Representations of nature and natural phenomena have long been a part of Japanese cultural productions. Flowers, plants, birds, and other natural phenomena are common motifs present in Japanese...Show moreRepresentations of nature and natural phenomena have long been a part of Japanese cultural productions. Flowers, plants, birds, and other natural phenomena are common motifs present in Japanese literature, such as waka, picture scrolls, and paintings. Even in more contemporary media, such as anime, these themes are widespread. The interdisciplinary field ecocriticism—which is relatively new in non-Anglophone spheres—allows us to analyse how nature and the nonhuman world are portrayed in these works. In addition, one of the concepts used by ecocritical philosophers called “ecocentrism” decentralises the human in the anthropocentric ideals and conceptualise a world where both human and nonhuman nature are equal. Ecoscapes, a term borrowed from urban ecology studies, takes ecocentric thought as its basis. These ecoscapes conceptualise the integration of the human and the nonhuman where the two coexist interdependently. In other words, they portray an environment that is less human-centred than an environment that is shaped to benefit humans without any concern of the nonhuman world, exploiting and exhausting the natural world. This thesis explores how the representations of such ecoscapes that are created by human-nonhuman relationships challenge anthropocentrism in the anime Mahoutsukai no Yome. Furthermore, these relationships are also looked at through an ecofeminist lens, which argues for the connection between women and nature in their oppression. This case study analyses the TV series and breaks down its various ecoscapes after which it argues for their opposition against anthropocentric views.Show less
Biotechnology is a rapidly innovating field. In the contemporary art movement, Bio-art artists use biotechnology to make art. Bio-art can be ethically challengeable because of the use of living...Show moreBiotechnology is a rapidly innovating field. In the contemporary art movement, Bio-art artists use biotechnology to make art. Bio-art can be ethically challengeable because of the use of living organisms. This article analyses the ethics behind Bio-art while comparing it to the importance of artistic freedom. Subjective motives to determine the artist's role are considered and compared to the value of the artist's motives. This article explains artistic freedom to be the very essence of art. The article showcases anthropocentrism and its structures in society. In Bio-art, one needs to look beyond the ethically challengeable artwork to find the anthropocentrism structured in society itself. In Bio-art, the agency of organisms, the artist and the artwork can play a role. Non-human organisms in art do not have agency in Bio-art. The agency lays in the hand of the Bio-artist to give rise to the agency of art. The motives of the artist need to be trusted to be able to imply messages through art.Show less
The idea of displacing humans from our position of established viewpoints is provocative but necessary in order to better face our impending extinction. If we do not expand our visualities we will...Show moreThe idea of displacing humans from our position of established viewpoints is provocative but necessary in order to better face our impending extinction. If we do not expand our visualities we will not get this chance again. My research explores how nonhuman vision encourages us to confront anthropocentrism - to reconceptualise the way we see ourselves in our domination of all worldly inhabitants. I examine how we can develop ethical ways of living and interacting with others by creating a video work that imagines what it is like to see as a dog. Dogs are one of our closest companions and we have taken away their agency in almost every aspect of their lives. By looking with dogs through a makeshift camera apparatus, I have cultivated an empathetic understanding on how they perceive the human-constructed world. Dogs know how to live well, so we should start believing them.Show less
Value in nature has often been studied from two perspectives, either externally or internally. Schools of intrinsic value like deep ecology have been found extreme in the past, their implications...Show moreValue in nature has often been studied from two perspectives, either externally or internally. Schools of intrinsic value like deep ecology have been found extreme in the past, their implications undesirable to humans. External perspectives like anthropocentric value judgements, for example ecosystem-service arguments, or considerations of intergenerational justice have become increasingly common and well researched. However, this thesis starts from the observation that anthropocentric value based morality does little to protect ecosystems for their own sake. Instead, it merely focuses on those parts that either appeal, service, or otherwise are useful to humans. It is especially this perception of ecosystems that lies at the root of current and past exploitation of the ecosystem. The result is nearly irreversible damage to the ecosystem. This thesis argues for pro tanto moral rights for the ecosystem, on the basis of interest-based moral considerability. I will show that previous arguments for or against the moral considerability of nature lack sufficient knowledge of ecological processes. If ecological processes are properly understood, the ecosystem can be said to have an interest. This interest, or wellbeing, is the striving towards homeostasis. This means that the ecosystem has moral considerability and is a moral patient. It is therefore eligible for moral rights. These rights-relations occur between moral agents and moral patient when there is contact. This will be explained through developing the Contact-Theory.Show less
(Domesticated) animals play a remarkable role alongside human characters in the novel 'De geluiden van de eerste dag' (1975), by Dutch author Anton Koolhaas. In dominant anthropocentric discourses...Show more(Domesticated) animals play a remarkable role alongside human characters in the novel 'De geluiden van de eerste dag' (1975), by Dutch author Anton Koolhaas. In dominant anthropocentric discourses subjectivity (the active, desire driven perception and experience of reality) and individuality of non-human animals often get erased. However, this doesn't seem to be the case in 'De geluiden van de eerste dag'. In this thesis, I aim to formulate an answer to the question: 'Does the novel 'De geluiden van de eerste dag', by Anton Koolhaas, represent and thematize an anti-anthropocentric human-animal-relationship?' This study shows that the novel attributes agency and subjectivity to non-human animals, while (to a certain extent) respecting their species-specific susceptibilities, modes of communication and behavior. Overall the novel takes an ethical stance against mechanical animal exploitation and promotes an empathic relationship to other animals. I draw specific attention to the way aggression is connected to agency, the constitution of the subject and to the creative act of taking up space (Umwelt). I also emphasize how language and anthropomorphism (in and via literature) contribute to the constitution of subjectivity, agency and individuality of non-human and human animals.Show less
The era of Anthropos or so called Anthropocene has been prevalent in the last decades, suggesting an overwhelming human influence upon the earth which propagates the hierarchical system such as...Show moreThe era of Anthropos or so called Anthropocene has been prevalent in the last decades, suggesting an overwhelming human influence upon the earth which propagates the hierarchical system such as dualist thinking and results in both human and animal oppression. The need for a new epistemic perception is therefore required in order to overcome the boundaries that shaped the anthropocentrism.Through the methodology of the artwork and philosophical analysis this thesis will strive to address the issues on how the traditional anthropocentric thinking has limited the ways we have established our relationship with animals, plants and nature in general. Why art is considered as an exceedingly needed aspect in overcoming the anthropocentric thinking will be explained in four consecutive chapters, each explaining and giving the reader an apprehensible understanding on how art is able to challenge the anthropocentric conundrum that has ubiquitously remained in the way we ‘other’ animals and plants.Show less
