ABSTRACT
In Reinventing Eden: The Fate of Nature in Western Culture, Carolyn Merchant took us on a grand tour of the roles the biblical Garden of Eden story has played in the imaginations and histories of Western culture. These chapter shows, what people mean by terms like “nature” or “world,” and how they think of their action and place in the world, can vary dramatically depending on the historical period and geophysical context they find themselves in. It argues that the Garden of Eden story, when read and retold in a new/old light, can play a powerful role in developing the ethic we need in a time of ecological degradation. A fidelity ethic offers us an invitation to develop the skill and sympathy, and discover the pain and the joy that a faithful life entails.
