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John Bellamy Foster: Marx's Ecology: Materialism and Nature. New York: Monthly Review Press, 2000.
In Marx's Ecology, Foster traces in impressive detail the Epicurean foundations of Marx's position relative to the interaction between humans and the rest of nature. The insights he contributes complement those from preceding scholars who have defended Marx against the charge of Prometheanism, among other misreadings. In this manner, Foster engages directly in the debate over the significance of Marxism for ecological approaches and argues for an ecology based on a dialectical materialism. In itself, this is not a novel undertaking; however, the main contribution lies in the illuminating exposition of Marx's philosophical foundations and their relationship to other contemporary scholars. Additionally, through an analysis of conventionally recognized influential figures (e.g., Bacon) and an extensive excursion on Darwin, he demonstrates how materialist approaches developed through the Enlightenment have rendered current ecological theories possible. Rather than viewing them as destructive utilitarian conceptions of nature, Foster regards theoretical and practical developments in science and materialism as the essential catalysts of modern environmental sensibility. This interpretation reverberates throughout the textual and contextual analysis of selected scientific protagonists. While defending Marx (and Engels) from "Green" critiques, Foster therefore insists on a rehabilitation of much of Enlightenment science for a viable and critical ecological perspective to emerge out of "the crisis of contemporary socio-ecology" (p. 2).
Despite profundity and some persuasiveness, the arguments presented suffer from a linear, monolithic view of history and "Green" theory and from an elision of pivotal studies from environmental historians and geographers. In his rendition of science history, Foster only recognizes the prevailing views of given time periods considered, mainly between the 16th and 19th centuries. He thereby presents...