Panpsychism: A Response to the Anthropocene Age
Journal of Speculative Philosophy March 17, 2021 A. Conty
Panpsychism, the view that material elements of the universe have mental properties, has gained credibility in the Anthropocene because human influence blurs traditional boundaries between mind and matter. While some panpsychists erase all distinctions between living and nonliving, human and nonhuman, and evolved and made entities, this article uses Whitehead's process philosophy to defend panpsychism while developing criteria—causation, relationality, unity, and intentionality—to differentiate natural living forms, natural nonliving forms, and human artifacts.