Charles Tiphaigne de La Roche’s Multi-Perspectivist Vision of Nature

This article looks at the treatment of nature and exception in the work of the French writer Charles Tiphaigne de La Roche (1722–1774), in the context of modern-day discussions of coloniality and extractivism. After a brief presentation of Tiphaigne’s publications, the article suggests that his conception of nature and his staging of ‘elementary spirits’ (genies, sylphs, and other creatures of wonder) resonate deeply with what anthropologist Eduardo Viveiros de Castro, studying Amazonian worldviews, has labelled ‘multi-naturalism’. In opposition to the human exceptionalism claimed by western modernity, which has deprived nature of its exceptional features, the multi-perspectivist approach advanced in this article supports a pluralist view which recognizes multiple reference points according to which something may be seen as ‘natural’ or ‘exceptional’. Eight lessons are sketched out in the conclusion, indicating how these discussions may help us reframe our understanding of the relations between nature and exception.

This article was published open access under a CC BY-NC-ND licence: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ .