2
GERALD L. YOUNG
I. INTRODUCTION
The past few years have been distinguished by a remarkable acceleration of concern for the application of ecological concepts to the
relationships between man and his environment. Suddenly everyone is
“discovering” ecology. The actual involvement of many proponents of
ecology as a panacea for solution of the ills that beset mankind may be
questioned as may their fund of basic knowledge and their willingness
to gain that knowledge. But the questions remain questions with no
adequate measure available to provide answers. One thing, however,
does seem clear: to these instant aficionados, the ecology of man has no
history. The concepts are new and if they could just be applied, the
widespread problems of environmental deterioration would disappear.
This lack of recognition of a developmental background in the ecology
of man is a common misconception, even among established ecologists
and environmentalists .
But application of ecological concepts toward an understanding of
man is not new. The formal history of what can be called human ecology
dates back, as a sub-discipline in the social sciences, a t least to 1921; a
less tightly defined history can be traced back to the classical Greek
philosophers. One could even claim, as Sears (1966) has, that “its roots
lie in the intuitive and empirical knowledge of ancient man who lived,
perforce, in intimate relation with the natural world”. Undoubtedly,
central to the study of man throughout the development of science and
scholarship has been a deep-rooted concern for understanding of man’s
relationship to his environment, a quest for knowledge of man’s place in
nature.
In this paper, the formal history of human ecology is reviewed with
the idea of trying to clarify its meaning as developed in the various
disciplines, with the ultimate goal being the isolation of those elements
comdion to all. I n the process, some usages will come under fire and the
efforts of a few will be found wanting; thus hopefully will progress be
made in the honing of human ecology as an instrument useful toward
increased understanding of the continuing mysteries of mankind.
It is generally accepted that ecology, as Darling (1963) has stated, is a
unity. But it is a unity of such complexity that one individual may be
unable to comprehend its totality. I n such a situation, the only available
course of action is to operate upon the whole by operating upon each
part. It is my intent, therefore, to treat the concept in this paper,
initially, as distributive, to enable me to approach, part by part, my
attempt at a unified synthesis. The apparent but unavoidable paradox
will hopefully be voided in the end product. As Shepard (1969) has
claimed, human ecology is “not a discipline: there is no body of thought
GERALD L. YOUNG
I. INTRODUCTION
The past few years have been distinguished by a remarkable acceleration of concern for the application of ecological concepts to the
relationships between man and his environment. Suddenly everyone is
“discovering” ecology. The actual involvement of many proponents of
ecology as a panacea for solution of the ills that beset mankind may be
questioned as may their fund of basic knowledge and their willingness
to gain that knowledge. But the questions remain questions with no
adequate measure available to provide answers. One thing, however,
does seem clear: to these instant aficionados, the ecology of man has no
history. The concepts are new and if they could just be applied, the
widespread problems of environmental deterioration would disappear.
This lack of recognition of a developmental background in the ecology
of man is a common misconception, even among established ecologists
and environmentalists .
But application of ecological concepts toward an understanding of
man is not new. The formal history of what can be called human ecology
dates back, as a sub-discipline in the social sciences, a t least to 1921; a
less tightly defined history can be traced back to the classical Greek
philosophers. One could even claim, as Sears (1966) has, that “its roots
lie in the intuitive and empirical knowledge of ancient man who lived,
perforce, in intimate relation with the natural world”. Undoubtedly,
central to the study of man throughout the development of science and
scholarship has been a deep-rooted concern for understanding of man’s
relationship to his environment, a quest for knowledge of man’s place in
nature.
In this paper, the formal history of human ecology is reviewed with
the idea of trying to clarify its meaning as developed in the various
disciplines, with the ultimate goal being the isolation of those elements
comdion to all. I n the process, some usages will come under fire and the
efforts of a few will be found wanting; thus hopefully will progress be
made in the honing of human ecology as an instrument useful toward
increased understanding of the continuing mysteries of mankind.
It is generally accepted that ecology, as Darling (1963) has stated, is a
unity. But it is a unity of such complexity that one individual may be
unable to comprehend its totality. I n such a situation, the only available
course of action is to operate upon the whole by operating upon each
part. It is my intent, therefore, to treat the concept in this paper,
initially, as distributive, to enable me to approach, part by part, my
attempt at a unified synthesis. The apparent but unavoidable paradox
will hopefully be voided in the end product. As Shepard (1969) has
claimed, human ecology is “not a discipline: there is no body of thought