Kindred Ethics: Leopold and Badiou, Ecocriticism and Theory

Abstract

“Kindred Ethics” discusses the similar objections expressed in Aldo Leopold’s “The Land Ethic” and Alain Badiou’s Ethics: An Essay on the Understanding of Evil. Both men oppose formulaic, procedural ethics that render thinking and consciousness unnecessary. Although the role of post-structuralist theory in ecocriticism has generated much contentious debate, the juxtaposition of these two texts—one a pillar of environmental writing and the other the work of a contemporary French theorist—demonstrates that environmental writing and theory share some common ground. Bearing the kinship of these texts in mind, this article also argues that the supposed rift between ecocriticism and theory is a fabrication: that is, both the urgent drive to “theorize ecocriticism” and the equally passionate desire to preserve its “untheorized” purity are founded upon myths that an examination of the history of the field overturns. In concluding, “Kindred Ethics” points out that in addition to being informed by post-structuralist theory from its very origins, ecocriticism should be understood as a theory in its own right—one that challenges anthropocentrism, scrutinizes setting, and utilizes narrative scholarship as an important form of archival research.