Key Takeaways
1. Staying with the Trouble Requires Making Kin
Our task is to make trouble, to stir up potent response to devastating events, as well as to settle troubled waters and rebuild quiet places.
Response-ability is key. The central theme of the book is the need to confront the overwhelming challenges of our time, not by seeking escapist solutions or succumbing to despair, but by learning to "stay with the trouble." This involves cultivating the capacity to respond to devastating events with potent action, while also working to rebuild and nurture quiet places of resilience.
Kin as a wild category. The concept of "kin" is expanded beyond traditional definitions of family to encompass a broader network of relationships, including those with non-human beings. This "making kin" is not about domesticating the wild, but about recognizing and embracing the interconnectedness of all living things.
Oddkin over Godkin. The book advocates for making "oddkin" rather than relying on traditional notions of "godkin" or genealogical family. This shift emphasizes responsibility to those with whom we are connected through shared struggles and mutual dependence, regardless of biological ties.
2. The Chthulucene Offers a Path Beyond the Anthropocene
Living-with and dying-with each other potently in the Chthulucene can be a fierce reply to the dictates of both Anthropos and Capital.
A timeplace for response-ability. The Chthulucene is presented as an alternative to the Anthropocene and Capitalocene, offering a way to learn to live and die in response-ability on a damaged Earth. It emphasizes the interconnectedness of all beings and the need to move beyond human-centered perspectives.
Chthonic ones as earth beings. The "chthonic ones" are described as beings of the Earth, both ancient and up-to-the-minute, full of tentacles, feelers, and unruly hair. They represent the material meaningfulness of Earth processes and critters, and challenge the dominance of sky-gazing Homo.
Rejecting exterminating forces. The Chthulucene is positioned as a fierce reply to the destructive forces of both Anthropos and Capital, which are seen as the latest and most dangerous of the exterminating forces that have plagued the Earth. It is a call to embrace living-with and dying-with each other in a potent and transformative way.
3. Sympoiesis: Making-With, Not Self-Making
The earth of the ongoing Chthulucene is sympoietic, not autopoietic.
Interconnectedness is key. The book challenges the notion of self-making, arguing that nothing exists in isolation. Instead, it proposes the concept of "sympoiesis," which emphasizes the interconnectedness of all things and the importance of making-with others.
Holobionts as symbiotic assemblages. The term "holobiont" is introduced to describe symbiotic assemblages, at whatever scale of space or time. These assemblages are seen as knots of diverse intra-active relatings in dynamic complex systems, rather than as bounded units in interactions.
Symbiogenesis as a life-making process. The book highlights "symbiogenesis," the fusion of genomes in symbioses, as a fundamental life-making process. This process, driven by the long-lasting intimacy of strangers, leads to the evolution of new kinds of cells, tissues, organs, and species.
4. Tentacular Thinking: Embracing Complexity and Connection
We are all lichens.
Beyond bounded individualism. The book argues that bounded individualism, a cornerstone of Western philosophy and political economics, is no longer a viable way of thinking. It calls for a shift towards "tentacular thinking," which embraces complexity, interconnectedness, and the blurring of boundaries.
Tentacularity as a way of life. Tentacularity is described as life lived along lines, not at points, and as a wealth of lines. It involves making attachments and detachments, cuts and knots, and weaving paths and consequences without determinism.
Compost over posthumanism. The book rejects posthumanism, proposing "compost" instead. This shift emphasizes the importance of decay, transformation, and the cyclical nature of life, as well as the potential for human beings to become "humus," workers of and in the soil.
5. Companion Species: Relentless Becoming-With
Companion species are relentlessly becoming-with.
Rejecting human exceptionalism. The category of "companion species" helps to refuse human exceptionalism without invoking posthumanism. It emphasizes the ordinary beings-in-encounter in human-animal worlds.
String figure games. Companion species play "string figure games" where who is/are to be in/of the world is constituted in intra- and interaction. The partners do not precede the knotting; species of all kinds are consequent upon worldly subject- and object-shaping entanglements.
Becoming-with, not becoming. The book emphasizes "becoming-with" rather than "becoming," highlighting the relational nature of existence. Partners in human-animal worlds are rendered capable through their interactions and mutual influence.
6. The Importance of Storytelling and Speculative Fabulation
It matters what stories make worlds, what worlds make stories.
Stories as world-making forces. The book emphasizes the power of stories to shape our understanding of the world and to create new possibilities for living. It argues that it matters what stories we tell to tell other stories with, and what worlds make stories.
Speculative fabulation as a method. "sf" is presented as a method of tracing, following threads in the dark, and cultivating multispecies justice. It involves promiscuously plucking out fibers in events and practices to track their tangles and patterns.
String figures as practice and process. String figuring is described as passing on and receiving, making and unmaking, picking up threads and dropping them. It is a practice and process of becoming-with each other in surprising relays, a figure for ongoingness in the Chthulucene.
7. Mourning and Remembrance as Essential Practices
Mourning is about dwelling with a loss and so coming to appreciate what it means, how the world has changed, and how we must ourselves change and renew our relationships if we are to move forward from here.
Grief as a path to understanding. The book proposes that mourning is intrinsic to cultivating response-ability. It argues that grief is a path to understanding entangled shared living and dying, and that human beings must grieve-with other beings.
The necessity of remembrance. Without sustained remembrance, we cannot learn to live with ghosts and so cannot think. Like crows, we are at stake in each other's company, living and dead.
Storying place. The book emphasizes the importance of storying place, not just any place, but specific, storied places. It argues that storying cannot any longer be put into the box of human exceptionalism.
8. Science Art Worldings: Enacting Change through Creativity
The collaborations among differently situated people—and peoples—are as crucial as, and enabled by, those between the humans and animals.
Joining science and art. The book highlights the importance of art science worldings as sympoietic practices for living on a damaged planet. These practices involve collaborations among scientists, artists, and community members to create innovative solutions to environmental and social problems.
Differential burdens of urban air pollution. The book examines the differential burdens of urban air pollution, which disproportionately affect working-class people, people of color, and immigrants. It explores how art activism can be used to address these issues.
PigeonBlog as an example. The PigeonBlog project is presented as a case study of art activism in action. The project, which involved enlisting racing pigeons to collect and distribute information about air quality conditions, demonstrates the potential for interspecies collaboration to promote environmental justice.
9. The Dangers of Thoughtlessness and the Need for Curiosity
What is it to surrender the capacity to think?
Thoughtlessness and evil. The book draws on Hannah Arendt's analysis of Adolf Eichmann's inability to think, arguing that this thoughtlessness is a form of evil that can lead to devastating consequences. It suggests that the disaster of the Anthropocene is rooted in a similar kind of thoughtlessness.
The importance of curiosity. The book emphasizes the importance of curiosity as a virtue, drawing on the work of philosopher Vinciane Despret. It argues that curiosity is essential for staying with the trouble and for cultivating response-ability.
Thinking-with other beings. The book advocates for "thinking-with" other beings, human and not, as a way to enlarge our capacities and to move beyond inherited categories and capacities. This involves attending to what beings evoke from and with each other that was truly not there before.
10. The Power of Situated Knowledges and Local Action
The details matter. The details link actual beings to actual response-abilities.
Rejecting universal solutions. The book rejects universalizing approaches to solving environmental and social problems, emphasizing the importance of situated knowledges and local action. It argues that solutions must be tailored to the specific contexts and needs of particular places and communities.
The importance of local knowledge. The book highlights the importance of local knowledge, particularly that of indigenous peoples, in addressing environmental challenges. It argues that indigenous perspectives can offer valuable insights and guidance for staying with the trouble.
The need for collaboration. The book emphasizes the need for collaboration among diverse actors, including scientists, artists, community members, and indigenous peoples, in order to create effective and just solutions to the problems we face.
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FAQ
1. What is [Staying with the Trouble: Making Kin in the Chthulucene] by Donna J. Haraway about?
- Multispecies entanglement focus: The book explores how humans and other species are deeply entangled in complex relationships, emphasizing the practice of "making kin" to live and die well together on a damaged planet.
- Chthulucene as a new epoch: Haraway introduces the Chthulucene as an alternative to the Anthropocene and Capitalocene, highlighting tentacular thinking and sympoiesis as ways to understand ongoing multispecies connections.
- Interdisciplinary storytelling: The text weaves together feminist theory, science studies, ethnography, biology, and speculative fiction to address ecological crises and imagine multispecies futures.
- Practical and speculative approach: Haraway combines grounded ethnographic examples with speculative fabulations to envision new kin-making practices for survival and flourishing.
2. Why should I read [Staying with the Trouble] by Donna J. Haraway?
- Urgency of ecological crises: The book offers a critical framework for understanding and responding to the intertwined ecological, social, and political troubles of our time, such as mass extinctions and climate change.
- Innovative conceptual tools: Haraway provides new concepts like the Chthulucene, sympoiesis, and tentacular thinking to help readers rethink human-nonhuman relations beyond domination and separation.
- Ethical and political engagement: Readers are encouraged to cultivate response-ability, care, and multispecies kinship as ethical practices for staying with the trouble rather than escaping or denying it.
- Rich, accessible examples: The book is filled with vivid ethnographies, art projects, and speculative narratives that make complex ideas accessible and inspire creative action.
3. What are the key takeaways from [Staying with the Trouble: Making Kin in the Chthulucene] by Donna J. Haraway?
- Rejecting human exceptionalism: Haraway challenges the idea that humans are separate from or superior to other species, urging a shift toward multispecies justice and kinship.
- Embracing sympoiesis: The concept of "making-with" highlights the importance of collective, distributed processes in living and becoming, rather than self-contained autonomy.
- Staying with the trouble: Instead of seeking escape or easy solutions, the book advocates for facing ecological and social crises with care, creativity, and collaborative action.
- Speculative and practical kin-making: Through both real-world examples and speculative stories, Haraway demonstrates how making kin across species and differences is essential for survival and flourishing.
4. What are the best quotes from [Staying with the Trouble] by Donna J. Haraway and what do they mean?
- "Make kin, not babies!" This quote encapsulates Haraway’s call to expand kinship beyond biological reproduction, emphasizing responsibility and care across species.
- "It matters what stories make worlds; what worlds make stories." Haraway highlights the power of narrative in shaping realities and possibilities for multispecies futures.
- "Staying with the trouble requires learning to be truly present." This quote urges readers to engage deeply with the complexities and urgencies of the present, rather than seeking escape.
- "We are all compost, not posthuman." Haraway uses this phrase to reject fantasies of transcendence, emphasizing material, earthly entanglements and ongoingness.
5. How does Donna J. Haraway define the Chthulucene in [Staying with the Trouble] and how does it differ from the Anthropocene and Capitalocene?
- Chthulucene as multispecies time: The Chthulucene is a tentacular, multispecies epoch of ongoingness and entanglement, named to evoke chthonic (earthly, underworld) powers that are generative and unruly.
- Critique of Anthropocene: Haraway critiques the Anthropocene for centering human exceptionalism and a geological framing that obscures specific relations and responsibilities.
- Capitalocene’s focus: The Capitalocene highlights capitalism, colonialism, and economic power as drivers of ecological destruction, rather than generic human impact.
- Chthulucene as hopeful alternative: The Chthulucene foregrounds sympoiesis and collaborative worlding, moving beyond blame to foster multispecies kinship and survival.
6. What does "making kin" mean in [Staying with the Trouble] by Donna J. Haraway?
- Kin beyond genealogy: Making kin involves creating relationships that go beyond biological reproduction or traditional family ties, including multispecies, technological, and political connections.
- Ethical and political practice: It is a deliberate, ongoing practice of response-ability, care, and accountability to others—human and nonhuman—to sustain life and flourishing.
- Challenging dominant narratives: Making kin disrupts individualism, human exceptionalism, and capitalist exploitation by fostering alliances and collaborations across differences.
- Speculative and practical examples: Haraway uses both real-world ethnographies and speculative fabulations to show how making kin can be enacted in diverse contexts.
7. How does Donna J. Haraway explain "sympoiesis" in [Staying with the Trouble] and why is it important?
- Definition of sympoiesis: Sympoiesis means "making-with" and refers to collective, distributed processes of living and becoming that are not self-contained but co-produced by multiple agents.
- Contrast with autopoiesis: Unlike autopoiesis (self-making), sympoiesis emphasizes openness, entanglement, and interdependence among organisms and systems.
- Biological and philosophical roots: The concept draws on Lynn Margulis’s work on symbiogenesis and Karen Barad’s agential realism, offering a framework for understanding multispecies assemblages.
- Ethical and political implications: Sympoiesis calls for response-ability and care in multispecies worlds, encouraging collaborative survival strategies in the face of ecological crises.
8. What is the significance of string figures and "sf" (science fiction, speculative fabulation, etc.) in [Staying with the Trouble] by Donna J. Haraway?
- Metaphor for entanglement: String figures, like cat’s cradle, symbolize the complex, dynamic, and relational webs that connect species, humans, and environments.
- Practice of thinking and making: Playing string figures is a form of speculative fabulation and collaborative storytelling that models sympoietic processes.
- "sf" as a method: "sf" stands for science fiction, speculative feminism, speculative fabulation, science fact, and string figures, all braided together to track threads of multispecies worlding.
- Invitation to readers: The metaphor invites readers to engage in making and unmaking relations, staying with the trouble through playful, thoughtful, and material practices.
9. How does [Staying with the Trouble] by Donna J. Haraway critique the Anthropocene and Capitalocene?
- Anthropocene critique: Haraway argues that the Anthropocene centers a problematic figure of "Species Man" and human exceptionalism, which is insufficient for understanding complex multispecies entanglements.
- Capitalocene as alternative: She favors the term Capitalocene to emphasize the roles of capitalism, colonialism, and plantation economies in shaping ecological destruction and social injustice.
- Limits of both terms: Both Anthropocene and Capitalocene risk being too big and deterministic; Haraway calls for more situated, relational stories like the Chthulucene.
- Need for new narratives: The book advocates for new, more situated, and relational stories to foster multispecies flourishing and justice.
10. How does Donna J. Haraway address feminist and indigenous perspectives in [Staying with the Trouble]?
- Feminist theory integration: The book draws on feminist science studies to critique human exceptionalism, dualisms, and to promote situated knowledges and response-ability.
- Indigenous cosmopolitics: Haraway highlights indigenous knowledge systems and struggles, emphasizing their contributions to multispecies kinship and ecological justice.
- Decolonial alliances: The text advocates for coalitions that respect specific histories and urgencies, challenging universalizing narratives and supporting decolonial practices.
- Gender and kinship: It explores non-binary gender, queer kinship, and reproductive justice as central to reimagining multispecies futures.
11. What role do pigeons and pigeon fanciers play in [Staying with the Trouble] by Donna J. Haraway?
- Multispecies collaboration: Pigeons and their human fanciers exemplify companion species relationships, showing how humans and animals co-produce skills, knowledge, and social worlds.
- Ethnographic insights: Haraway draws on detailed ethnographies of pigeon racing communities to illustrate practices of care, love, and mutual transformation.
- Technoscientific projects: The PigeonBlog project, involving artists and scientists, uses pigeons as bio-sensors, blending art, science, and activism in multispecies collaborations.
- Metaphor for kin-making: Pigeons serve as a metaphor for sympoiesis and tentacular thinking, highlighting the entangled, ongoing, and playful nature of multispecies kinship.
12. What are the Camille Stories in [Staying with the Trouble] by Donna J. Haraway and what do they illustrate?
- Speculative fabulations: The Camille Stories are fictional narratives imagining multispecies children born in a damaged world, bonded with butterflies, fungi, and other critters.
- Exploration of kin-making: They illustrate diverse practices of making kin, bodily modifications, and sympoietic relations in speculative futures.
- Engagement with ecological and social issues: The stories address climate change, mining, indigenous struggles, and multispecies flourishing in
Review Summary
Staying with the Trouble receives mixed reviews, with praise for its innovative ideas on ecological regeneration and multispecies coexistence. Readers appreciate Haraway's creative language and concepts like "chthulucene" and "making kin." However, some find her writing style dense and repetitive. Critics raise concerns about her advocacy for population control. Overall, the book is seen as thought-provoking, offering a unique perspective on addressing environmental challenges, though its academic tone may limit accessibility for some readers.
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