ABSTRACT
The opening reading by Adam Markham starts from the premise that human impacts on the environment come in a variety of forms. For Markham, the most insidious environmental problem is pollution. Yet like all dark clouds, it also has a silver lining as one of the most significant causes of change. The history of environmental policy-making has been one of responding to problems that have become unbearable. Markham also raises the crucial question of who is reponsible for pollution. Is it those people or organizations who make the things we use or grow the food we eat, or does the problem run much deeper than this? Throughout the readings in this section we shall address the belief that human beings have mastery over nature, that natural things have been seen as a resource for human welfare. Keith Thomas, in Reading 1.2, presents evidence that highlights the socially and historically situated character of attitudes towards the environment. Yet, despite the complex and contested character of the word ‘nature’, one thing stands out, namely the attempt to find ways of justifying the human use of natural things for human welfare. In particular, that all attempts to make the mastery of nature plausible and acceptable have been tied to the idea of ‘human uniqueness’.
