Donna Haraway: An Analysis Of Co-Extinction Between Nature And Culture

754 Words2 Pages

For lack of a better word, Donna Haraway is a strange writer. However, underneath her unnecessarily obscure word choices and endless tangents, there is actually a fairly interesting point being made. Her point essentially revolves what she calls ‘companion species’. In her view, the world has spent far too much time forcing a distinction between nature and culture, when in her opinion the difference is arbitrary. In fact, to illustrate this she even coined the term ‘natureculture’ which she uses to describe our society as a whole. To her, everything within these naturecultures can then be described as companion species; combinations of the natural and the technical which clearly illustrate her point which is basically that nothing can be described …show more content…

Given her fondness for dogs (although fondness is a bit of an understatement), it makes sense that she would see dogs as an excellent example of a companion species, even more so than most given our unique relationship with dogs. In many ways, dogs and humans share a co-evolutional story. It started thousands of years back, when the first dogs began following humans around an eating their trash. After that the two species began to grow together, with humans learning to adapt to dogs in society as companions, and with dogs slowly evolving to better suit the needs of their …show more content…

What it seems that she fails to realize, is that categories such as this exist for a reason. We as human beings need distinctions such as natural and cultural in order to better organize our collective thoughts. Regardless of what she might think, categorizations are made for a reason, nor are they made solely with the intention of benefiting specific interest groups. She seems to be suggesting that we need to abandon all our basic ideas and start looking at everything her way, which quite simply is not worth the effort. The best she can truly hope for is a redefinition of our categories using more updated ideas and viewpoints, anything more seems

Show More
Related

  • Cynthia Rylant's Stray Short Story

    539 Words  | 2 Pages

    She didn’t know if the dog had diseases, problems, anger, or anything, yet her first reaction to the dog was to bring it inside. On page 17 the text says, “Doris trudged through the yard, went up the shoveled drive, and met the dog. ‘Come on, Pooch.’” She went up to the dog, and let it inside without caring about diseases, problems, anger, or anything wrong with it. She did not know where the pup came from, and never thought twice about leaving it in the street, and that proves that she is a sweet person because she doesn’t care where you come from, she gives love to anyone in

    Read More

  • First Friend Case Study

    1396 Words  | 3 Pages

    First Friend: A History of Dogs and Humans, by Katherine Rogers, articulates the history of the relationship between dogs and humans. Wild Justice: The Moral Lives of Animals, by Marc Bekoff and Jessica Pierce, investigates if and how dogs exhibit morality. In both texts, anecdotes and observations are used to portray instances of dogs displaying cooperation, empathy, altruism, and, by extension, morality. Consequently, it stands to reason that dogs have a capacity for sociality, but how can the sociality of dogs be described? A dog’s capacity for sociality is the ability to form long term relationships with members of the same or other species. Dogs, in particular, dogs who hunt as well as dogs who play, are able to form long term relationships with humans and other dogs through trust, love,

    Read More

  • The Queen Of Air And Darkness

    715 Words  | 2 Pages

    She acts as if they were pets rather than human beings, to be loved or not at

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Sharing Pain By Haraway

    1441 Words  | 3 Pages

    Although the chapter is occasionally hard to follow, Haraway successfully demonstrates an empathetic response to animals suffering due the actions of humans subjecting them to research. She uses arguments to support her views that animals should be regarded as co-workers rather than objects that simply react and are dispensable. She looks at the different perspectives of the act of killing between animals and humans, and states “The problem is actually to understand that human beings do not get a pass on the necessity of killing significant others, who are them-selves responding, not just reacting” (Haraway 2007, 80). This view is unique in comparison to what society commonly believes, so reading this chapter was both enlightening and interesting. Despite the interesting ideas and arguments that Haraway communicates, the chapter often has run on sentences and unnecessarily lengthy words, such as ‘multiplicitous’ (Haraway 2007, 80). This often made the chapter hard to read and therefor difficult to digest. This can, however, be seen as a fault of my own. My final thoughts on chapter 3 of ‘When Species Meet’ is that the extensive research that Haraway underwent proved effective when supporting her argument and, in turn, created a thought compelling and respectable piece of

    Read More

  • Barbara Angus The Golden Retriever Analysis

    368 Words  | 1 Pages

    As Barbara Angus gives an account of her experience as an action researcher, she clearly shares the triumphs and defeats educators may encounter in the classroom. After reading the article, I particularly want to address the following research question: How can educators support students by introducing them to various sources that can address their inquiries as learners?

    Read More

  • On The Wings Of This Prayer Analysis

    1248 Words  | 3 Pages

    The dog they rescued is a particularly prominent topic, a vestige of the past civilizations. In defiance of the treacherous environment, the dog managed to survive, a feat that even Lisa, the most cold-blooded of the three main characters, could not help but be “impressed by” (Bacigalupi 61). Therefore, the dog is a symbol of hope for the reader, an animal that is in the extreme, completely out of its element, and yet capable of surviving. As a result, nature’s idea of itself is astoundingly resilient, keeping certain species alive as an attempt to return to the normal state of the world. Even after horrendous trauma the natural world is still capable of a stalwart attempt at reclaiming itself. Accordingly, it is never too late to start fixing the damages and help nature’s cause, before allowing it to escalate to such a degree where the oceans are black with pollution and there is no room left for the humans of today. Chen could not help but notice that the dog is different than them in more than just a physiological nature; “there’s something there” and it’s not a characteristic that either them or the bio-jobs are capable of (64). Subsequently, the dog has something that the evolved humans are missing, compassion. In consequence, the author portrays the idea that the dog

    Read More

  • Paul Taylor The Ethics Of Respect For Nature

    804 Words  | 2 Pages

    In his essay, The Ethics of Respect for Nature, Paul Taylor presents his argument for a deontological, biocentric egalitarian attitude toward nature based on the conviction that all living things possess equal intrinsic value and are worthy of the same moral consideration. Taylor offers four main premises to support his position. (1) Humans are members of the “Earth’s community of life” in the same capacity that nonhuman members are. (2) All species exist as a “complex web of interconnected elements” which are dependent upon one another for their well-being. (3) Individual organisms are “teleological centers of life” which possess a good of their own and a unique way in which to pursue it. (4) The concept that humans are superior to other species is an unsupported anthropocentric bias.

    Read More

  • Nature

    970 Words  | 2 Pages

    Both “The Clan of One-Breasted Women” and “An Entrance to the Woods,” gives a viewpoint on the human relationship with nature. Terry Tempest Williams critizes man for being ruthless when it comes to nature and other humans. Wendell Berry believes similarly the same thing. He believes that man needs nature just as much as they need civilization. However, regardless of the differences, both writers offer an insightful perspective on the forever changing relationship between man and nature. And this relationship is, and always will be, changing.

    Read More

  • Book Review “Marley & Me”

    1059 Words  | 3 Pages

    I liked Grogan’s humor and style of the writing and the way of describing the dog’s mood. For instance he used italic fonts to distinguish the dog’s replies or thoughts as if the dog said or thought something. I felt the author believed that a dog could be a central part of the family. This book taught me how to become a good owner of a dog. It is important to recognize that the owners have big responsibility for a dog’s life.

    Read More

  • Classification of Dog Personalities

    912 Words  | 2 Pages

    As princesses of the canine universe, Annie type dogs have a loving yet manipulative personality. An Annie dog assumes the role of queen bee. As leader of the pack, she keeps everybody in line. She dominates all of the other dogs, often by physical herding or malicious growl. Tough the tough façade she has created does not accurately represent her entire personality. There is a bit of a diva atop Annie dogs’ fur, especially when anger causes the hairs of her back to stand on end. But, she is not all diva. To other members of the canine breed, Annie types seem rough and tough, but whenever a familiar human is thrown into the dynamic, Annie dogs know how to suck up. Immediately, rolling over and showing off the pink exposed skin of the belly. They loose their rough edges and show off the sweet puppy that still remains beneath the growling front. Annie dogs become the epitome of loyal, loving pets. Being the lightest sleeper’s in the canine world, Annie types will awake at any noise, exemplifying how they protect familiar humans from creepy and questionable humans. They always come when called, even if it means leaving the hot trail of a chipmunk or bunny rabbit. Annie dogs fulfill the loyal and protective branches of man’s best friend’s quality list.

    Read More

  • Summary Of How Forests Think

    509 Words  | 2 Pages

    The concepts of semiotics, trans-humanism, and multinaturalism are proposed by theorists Eduardo Kohn, Charles Sanders Peirce, and Eduardo Viveiros de Castro to examine how indices of modalities of ‘being’ are challenged by non-human animals. Through anthropological thought we are forced to question our current understanding of communication with non-human animals and the two-sided interactions in which we can only examine one side of. Best explained in the book “How Forests Think” by Eduardo Kohn, he states that in order to understand how insignificant our current method of understanding modalities of ‘being’ are, we need to ensure that we just don’t study the way people think about the non-humans, but the way non-humans actually think.

    Read More

  • The Many Benefits of Pet Ownership

    953 Words  | 2 Pages

    “A dog is a man’s best friend” goes much deeper than the phrase might initially imply. Recently many medical journals have begun to identify with the many and varied benefits of pet ownership. Men have always relied upon animals for work, transportation, and survival. As times have changed, man has begun to appreciate a different bond with animals. Gone are the days of animals running free outside around the homestead, for now animals are allowed inside and are considered by many to be an integral part of our daily lives! Medical studies have found that animals have a much greater intelligence level than originally thought. Through proper training and experience, animals are not only household pets, but also are becoming an accepted form of medical treatment.

    Read More

  • The Dog Of Pompei Analysis

    558 Words  | 2 Pages

    Dogs deserve to be treated kindly, because after all they are the most loyal, kind, and forgiving friends you could ever ask for. There is not a day your dog will not be there to help you. Sometimes they can be the shoulder you need to cry on. Sometimes they are the perfect company on walks, and sometimes they are just the perfect thing to rant to about life or just let all your feelings out, because they will not judge you. After all a dog really is a man’s best

    Read More

  • Understanding and Training Dogs: A New Perspective

    1271 Words  | 3 Pages

    Dogs are man's best friend, right? So why do we have such a hard time understanding and training them? You’re supposed to know your best friend. Well, according to Victoria Stilwell (Dog Theorist who believes in positive reinforcement to train) we don’t understand them because we are categorizing them the wrong way. I believe that she has found the key to successfully training dogs. “Dogs are not on a quest for world domination. They are not socialized wolves who are constantly striving to be ‘top dog’ over us, and they are not hard-wired to try and control every situation.” And to help people understand their dogs better, she has a few tricks up her sleeve that she wants every dog owner to know.

    Read More

  • The Relationship Between Nature And Society

    707 Words  | 2 Pages

    To understand the nature-society relationship means that humans must also understand the benefits as well as problems that arise within the formation of this relationship. Nature as an essence and natural limits are just two of the ways in which this relationship can be broken down in order to further get an understanding of the ways nature and society both shape one another. These concepts provide useful approaches in defining what nature is and how individuals perceive and treat

    Read More

More about Donna Haraway: An Analysis Of Co-Extinction Between Nature And Culture

Open Document