Awaken To Ecological Crisis-Making For Non-anthropocentrism

Since mid-20th century, with increasing severity of the global environmental problems, the relationship between man and nature naturally becomes a hot issue in the theoretical field. All along, people have adheres to anthropocentric theory to explain the relationship between man and nature. However, from the partial deterioration of the early human environment to the greenhouse effect, ozonesphere erosion, grassland and forest degradation, the entire ecosystem has been warning human of survival crisis. People gradually realize that the deep-seated cause of the ecological crisis is the absence of "non-anthropocentric value". Based on this idea, this thesis tries to reflect non-anthropocentrism from the western ecological ethics'view. From non-anthropocentric theoretic form, the author reviews the theoretical basis and realistic foundation, investigates the horizon and the inevitability of beyond anthropocentrism, and explores the significance and the trend of development.1. Non-anthropocentric Theoretic FormAccording to the scope of non-anthropocentric moral care, non-anthropocentrism can be divided into three different forms: animal liberation and animal rights theory, biological center theory and ecological center theory. Animal liberation and animal rights theory is the first step of non-anthropocentrism, and animal rights is the first phase of ethical expansion. After this stage, non-anthropocentrism steps into bio-centrism whose moral vision focuses on the care of all the animals and plants. In this way, it brings another ethical revolution. Ecological center theory is the peak of non-anthropocentrism. It not only extends the scope of the moral community to the non-existence of mankind, but also pays more attention to the entire ecological system as care targets.2. Non-anthropocentric Theoretical Basis and Realistic FoundationDarwinism, Benthamism, Kant's moral philosophy and ecological theory contain the seeds of ecological ethics, which lays a foundation for non-anthropocentrism. It starts from animal liberation and animal rights theory, passes by biological center theory and achieves in the study of ecological center. Meanwhile, anthropocentrism-oriented values induce global ecological crisis, including environmental crisis, resource crisis and population crisis which are constituted as a realistic foundation of reflecting the moral relationship between human activities and nature.3. Superiority of Non-anthropocentrism over AnthropocentrismAnthropocentrism is confined in the subject-object thinking pattern, rational egoism, and worship of egocentric values. Non-anthropocentrism is bound to go beyond anthropocentrism at the axiological level as an ethical view awakens to ecological crisis, because the axiological kingdom is the significant world, which is built by human's understanding of perfect self-image and the ultimate concern of human existence, and also a way of shaping, confirming and completing "human self". Meanwhile, from the definition of value, right, ethical interpretation and philosophical perspective, non-anthropocentrism is bound to become a trend of moral evolution.4. Non-anthropocentric Theoretical and Realistic SignificanceThe ecological crisis resulted from the anthropocentric-oriented values of human civilization. Therefore, non-anthropocentrism consciously reflects anthropocentrism at the theoretical level. This is one of the theoretical significances. Meanwhile, non-anthropocentrism perfects moral connotations of the baseline ethics, transcends the traditional ethics, and practices the law of negation of negation. As ethical view awakens to ecological crisis, the realistic significance of non-anthropocentrism embodies in its far-reaching impact at the economic level, the technological level, the political level, as well as the lifestyle.5. Non-anthropocentric Development TrendNon-anthropocentrism is still at the initial stage of research. Looking to the future, in order to become a vital ethical thinking, non-anthropocentrism must achieve two integrations: the first is internal integration with anthropocentrism, and the second is external integration with the Marxism nature view. This is an inevitable trend in the development of non- anthropocentrism. Only in this way can non-anthropocentrism promote the development of ecological ethical thinking at the theoretical level and a new upsurge of protecting environment at practical level.In conclusion, non-anthropocentrism has jumped out of the traditional interpretation perspective of the relationship between man and nature, which broadens moral caring scope to all the existence and embodies "the bourn of Heaven and Earth" of Mr. Feng. A kind of exoteric ethics is not tendencious or systematical, so it can keep its strong vitality. Non-anthropocentrism reveals the wisdom of environmental ethics when it communicates with anthropocentrism and the Marxism nature view.