Lance Newman founds his reading of Thoreau upon an ecocriticism that emphasizes as "the central axiom in its critical theory" a "direct contradiction" of the claims of "poststructuralist" theories reducing the world to language. ... However, in order to locate "the nonlinguistic material world" in Thoreau's writing, Newman draws upon an ecocritical literacy that remains ironically illiterate in its critical assumptions. ... Though I share Phillips's belief that "we need to cure ecocriticism of its fundamentalist fixation on literal representation," the larger theory and critique of e...

• Word Count: 9971
• Approx Pages: 40
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

The most critical account of the mind-body theory was first systematically carried out by Descartes. ... Through his notion of clear and distinct ideas, Descartes infers the existence of the mind as a thinking substance and the body as an extended substance; hence the two are independent and distinct. ... It activates and stimulates the mind to reflect, critically assess and evaluates all human experiences and interests. ... If he doubted then this could only mean that he is thinking. Because he thinks, then he is a thinking being. ...

• Word Count: 4771
• Approx Pages: 19
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate