Abstract
After the humiliating blows to the human subject delivered, as the cliche goes, by Copernicus, Darwin, and Freud, the notion of the Anthropocene would appear as some strange reversal, positing the Anthropos at the centre of planetary time and the Earth system's evolution. By some weird twist, it would seem 'man' is back - the human subject, returned to its privileged position, reassuringly ensconced at the hub of planetary disorder. The notion would seem to confirm at least the possibility of human control and dominance. This much is clear for literary critic, Tom Cohen, as he sardonically puts it: 'The term "anthropocene" ... [is] the epitome of anthropomorphism itself- irradiating with a secret pride invoking comments on our god-like powers and ownership of "the planet"' (Cohen 2012, 240). The formulation in this chapter's title, 'the geomorphic fold', is borrowed from Cohen (2010).
Original language | English |
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Title of host publication | Animals in the Anthropocene: Critical Perspectives on Non-Human Futures |
Place of Publication | Sydney, N.S.W. |
Publisher | Sydney University Press |
Pages | 19-32 |
Number of pages | 14 |
ISBN (Print) | 9781743324394 |
Publication status | Published - 2015 |
Keywords
- anthropocene
- cultural theory
- environmental humanities