'Gaia Told Me to Do It': Resistance and the Idea of Nature within contemporary British Eco-Paganism

Citation Detail

Title:

'Gaia Told Me to Do It': Resistance and the Idea of Nature within contemporary British Eco-Paganism.

Authors:

Letcher, Andy

Source:

Ecotheology: Journal of Religion, Nature & the Environment; Aug2003, Vol. 8 Issue 1, p61-84, 24p

Document Type:

Article

Subject Terms:

*PAGANISM
*RELIGIONS
*GAIA hypothesis
*ENVIRONMENTAL activism
*ECOLOGY

Geographic Terms:

GREAT Britain

Abstract:

This article examines Eco-Paganism, that is, the diverse, elective and affectual spiritualities found amongst practitioners of radical environmentalism in contemporary Britain. It draws attention to an unexplored facet of road and other protests by suggesting that Eco-Pagans espouse and articulate a particular idea of nature that is constructed in opposition to that of the road builders. Nature, according to Eco-Pagans, is not disenchanted, its worth to be valued according to its utility to humanity, but is rather sacred, sentient and crying out for protection from further human amelioration. A motivational factor for some individuals, this construction of nature importantly allows for novel forms of resistance, from the expressive and symbolic to the religious and magical-examples of which are given. While it is customary to regard societies as constructing their idea of 'nature', this article demonstrates how an idea of nature, once established, can have important consequences for society, from the establishment of alternative religious identities, to expressions of political dissent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

 

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ISSN:

13637320

Accession Number:

12446132

Persistent link to this record (Permalink):

Database:

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