Boxing The Compass By Sandy Florian: The Deadly Results Of The Anthropocene
As human activities rapidly increases with human population and technology, we enter a new era where our impact on Earth’s geology and ecosystems has been dominant and significant. During the Quaternary period, the Holocene and Pleistocene together marked as the last interglacial stage. Throughout the Holocene, the beginning growth and impact of human species was recorded due to the development of civilizations and transition of urban living. Compared to the current Anthropocene, the Holocene Epoch is referred to the last 11, 700 years of Earth’s history where it was much cooler in atmospheric conditions. The new age of Anthropocene is heavily defined by daily human influences in which the environment is being warmed by climate change. This rapid shift has contributed towards the countless detrimental consequences on environmental health. In Boxing the Compass by Sandy Florian, the author uncovers the deadly result of the Anthropocene and connecting this havoc with the grief of losing a mother. This novel details about a woman’s routine on the anniversary of her mother’s passing and the personal memories of her family members. Along with those moments, the character expresses apprehension and dread towards the current environmental climate by depicting the rise of sea temperatures and levels.
Within the novel, Florian illustrates the woman’s reaction towards the Anthropocene by relating the personal emotions and thoughts that is evoked through the lost of a loved Huang 2one. The main character’s reaction towards the transition of the Anthropocene is seen through the way nature and death is depicted within the story. The entrance into the Anthropocene determined our distinct trajectory of Earth’s processes. This geological period stands differently compared to any other as this is the only time where environmental catastrophes are solely caused by humans. In the article, “Trajectories of the Earth System in the Anthropocene” by Will Steffen et al, “The Anthropocene represents the beginning of a very rapid human-driven trajectory of the Earth System away from the glacial–interglacial limit cycle toward new, hotter climatic conditions…”. This points to the fact that with the acceleration of carbon dioxide being released into the air by the burning of fossil fuel to make electricity, it is expeditiously worsening global warming. It creates a layer of atmospheric gases that prevents the cooling of Earth’s surface. The planet’s increasing temperatures are furthering lengthy droughts, fueling powerful hurricanes, and leading to the disruptions of plants and animals globally.
The Anthropocene is witnessed as the collective unmanageable influences of all human activities where it will eventually lead to a depleted biosphere and an uninhabitable world for future generations. Furthermore, the careless reaction to the Anthropocene can limit humanity’s enormous potential as a society collectively. In the future, there are two paths that can take into effect which marks the trajectory of Earth’s systems. For example, humans can keep their daily routine which causes the “hothouse” effect, or we can change our behaviors which causes a more stabilized outcome. The hothouse aftermath take very little to no energy as society will continue its rhythm of life. As said by the author, “. . . these trajectories are largely driven by the amount of greenhouse gases that human activities have already emitted and will continue to emit into the atmosphere over the rest of this century and beyond…”. This decision goes conjointly with the concept of global warming in which the increase of greenhouse gases will continue to pollute the atmosphere, making it impossible to cool off. The tipping point of Earth’s temperatures is currently at risk of being reached with the amount of air, land, and water pollution being produced everyday. If concentration threshold is reached, the Earth will be in a hothouse state because of its inability to maintain life for natural processes due to maximum historical temperature. Once the tipping point is reached, it is not possible for the cycle to revert back into normal. With the continuous and progressing tipping factors, the equilibrium of all ecosystems will be disturbed as the relationship of nature is all interconnected.
On the other hand, the path towards a more stabilized Earth can be possible with all nation’s cooperative efforts. Although this direction will cause more energy to be required, it ensures a more sustainable habitat for the future to come. For example, by expanding the use of solar and renewable energy, increasing vehicle fuel efficiency, reducing the level of CO2 emissions, and decreasing the amount of waste produced. Without these efforts, many factors are at stake as global warming will force many species to the brink of extinction, threatening food supplies, human health, economies and communities. According to Will Steffen, “This requires that humans take deliberate, integral, and adaptive steps to reduce dangerous impacts on the Earth System, effectively monitoring and changing behavior to form feedback loops that stabilize this intermediate state”. This states the only possibility of reaching this goal is to consciously direct effect into calculated plans in order to gain progression worldwide. When it comes down to the environmental issues, every nation needs to plan together with hopes to reach the same outcome. It is imperative for everyone to contribute towards this Huang 4cause because it is useless without the actions as a whole. With advancing solutions, it is possible that all nations can participate in conservation effects. One mindset of this generation is preventing the realization of the critical position we are in currently because the connection between everyday human experience and the world of mathematical science have become disconnected.
In “Philosophy of Science: A Very Short Introduction, ” Samir Okasha notes that humans need to be persuaded through the development of current theories which will provide a deeper understanding regarding human influences. For example, most people believe that their carbon footprint and impact is relatively trivial therefore continue without another thought due to the lack of mathematical knowledge when it comes to science. As humans cannot truly feel the pollution of their actions, they are behaving on a mentality as if there is no effect. This creates an repetitive and dangerous cycle where millions of small acts can contribute to a massive impact that can ruin the habitat of the Earth. In Okasha’s book, he examined various ways of viewing at science through the concept of the scientific method including experiments, theories, and highlighting examples from history. The author proposed the way to figuring out modern science is to grasp the history behind science in order to determine their original meanings. As the subject of science is a historically debated topic talked about throughout the centuries, the meaning and definition is ongoing.
According to Okasha, a scientific theory is deviated from deduction or induction. One example demonstrated by Okasha is "All Frenchmen like red wine. Pierre is a Frenchman, therefore he likes red wine”. The first two statements makes up a conclusion however, it is difficult to deduce a theory because every subject cannot be looked at. Thus, the basis of scientific theories are based on induction. For example, "The first five eggs in the box are rotten. All the eggs have the same best before date stamped on them. Therefore, the sixth egg will be rotten too". This seems logical however, with the amount of variation in scientific factors, it is hard to induce theories based upon little data. The author touches on the problem with theory of induction is that it relies heavily on "Uniformity of Nature". This an assumption that all matters of the same species behave similarly however, it is hard to predict when the experimental factors differ greatly.
By questioning these generally accepted scientific ideals, Okasha has emphasized the non empirical aspect in science and whose reality we take for granted which are hard to provide logical explanations for. Interpretations of scientific discoveries, experiments, and philosophies are constantly being challenged however, these disagreements have been the driving forces behind scientific progression. People have become confused with concrete reality because of the difference between scientific and non scientific knowledge.
In “The Origins of Geometry, ” Edmund Husserl highlights the fact that people undermine the experiences and effects of everyday activities due lack of understanding of sciences. The writer pushes for connection between social and emotional experiences in which knowledge expands. Husserl reiterates the distinction between both objective and subjective knowledge and experience, as there are pressure between these two elements. For example, both Husserl and Florian’s work share the tension between the mourning from the main character and the new planetary climatic change.
In the beginning of Boxing the Compass, the woman who lost her mother undergoes a traumatic experience. The protagonist connect the learning of modern sciences with her own mother due to the fact that she grew up learning from her. Her mother’s death has reminded her of the current Anthropocene we have entered into as she faces the same degree of grief and sadness. This goes back to Husserl as he believed that the personal experiences we go through is another way of proving to Huang 6ourselves as it links to “life-world”. By going through the death of her own parent, the woman was able to recognize the trajectory we are heading towards. With association between nature and mother, the protagonist exhibits despair for the eventual death of the Earth as she become conscious of the rising in temperatures and sea levels. This serve as a waking call as the woman continues to struggle with everyday life after coming into terms with her new findings. Furthermore, her mother’s death has impacted her so much to the point where she only experience dreary atmospheres and faces everywhere she goes. Florian stated, “The only thing she notices as she walks east-northeast to her apartment building is the shape of a dove dead at the entrance, like the shape of a brother, like the shape of a father, like the shape of a mother, a lover, a daughter”. This example shows that she began to associate the death of nature to the loss of a loved one. The main character starts to slowly grasp her senses on what is going on with the world today as she is able to make that connection. In this light, the author underlines the seriousness of environmental changes as it will affect everyone personally in the same way. Consequently, the main character is reminded of her younger brother’s death in which he drowned falling through ice. As they were skating together on a pond, her younger brother fell into his demise because the ice has melted due to global warming. This memory has recalled Husserl’s idea that people tend to undermine their everyday life due to the inability to recognize the influences of science. Thus, as the woman discovered the truth and were able to physically be affected by global warming, it opened her eyes towards the crucial state we are in. More importantly, the main character is able to identify the scientific knowledge through subjective and emotional experiences.
This has also led her to think about Okasha’s theory regarding the scientific method in order to interfere a reasoning behind the cause. As the waters are rising higher due to the melting of the glaciers, the character is able to come to the conclusion that global warming is happening today at a rapid rate. Florian illustrates how the personal effects of the Anthropocene will affect the modern society once they realize the damages that has been done. With her work, the character is an example of this new reality that we have created for ourselves.
Comparing the loss of a loved one to the ultimately death of the Earth, Boxing the Compass is encouraging readers to be mindful of their significant actions. As Earth is like a mother in which she provides life for us, the relationship Florian describe between nature and death highlights an important message regarding environmental conservation. By relating the topic of social and emotional effect on knowledge and the meaning of science, both mentioned by Okasha and Husserl, the work gives an in-depth perspective into the daily consequences of global warming. If we continue to ignore the signs given by nature, we will be heading down the path of the”hothouse” which will eventually destroy all life on Earth. This message is fundamental as people need to understand the the weight of every action and movement. It might not seem to be significant in a small scale however, billions of small weights have dampered life processes. As the Anthropocene might not feel dominant at the moment, it is important to recognize the feedback from our surroundings and act accordingly to improve our only home.
