Environmental ethics refers to the relationship that humans share with the natural world (Buzzle, 2011), it involves people extending ethics to the natural environment through the exercise of self-discipline (Nash, 1989). Herein the essay will give examples of anthropocentrism and non-anthropocentrism as forms of environmental ethics, criticizing anthropocentrism in contrast with a defence of non- anthropocentrism precedents.
Anthropocentrism also referred to as human-centeredness, is an individualistic approach, a concept stating that humans are more valuable, and the environment is only useful for sustaining the lives of human beings (MacKinnon, 2007). The practise of human-centeredness is associated with egocentrism (Goodpaster, 1979), by contrast non-anthropocentrism is a holistic approach
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Anthropocentrism is criticised based on two ways; these are the ontological and ethical senses. According to the ontological criticism, anthropocentrism is the mistake were human beings are placed at the centre of the world without realising that the Earth is a dynamic system and does take any account of how people are or how they choose to represent the form in which things are (Bhaskar, 1989). Anthropocentrism in the ethical criticism is the mistake of prioritising human interests in contrast with the interests of other living things sharing planet Earth with them (Hayward, 1997). The Earth is not an environment to be maintained in its original state or a place to be exploited, and satisfy greedy desires of economic purposes, instead it should be a place to be prepared and used for its capacity that may lead to future usefulness, hence anthropocentric acts are not justifiable because it is morally unacceptable for human population to consider themselves to be of intrinsic value both individually and as a nation (Dubos,