Jacob Dearing

October 11th, 2015

Critical Abstract #6

Article author: Alex Carr Johnson

Article title: How to Queer Ecology

In discussing the relationship between human and nature, Alex Johnson claims that the difficulty ecologists and societies in general have with drawing the line between human and nature is our desire to label what is natural and unnatural. The issue with proclaiming something as “natural” according to Johnson, who is homosexual in nature and thus deemed “unnaturual” in western society, is that in nature, “there will always be an exception”. From this fact about the “natural world” Johnson believes that we need a “queering of nature and ecology” which he states can be accomplished in seven steps, four of which I found to capture the frame of his argument:

  1. Let Go of Ecological Mandates – Johnson gives an example from David Quammen’s essay about geese being the embodiment of humanities best natural self.
  1. Stop Generalizing – This embodiment however is on the basis of an entirely heterosexual and monogamous population, which does not account for the, “12 percent of homosexual pairs observed in geese populations”. This section of Johnson’s argument shows the issues with searching for a preconceived notion of “natural” qualities in that it ignores a substantial characteristic within a population.
  1. Honk – Johnson describes that a “queering of ecology” would benefit the discussion on human environmental relations as it humbles us with the, “indication of the capacity and diversity of all life on earth”.
  1. Acknowledge the Irony – This step points out one of the major issues in the human/nature argument in that it is difficult to accept when nature proves us wrong.