Plants as Machines: History, Philosophy and Practical Consequences of an Idea

Abstract

This paper elucidates the philosophical origins of the conception of plants as machines and analyses the contemporary technical and ethical consequences of that thinking. First, we explain the historical relationship between the explicit animal machine thesis of Descartes and the implicit plant machine thesis of today. Our hypothesis is that, although it is rarely discussed, the plant machine thesis remains influential. We define the philosophical criteria for both a moderate and radical interpretation of the thesis. Then, assessing the compatibility of current botanical knowledge with both interpretations, we find that neither withstands scrutiny. We trace how biological and agricultural sciences have historically relied upon thinking of plants as machines and how they continue to do so today through rhetoric centred on breeding, biotechnology, and production. We discuss some of the most important legal and ethical consequences of obscuring the vitality of plants. Finally, we explore less reductive and destructive ways of thinking about, and using, plants.

Philosophy of agriculture as a way of understanding agrarian practice

“…Therefore, in the noospheric dimension, agriculture is a sphere of human creative activity related to the preservation and improvement of life. Agrarian practice is still, first of all, the practice of transforming living matter and this raises the question of responsibility before it (Gerber & Hiernaux, 2022). In a narrow sense, the ontological problematic of the philosophy of agriculture covers the objects of agricultural research (soils, agrobiogeocynoses, agrolandscapes, agrofirms, etc.…”

Aspects éthiques et juridiques des plantes invasives

“…1 et 2), consiste à ne pas même reconnaître le caractère vivant (et donc potentiellement respectable) des plantes : ni animées par le souffle divin ni nommées comme les espèces animales, les plantes ne sont pas non plus l'objet d'une création spécifique. Cette attitude se retrouve jusque dans la philosophie et la botanique modernes du XVIIIe siècle : soit que la plante est ramenée au monde minéral et à la terre qui l'engendre, soit qu'elle est opposée à la vie « véritable », animée, sensible et animale (Delaporte 2011, Gerber et Hiernaux 2022.…”

“…En effet, à l'approche du XXI e siècle, la question de la valeur des plantes et du type de cette valeur est progressivement devenue un enjeu que la crise écologique ne permettait plus d'ignorer. Selon Odparlik (2018), surtout à partir des années 1980, la perception des plantes dans l'opinion publique a lentement évolué du statut de créatures-machines, hérité du XVIIe siècle (Gerber et Hiernaux 2022), à celui de véritables êtres vivants avec des besoins spécifiques, les rapprochant de la possibilité d'une considération morale directe. Odparlik pointe plusieurs étapes dans ce processus.…”

Towards diversified industrial cropping systems?

“…Understanding the processes of nature as the production of goods and services for the benefit of humans positions plants in an agroecosystem (and any other system inhabitants, such as soil microorganisms, earth worms, arthropods, birds, etc.) as being in service to human wellbeing and economy (Costanza et al 1997;Gerber and Hiernaux 2022). In this way, the notions of 'success' used in this research (agroecosystem services) also maintain a fundamental link to the monoculture mindset, although they go beyond the standard productivist terms most commonly utilized (Chapter 3).…”

“…cisgendered men) at the top, and other genders, non-humans, and nature at the bottom, justifying what ecofeminists have termed a "logic of domination" (Warren 1990). The separation of humans from nature was codified by the works of figures such as Francis Bacon and René Descartes, who during the 1600s taught Western society to understand nature as inert and as a machine which would be understood through reason and reductionism (Gerber and Hiernaux 2022;Merchant 2006). The combined power of value dualisms (e.g.…”