Matter and Desire

Author Andreas Weber (philosophy, Leuphana University; University of Fine Arts, Germany) is a biologist and philosopher who has worked closely with the philosopher and neuroscientist Francisco Varela. In this collection of essays, he draws on the traditions of American nature writing and humanistic psychology to reflect on ecology, philosophy, and spirituality. Rejecting the mechanistic view of the natural world, he celebrates the connection between mind and matter, the interdependence of humans and natural ecosystems, and the transformational role of desire. He unites human love and the erotic in what calls ‘erotic ecology.’ He shows how sensory contact with our fellow creatures and with the natural world can deepen our capacity to identify with all of life. Annotation ©2017 Ringgold, Inc., Portland, OR (protoview.com)
In Matter and Desire, internationally renowned biologist and philosopher Andreas Weber rewrites ecology as a tender practice of forging relationships, of yearning for connections, and of expressing these desires through our bodies. Being alive is an erotic process—constantly transforming the self through contact with others, desiring ever more life.In clever and surprising ways, Weber recognizes that love—the impulse to establish connections, to intermingle, to weave our existence poetically together with that of other beings—is a foundational principle of reality. The fact that we disregard this principle lies at the core of a global crisis of meaning that plays out in the avalanche of species loss and in our belief that the world is a dead mechanism controlled through economic efficiency.Although rooted in scientific observation, Matter and Desire becomes a tender philosophy for the Anthropocene, a “poetic materialism,” that closes the gap between mind and matter. Ultimately, Weber discovers, in order to save life on Earth—and our own meaningful existence as human beings—we must learn to love.