organs/ The idea that the planet is

one organism and that all lie orms interact 1ith one another to orm a 1hole( this 1ould mean

that ever!thing that happens 1ith one part o the planet 1ill aect the 1hole s!stem in general/

$nterconnectedness is dierent rom that o the 2aia H!pothesis in terms o consideration/

"onsiderations or the 2aia H!pothesis put too much emphasis on the organism then on the

organs/ This is 1here it becomes dierent rom the idea o interconnectedness 1here the

emphasis is ocused on the components that constitute the larger 1hole/

$n the boo;( Parts $$$ and 6$ go into a deal o discussion regarding the ethical concern on

ho1 our actions aect the environment/ This parts sho1 ho1 the actions o the 5avi 1ill be able

to guide us in our actions to1ards the environment/

Part $$$ o the boo; discusses ho1 our relationship 1ith nature 1hile Part 6$ helps to

discusses our ethical &esponsibilit!/ 2eorge Dunn 1ants us to understand that nature is not ?ust a

tool that 1e use/ He uses the 5avi as e>ample/ He points out ho1 the 5avi "ommune 1ith

nature and ho1 the! are able to live 1ith it in a air and ?ust manner/ He points out ho1 the s;!

people ail to see this and are unable to understand 1hat it means to live 1ith nature/ The s;!

people ail to comprehend that the! are committing the same mista;e as 1hat the! did to their

home planet/


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Changing Perspective

$ 1e are to avoid the same aith as them( then 1e should start putting value to1ards the

environment/ pound on the messages that

both present/

"Avatar and Philosophy: Learning to See, First Edition, Edited by George A. Dunn !"#$#$% &iley a%d S%s, '%. Publis$ed 201) by #$% &iley a%d S%s, '%., P 107


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"HAPTE& +

6AL#E A5D ETH$"S $5 A6ATA&

Value as Instrumental, Intrinsic, Inherent

6alue constitutes the importance o a thing/ &egard that something is held to deserve/ 2iving

value to a thing ma;es it signiicant/ Some consider value o a thing to be relative/ Dierent

people give dierent value or dierent things and or dierent reason/ Some value a thing or

ho1 the! ho1 it is beneicial to the user/ 0thers place value on a thing or its aesthetics/ There

are dierent basis or the thing to gain value/ And this ma;es a thing to have 1orth in this 1orld/

Instrumental Value o a thing is based on utilitarian vie1/ $nstrumental 6alue gives values

over a thing based on its useulness or unction/ $t onl! gains value i it can be use and to attain

another goal or another ob?ective/ *ost obvious e>ample 1ould be that o mone!/ and has an electrochemical

communication bet1een the roots and the trees/ Ho1ever( Selridge vie1s them onl! as )ust

2oddamn Tress/ The &DA vie1 nature as something that 1e could use to beneit ourselves and


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not understanding the value o the thing in itsel/.This 1ould be another orm o ho1 1e vie1

the value o a thing other than its use/

Some people value a thing or another reason( ma! it be or sentimental value( s!mbolic

meaning( cultural or historical 1orth/ This are reasons 1hich one places value other than the

useulness o an ob?ect/ This is giving value to thing or it itsel/ $n this situation( the ob?ect has

Intrinsic Value or it is being valued or itsel/ 0ne e>ample 1ould be going bac; to the mone!/

Although it 1ould be mostl! used or the sa;e o its instrumental value it ma! also contain other

orms o value/ Let us sa! that !ou have P-,/,, given to !ou b! !our grandather and told to

;eep it and pass it do1n to !our grandchild and so on/ *one! here is valued not or its

instrumental value but rather or the intrinsic value that !ou have 1ith it/ To ma;e it clearer( ta;e

monument or e>ample that provides s!mbolism or a communit!/ Li;e the #P 0blation 1hich is

valued or 1hat is s!mboli=es or #P( it does not have an! direct value or its useulness as much

as it has or its intrinsic value/ Lastl! people 1ould value to an intimate relationship or a bond in

the amil! not or the sa;e o its use but or the thing in itsel/

These t1o approaches to giving value to the environment come on ho1 1e value the

environment around us/


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$n the movie Avatar( the s;! people vie1 the orest as ?ust goddamn tress and should be

used or the needs/ As much as the! hated the 5avi( A bad 4uarterl! report is dreaded most b!

businessmen/ %or Businessmen( The monthl! return o their mone! is o primar! concern/ To see

a good report b! the end o the 'uarter( assures them o their proit/ *ilton %riedman(5obel Pri=e

1inningeconomist( declared:

There is one and only one social responsibility of business to use its resources and engage in

activities designed to increase its profits so long as it engages in open and free competition without

deception of fraud.

So or them( the! reall! 1ere )ust 2oddamn Tress that onl! had value because the

orest had unobtanium( a priceless mineral/ And the! sa1 an!one 1ho gets in their 1a! as simpl!

a nuisance that 1ould onl! get in their 1a!/ 0n the other side ho1ever( The 5avi value the orest

or its $ntrinsic 6alue/ The! see through the e!es o E!1a and commune 1ith ever!one in the

planet Pandora/ )a;e begins to see this that there is an intrinsic value or them and the destruction

o it 1ould create detrimental conse'uencesor them/ The! vie1 the planet as one 1ith them and

that ever!thing in the planet has value/ That is 1h! the! ought so hard in order to deend their

planet/

These t1o e>amples sho1 us 1hat it means to have value or one thing and ho1 dierent

people give dierent people value to dierent ob?ects/ The! also dier on 1hat ;ind o value

the! give to a certain ob?ect/ %rom this a simple problem arises/ All the value o an ob?ect is

solel! dependent o the one9s giving it/ The thing onl! has value because human beings are the

one that give them value/ The! do not hold an! 1orth or themselves but onl! hold value because

5 Milt% *riedma%, +T$e Sial es-%sibility /usi%ess is t i%rease its Prts,

The %e& 'or( Times )aga*ine, Se-tember 1", 1970


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there are humans 1hich provide value to them/ This 1ould mean that there are problems 1hen it

comes to ho1 value o an ob?ect 1or;s/ So in the movie( no one had a real ethicall! misconduct

in their actions because the! onl! acted upon their actions based on 1here the! thin; the value

lies/ $n 1hich case ma;es it problematic to reall! asses the value o an ob?ect/ This is 1h! some

philosophers argue that there should be a basis on giving value 1hich is not dependent on

humans/ This deense is 1hat the! callInherent !orth/ An ob?ect has inherent worthi it is good

in itsel( independentl! o humans/ To put it in a human e>ample( one value and belie on ho1

valuable one reall! is should not depend on ho1 other people see him but ho1 one sees himsel/

Being ?udged b! other people onl! distorts the reputation that on has but this should not aect

ho1 one believes in himsel/ The 1orth that one gives to his sel is dierent based on ho1 one

reall! belies the 1orth o one reall! has/

There is o course has problems surrounding on this idea as 1ell/ *ainl! on ho1 one

spea;s o 1orth independent o humans/ "riticisms about this sa! that value onl! happens rom

the ?udgment o human/ This ma;es inherent no dierent rom that o intrinsic value/ But let us

ta;e the e>ample given 1hich vie1s it on the level o humans/ There is still some ;ind o

inherent 1orth that each individual posses li;e one9s dignit!/ This is not value o the intrinsic

;ind but something that is inherent to the individual( so as much as humans have it then others in

the environment also must have this ;ind o inherent 1orth/ This still raises a 'uestion i 1orth

can reall! be given 1ithout human ?udgment/ "an 1e learn to see ho1 other ;ind see the 1orth

o others( 1ithout being aected b! bias@ There is o course diicult! on ho1 to go about it/ 0ne

ans1er is that 1e should have respect or reverence or the lie o others/ This sho1s that there

should be a reverence or lie ma! it is human or not/

Ethics as Biocentric in Avatar


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"hrfurcht vor dem Leben#$ translating to &everence or Lie in English( 1as presented b!

Sch1eit=er.Ehrurcht implies that 1e should have and attitude o a1e and 1onder/ perienced the hardships that are ound in

nature/ This o course does not stop him rom believing that 1e should have a1e and reverence

or humans/ %or him( 1e begin to have ethics 1hen 1e are ull! a1are o the act:

The man who has become a thin%ing being feels a compulsion to give to every will&to&live the

same reverence for life he gives to his own. 'e e(periences that other life in his own. 'e accepts

as being good) to preserve life$ to promote life$ to raise to its highest value life which is capable

of development* and as being evil) to destroy life$ to in+ure life$ to repress life which is capable of

development. This is the absolute$ fundamental principle of moral.,

6 #se-$ . es3ardi%s, +4%vir%me%tal 4t$is A% '%trduti% t 4%vir%me%tal

P$ils-$y, &adsrt$ Publis$i%g m-a%y8 /elm%t alir%ia, A ivisi% &adsrt, '%.

7 S$eiter, +ut o )y Lie and Thought, P. 1"0

: S$eiter, +ut o )y Lie and Thought, P. 1"1


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He is 1ell a1are that there is evil that is caused b! the environment but this does not mean that

the environment is valueree and that it is up to us to give it value/


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sand/ The Bird has the 1ill to live and has something that is goal oriented/ The sand on the other

hand has no good on its o1n and has no goal to beneit itsel or prove the 1orth o it/ $t ma! ?ust

be considered as simpl! a b!product rom the erosion o the soil rom the 1ind/ Ta;ing Ta!lor9s

e>ample:

-oncerning a butterfly$ for e(ample$ we may hesitate to spea% of its interest or preferences$ and

we would probably deny outright that it value anything in the sense of considering it good or desirable.

ut once we come to understand its life cycle and %now the environmental conditions it needs to survive

in a healthy state$ we have no difficulty in spea%ing about what is beneficial to it and what might be

harmful to it "ven when we consider such simple animal organisms as one celled proto/oa$ it ma%es

perfectly good sense to a biologically informed person to spea% of what benefits and harm them$ what

environmental changes are to their advantage or disadvantage$ and what physical circumstances are

favorable or unfavorable to them. The more %nowledge we gain concerning these organisms$ the better

are we able to ma%e sound +udgments about what is in their interest or contrary to their interest. 0

Ta!lor believed that beings as teleologicalcentersoalie/ Similar to that o Aristotle but Ta!lor

gives a dierent consideration compared to Aristotle/ Ta!lor includes other beings as 1ell/ Also(

1here as Aristotle puts Human being on a dierent categor!( Ta!lor9s Biocentric 0utloo; sho1s

humans are also teleologicalcentersoalie constituted 1ith parts that are goal oriented but 1e

are still similar to other beings that 1e are part o a communit! and are interdependent 1ith one

another/ He sho1s that humans are not superior to others and are simpl! on same terms 1ith

them/

9 Paul Taylr, +es-et r ;ature, 19:6. P. 66


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Avatar presents to us that a similar 1a! on ho1 these vie1s are pla!ed out/ The 5avi

commune 1ith the environment and are able to interact 1ith each other and ;eep a relationship

1ith them 1ithout pushing or1ard dominance 1ith other beings/


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"HAPTE& 7

HA&5ESS$52 A B$0"E5T&$" E56$&05*E5TAL ETH$"S

Virtue Ethics

6irtue ethics is one o the common ethics that people subscribe too/ $t puts emphasis on

the role that is pla!ed b! character/ %irst presented b! Aristotle( he discusses ho1 a person is

considered to be virtuous/ This person possesses ideal traits that he nurtures and develops

throughout his lietime/ An e>ample is a person considered to be ;ind because throughout his

lietime he has possessed good character/ He 1as not considered to be ethical because he

prioriti=ed the utilit! or he did things because it 1as his dut!/ 6irtue Ethics is placed in contrast

1ith deontological or conse'uentialist theories/ 6irtue ethics does not see; an! universal ma>im

on ho1 to go about lie/ $t 'uestions rather the on 1hat is considered to be the good lie or

ho1 to do $ live/ Dierent situations 1ill re'uire a dierent moral approach/ There can be no

one 1a! to approach given situation/


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6irtue Ethics can be applied to dierent situation and can be used on other ethical

discussions/ #sing it enable us to shed ne1 ideas into the past discussions 1hich have not

considered certain points disabling it rom orming a holistic vie1/

Environmental Ethics discusses moral boundaries be!ond the traditional limits 1hich

onl! concerns humans/ $t e>tends urther and tal;s about environment 1ith moral light that it

conventionall! uses on human beings/ %inding a universal principle or the relationship o human

beings to the environment is diicult as there is still no one 1a! to go amid our interactions 1ith

the environment/ 6irtue ethics helps out in this conversation as it b! passes the problem o

inding a universal principle and approaches the environment depending on the situation that is

being presented/ This gives 1a! to a ne1 approach to1ards the environment/ This approach is

commonl! ;no1n as an Environmental 6irtue Ethics/ This provides a ne1 perspective on

Environmental Ethics rom the vie1 o 6irtue Ethics/

Environmental Virtue Ethics

Environmental 6irtue Ethics approaches environmental ethics through the lens o virtue

ethics/ $t sees the moral character o nature and does not base it on an! other ethical rules or

conse'uences/ This is in a 1a! both old and ne1 at the same time/ As 1hat Lou;e 6an


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"aaro gives presents common grounds on ho1 environmental virtue ethics is

approached/ He speciies common themes or the three 1or;s that he discussed/ (1)s desire

to put economic life in its proper place2that is$ as a support for comfortable and decent human

lives$ rather than as an engine powering endlessly more ac3uisition and consumption. (2)

commitment to science$ combined with an appreciation of its limits. (3)4onanthropocentrism.

(4)n appreciation of the wild and support for wilderness protection. (5) bedroc% belief that

life is good) both human and nonhuman.11These themes provide us 1ith an idea o 1hat action

1e should ta;e to1ards the environment in dierent situations/ Although 1e still consider ever!

act dierentl! and base it on the situation/ This ground gives us commonalit! as not to be over

sub?ective in approaching the environment/


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mindless and violent creatures/ The! do not give them a chance that although the! ma! have evil

in them( the! also contain good in them/ )ust li;e 1hat Sch1iet=er presents( nature is still good

even 1ith the ac;no1ledgement o evil/ %ailing to see this gives them a poor understanding

about the environment/ And ail to see in ho1 the! approach the environment/

These ideas give us a better understanding on ho1 1e should go about the environment

but leaves a room o sub?ectivit!/ Also it ma! have dierent results depending on 1hat situation

a person is in/ 0ne action could be considered good another 1ould be considered bad/ The

character o an ob?ect based on the situation/ But there should be a better 1a! to see it 1ith

1ithout reliance on an end o sub?ectivit!/ Although 1ith themes( the sub?ectivit! is mitigated/

There is still an opening or it that might result into riction o the discussion/ There should be an

idea that 1ould also ta;e this into consideration 1hile having a dierent result or understanding

o ho1 action to1ards the environment should be/ An idea that sho1 and interconnection

bet1een humans and nonhumans/ Seeing this idea 1ould help out in harnessing a biocentric

environmental ethics/

Inter!epe!enc" an! Interconnecte!ness

$nterdependenc! has the idea that ever!thing that is being done has conse'uences and that

ever!thing cannot thrive 1ithout the help o the other/ $nterconnectedness is the idea that all

action is connected/ Ever! action done 1ill result into others being aected as 1ell and the chain

o events 1ill cause even more events to occur/ Similar to the butterl! eect( it e>tends all

action having ripples and ma! result into the chaos more or less/ But putting grim assumptions

aside( this is a one 1a! to see that humans and nonhumans are more connected to each other than

the! let out/ )erem! David Bendi;e!ner discusses this b! irst sighting moral standing/


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5 being has moral standing if$ morally$ it ma%es a difference how we

treat that being. standard 3uestion raised in environmental ethics) !ho counts6

!ho has 5moral standing76 If you thin% only human beings count$ you8re and

anthropocentrist$ someone who puts human beings antropoi in ancient 9ree%

at the center. If you thin% that all living things count somewhat$ you8re abiocentrist$ someone who puts life bios in ancient 9ree% at the center. nd if

you thin% that the ecosystem count$ believing$ for e(ample$ that to destroy awetland is morally ob+ectionable above and beyond the loss of the individual and

livelihood$ then you8re an ecocentrist$ someone who puts oi%os 5house$ home$

dwelling place7 in ancient 9ree% at the center.1:

*oral Standing given to all living beings ma;es all lie important/ And 1ith ever! lie having

importance( ma;es the idea o interconnectedness and interdependenc! uncomplicated to grasp/

Since all living in the 1orld have signiicant( understanding the repercussion o ever! action that

1e ta;e 1ould have more impact/ The level o concern 1ould be put on a higher scale rather than

being pushed aside/ This is not to entail all living beings on the same level o importance as

human being on ever! occasion but giving 1eight to other living being as 1ell/ "onsidering

them as mere tools 1ill put us in ailure harnessing a biocentric ethics/

Environmental Virtue Ethics as Biocentric Environmental Ethics

Living things have signiicanceF means 1hen one is going about them( one needs

character/ This is 1here 1e Environmental 6irtue Ethics become homogenous 1ith a Biocentric

Environmental Ethics/ Sure 1e can place value on ever! living thing but to go about them in one

universal principle can prove to be diicult/ Having a virtuous character to1ards them ma!

prove to be a better solution/ Ta;e or e>ample the complete e>tinction o bees/ This e>tinction

1ill prove to be destructive or ever!bod! as it 1ill halt most pollination/ 5o1 a person must

ta;e this into consideration and be able to understand ho1 to care or the bees 1ithout causing

detrimental damages to others but having a s1arm o bee attac; !ou because !ou accidentall!

12/e%di=


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disrupted their nest ma! ta;e another orm o consideration/ Environmental 6irtue Ethics

unctions as a Biocentric Environmental Ethics/


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Ethics( the distinction that9s still not common in Environmental Ethics( the distinction bet1een

supericial and deep humanit!/-.

Anthropocentrism can still be distinct rom a Biocentric Environmental Ethics but onl! is the

ormer sense/ Superficial humanit! is clearl! distinct rom Biocentric Environmental Ethics/

Superficial humanit! mostl! bases on 1hat the individual9s preerence on ho1 to go about

nature/ Placing a determining value ound on the inclination o the individual/ $ one 1ere to

have interest or consumption then nature 1ill be e>ploited/ Deep humanit! on the other hand

recogni=es the connections o nature and reali=es that not all preerences are rational/ The

beneits that humanit! can gain are better 1hen the! consider the idea o deep humanit!/ $t is still

Anthropocentrism as it still places human being on the center/ Deep humanit! becomes cohesive

1ith Biocentric Environmental Ethics/ $n this sense( Anthropocentrism or 1e can call it as

Enlightened Anthropocentrism coincides 1ith a Biocentric Environmental Ethics/ Having

Biocentric Environmental Ethic means it is also containing a deep sense o our humanit!/ There

is a sense that ever!thing is connected and interdependent/ *ore than having a deep

enlightenment to1ard the understanding o the environment( 1e must also see that

anthropocentric vie1 is not so dierent 1ith the environment/ $n the terms o the e>tremes there

is a clear distinction on ho1 an anthropocentric vie1 dierentiates rom biocentric vie1/ tremes but rather most o the times our

interaction 1ith the environment is ound on gre! areas and this is 1here our ethics 1hich 1e see

1) /e%di=


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is applicable/ $t also oregoes the diicult! o reverence or lie and responsibilit! to nature/

Application o this understanding ma;es it eas! or us to have a good understanding ho1 1e

1or; 1ell 1ith nature/ $t gives more than enlightenment o humanit! and goes to understand

urther our Biocentric Environmental Ethics/

"HAPTE& .

$*PL$"AT$05S 0% B$0"E5T&$" E56$&05*E5TAL ETH$"S

$mplications o having Biocentric Environmental Ethics harnessed rom the movie 1ill

lead us to have an atermath that 1ill enable us to have a more holistic relationship 1ith the

environment( be able to practice a relationship 1ith less strict boundaries and still maintain a

selcentered ethics 1hile not losing sight o ho1 our actions aect other people/ This are

considered to be implications o 1hat 1e dra1 out rom the discussion/ The! are 1hat the

discussion 1ould lead up to/ 5ot being clearl! stated but( as 1hat the! are called( implied rom

the discussion/ This 1hat a Biocentric Environmental Ethics 1ould allo1/ %ound on 1hat 1e get

rom the movie and the boo; discussion/ This are disguised ideas rom 1hat 1e harnessed rom


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the previous chapters/


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problem as there other actors that 1e are able to consider and the problem can be easil! averted/

Also( this can be harnessed b! an!one/ This does not re'uire !ou to live in a deep ?ungle ?ust to

be able to go 1ith the boundaries/ There are ho1ever no clear boundaries as to 1here 1e can

stop and 1here an action can alread! be considered as too much/ This brings us bac; to the idea

o having a good character/ Being a man o virtue 1ill enable relationship 1ith the environment

going to the e>tremes/ There are instances 1here one must ta;e lie or instances that an action

1ill be considered as heinous or e>ampleF murder/ Since there are no clear boundaries on 1here

1e can clearl! dra1 a line( this provides a more rela>ed practice o the ethics/ This ma! serve to

be problematic in a case to case basis/ The absence o universal principle leaves this avenue

open/ 2iven the parameters that 1e presented( this 1ill not totall! lead into pure sub?ectivit! as it

does have themes on ho1 to go about this/ Having a less demanding practice 1ill help people get

irst out the door and be able to have a beneicial relationship 1ith the environment/ The movie

sho1s us this idea but to a more e>treme/ As the 5avi are able to commune 1ith E!1a/

&el'(Centere! Conception o' Ethics

This idea implies that other than having a more environment centered vie1 the individual

can still retain the virtue 1ithin him/ Since it 1as reinorced b! the idea o interdependenc! and

interconnectedness( human beings do not lose an! value 1hile overall/ There are ho1ever

situations 1hich might lead to this situation/ Avatar sho1s us that 1e can still have value 1ithin

ourselves 1hile others things having signiicance as 1ell/ 0ne does not lose one9s value at the

beneit o another or viceversa/ The movie sho1s us ho1 one still values one lie despite o

protecting another/ Sure the 5avi considered giving up their lie to protect the


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to die/ "ommuning 1ith E!1a( the 5avi are able to have this/ But some practices o the 5avi are

a bit demanding/ &ela>ing this ideas is a simple 1a! or it to be easil! practiced/

$mplications o Biocentric Environmental Ethics 1ill lead us to have better interactions

1ith the environment/ "ommonl! 1e 1ould ollo1 the principles o nonmaliicence and

restitutive ?ustice/ The ormer pointing out that 1e should do no harm to the environment

directl!/ $n Peter Singer9s e>ample( that ;illing someone is dierent rom letting someone die-/

This is o course later discussed that letting someone die has near moral implication as ;illing

someone/ Although in Avatar( 1e see loo;ing at the picture 1ould mean that something onl! has

to die or 1e let something die onl! i it needs to and nothing more/ Actions ta;en that causes

harm directl! to the environment 1ithout an! good cause that ma! help out in the entiret! o the

1hole should not be ta;en/ Actions should be vie1ed rom actions as a 1hole but not onl! rom

a human perspective/


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not or an! personal gain that 1e might 1ant to have/ So restitutive ?ustice provides little

implication to 1hat our action to1ards the environment should be/

The movie provides a good e>ample on ho1 to misstep in this idea/ The &DA "ompan!

is able to ma;e it so that the! thin; that the environment is something that is onl! used as means

to an end in the 1hole/ $t sho1s a straight or1ard on ho1 the t1o orces clash/ The 5avi are

able to see the 1orld o Pandora as something interconnected/ This is even sho1n in the idea the

about the trees/ The trees are seen as interconnected 1ith one another orming a large pattern o

chemicals that provide communication all throughout the s!stem/ Li;e a brain unctioning or the

betterment o it parts/ The residents o Pandora also are able to commune 1ith the environment

so that the! are able to ta;e action/ This ma;es ever! action the! ta;e in tune 1ith the

environment and also or themselves/ $t ma;es there action put all interest into the table and not

?ust their o1n selish 1a! o doing things/ Doing this provides that the! 1ill not end up ;illing

their mother li;e the s;! people did to their home planet and 1hat the! are tr!ing to do 1ith

Pandora/ This is 1hat 1e should see as 1ell/ That this planet is so ar the planet that 1e are able

to live in 1ith its environment and 1e should ta;e action based on 1hat 1ill beneit ever!bod!

the most/ illing this planet 1ould leave us 1ith nothing more than the death o ourselves/ This

is 1h! our actions should be guided li;e 1ith the idea that ever!thing is connected/ Li;e the trees

that are all connected in the roots/


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"05"L#S$05

The Planet has e>isted or almost ./ million !ears/ $ 1e translate that into . !ears(

humans onl! e>isted or about + months and our industrial revolution onl! started - minute ago

and in that time( 1e have managed to destro! ,I o the overall orest/ E>tinction o species has

been happening in an alarming rate and that the! are no longer considered to be natural/ Also the

circumstances that 1e are setting up or the Earth are setting up necessar! conditions or the ne>t


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great e>tinction/ So ar there have been ma?or e>tinctions throughout the e>istence o the

planet/-

This is a vie1 on 1hat is our planet e>periencing right no1/ Both )ames "ameron and 2eorge

Dunn sho1 ho1 valuable the environment and ho1 1e can commune 1ith it to be able urther

understand its value/

6alue can $nstrumental( $ntrinsic or $nherent/ 0ne must understand the value o not thing

not ?ust rom it being instrumental but also its intrinsic and inherent value/ 0ne must have a

moral consideration or all living being as the! are teleologicalcenterolie/ Avatar sho1s us

that one must have a Biocentric Ethics relationship 1ith the environment/

This not enough as one also needs to understand that Environmental 6irtue Ethics as both

&everence or Lie and Biocentric 0utloo; are contained 1ithin it/ Being able to have virtue and

a good character 1ith the environment is being able to harness a Biocentric Environmental

Ethics/ 6aluing all lie also means that one must have a good character to1ards them/

$t is also sho1n that Anthropocentric Environmental Ethics can be is not that distinct

rom Biocentric Environmental Ethics/ e!ner points out that there are + versions o

AnthropocentrismFsuperficial and enlightened anthropocentrism( the ormer being shortsighted

and the latter having better understanding o 1hat humans reall! need/ 0ne must understand that

there are interdependenc! and interconnectedness bet1een ever!thing and putting this into

consideration gives !ou a deep humanit! 1hich is able to see ho1 humans beneit rom !our

actions/

16$tt-CCasa-sie%e.mCb=. Aessed 26 A-ril 2015
http://asapscience.com/bookhttp://asapscience.com/book


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These ideas impl! three things/ The! enable us to have a more holistic relationship 1ith

the environment( be able to practice a relationship 1ith less strict boundaries and still maintain a

selcentered ethics 1hile not losing sight o ho1 our actions aect other people/

treme o a consumption s!stem that 1ill destro! the environment/

0ne can easil! practice these principles as the! do not have a strict boundar! and a

demanding tas;/

Documents

Pabon Thesis Draft 2.0