Discursive dissection : this thesis questions the links between animal use in the West, genetic engineering and the patenting of living organisms : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Master of Philosophy in Development Studies at Massey University
Loading...
Date
2004
DOI
Open Access Location
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Massey University
Rights
The Author(s)
Abstract
Is another paradigm possible? A 21 st Century praxis where values are not based
primarily on economics, but on the wider spiritual values that sustain and nurture all
creatures and the natural world. Can we stop the commodification of everything, even
the essence of life itself, the DNA, the cell-lines, stem cells, our genes and the genetic
makeup of all life-forms? I wish to bring an eco-feminist analysis to these discussions
which will provide the standpoint from which to critique patriarchy's oppression and
perceptions of women, non-human animals and the environment. The patriarchal
construction of knowledge is examined as it is situated in the colonial and post-colonial
periods in Aotearoa New Zealand. Included also, is a critique of capitalism as the
pervading global nee-liberal economic system, incorporating historic events such as
colonisation, the Industrial Revolution and the rise of western reductionist science. This
is positioned against the historical epistemological backdrop of the main prevailing
attitudes to the natural world (the environment) and our relationships with other nonhuman
animal species on earth. Included are the relevant aspects of the worldviews of
indigenous peoples including Maori, the religious standpoints of Christian, Muslim,
Hindu, and Buddhist. The ideological discourses of neo-liberal capitalism, western
reductionist science, modernist development and spiritual eco-feminism are also
examined.