Freddie Burquez

Jessica Berryman
Online Biology1120
February 21, 2015
Word Count- 1162
Conversation between men and land has harmony
The ethical sequence that is studied by philosophers is a process ecological evolution, is a
limitation on freedom of action in the struggle for existence. The first ethics dealt with the
relation between individuals and the Mosaic Decalogue is an example, later accretions dealt with
the relation between the individual and society. There is yet no ethic dealing with mans relation
to land and to the animals and plants which grow upon it.
The extension of ethics to this third element in human environment is an evolutionary possibility
and an ecological necessity its the third step in a sequence. An ethic may be regarded as a mode
of guidance for meeting ecological situations so new or intricate, or involving such deferred
reactions, that the path social expediency is not discernible to the average individual. Ethics are
possibly a kind of a community instinct in-the-making.

The community concept is all ethics so far evolved rest upon a single premise- that the
individuals is a member of a community of independents parts. The land ethic simply enlarges
the boundaries of the community to include soils, waters, plants, and animals. A land ethic
changes the role of Homo sapiens from conqueror of the land-community to plain member and
citizen of it and it implies respect for his fellow-members and also respect for the community. In
the biotic community only a member of a biotic team which is humans is shown by an ecological

interpretation of history because biotic interactions between people and land, the characteristics
of the land determined the facts that potently men who lived on it have are the same.

I would characterize my conservation philosophy as something similar to the

preservationist ethic, one thing would be that natural areas have more value to people and society
when left untouched and not used for human property to use it for whatever they may need and
destroy the land. Exploiting nature for profit takes away all possibilities and benefits that the
natural world has to offer, we keep cutting down jungles and using the trees for resources in our
world and by doing that we are shrinking natures population. I came up with these beliefs
noticing that we are expanding and want to keep building in areas that our outside of the city and
in the wild and if continued with these habits the wild nature will no longer exist.

A land ethic changes the role of humans from conqueror of the land community to plain
members and citizens of it. It implies respect for his fellow-members, and also respect for the
community as such. Its explaining about how trying to be the conqueror is self-defeating
because the conqueror doesnt always know whats valuable and it is important to stop looking
around for the things that may be profitable and know that everything in nature is valuable in its
own way and should not see it as just a profit and enjoy its valuable what it holds to us and
should try and avoid to using less and finding a better a solution.

The land-relation is still strictly economic, entailing privileges but not obligations. I
would say that our land-relation today is probably much more about how much we can make and
our mindset has changed since the 1940s back then we saw things differently. We do things for
money almost all of the time when it comes to our environment. We live off of oil since the

growth in vehicles and the increase of people within the last century, we need areas such as the
Gulf of Mexico for the resources it holds because we feel we are entitled to it, but were also
obligated to take care of the oceans around the areas.

The land ethic is extending a communitys sensibilities to all members of the community,
nonhuman as well as human. This means that it is important to be compassionate to all creatures
and living things. I have noticed I would like to try to minimize my carbon footprint as much as
possible, because if we do nothing about it the pollution will continue to get worse and
eventually it will become hazardous to our health since the air we breathe will come from the
fuels we release into the air from anything that runs off of fuel and we the people need to make
some changes or reduce the amount we use our things.

Do you agree with the passage the land ethic? The story wasnt suggesting that the biotic
community is more important than its individual members because the individual members make
up the community together. It is saying that a community is naturally in balance and when it is
not there must be something wrong.

It is inconceivable to me that an ethical relationship [with land] can exist without love,
respect, admiration, and a high regard for its value. I think that its more motivating to think
that protecting the land we are preserving our environment for all who live there. Nature is
beautiful when it is in its natural habitat and we all have a duty to take care of it and reduce the
amount we use from it for our own supply and should be appreciated and seen as a valuable.
Land ethic does it emanate primarily from self-interest, or from a true interest in nonhuman elements? I care about the environment whether Im outside going for a walk or just

home inside and see that governments and corporations are still trying to conquer nature instead
of being a citizen of it, and be any part of it such as animals in their natural habitat we as humans
take it as a resource and will use the best from it even if it means less wild land and more land
for the human race and expanding the land with more buildings.

When I finished reading The Land Ethic it explains that without the small minority that
is working towards the philosophy of the land ethic it would seem to be hopeless, made me feel
that we should take care of nature and should reduce how much we use from it and sad that we
do not mind destroying nature and prevent less usage from it.
I thought that it was very interesting reading and wanted to make it clear that people are more
likely to act honorable towards something that they can see and understand. I do think that other
people should read this and I would recommend it to friends who have an interest in the
environment and enjoy being outdoors and its nature and give them an idea of how the reading
explains about the topic we should find a way to reduce pollution from all carbon dioxide we
release into the air or can find different way for transportation such as public buses or trains.