Bonding with Earth: Hyperbole, Metaphor, or Fanciful Teleology?

At a mere glance, the notion that humans could (should strive for?) bond emotionally with an entire planet, Earth, sounds hyperbolic at best and psychologically unsound at worst. For although humans might be motivated to act in ways that pass for “bonding,” perhaps assisted by intentions and sentiments to care for a whole planet, the question remains: Which notion of Earth are they really investing all their emotions in? Important to psychologists would be to inquire whether incomplete, idealized, oversimplified, or fantastic notions of “Earth,” or bonding, turn out to be transference-love-like, platonic, overidealized forms of affect, which seldom develop into mature person- environment or person-to-person relations.

Publication Details

Journal
The International Journal of Ecopsychology (IJE)
Published
2025-09-15
DOI
https://doi.org/10.55671/2767-1380.1137
Primary Topic
Humanities and Social Sciences
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00
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article

Bonding with Earth: Hyperbole, Metaphor, or Fanciful Teleology?

The International Journal of Ecopsychology (IJE)
Humanities and Social Sciences
article

Bonding with Earth: Hyperbole, Metaphor, or Fanciful Teleology?

article en

Abstract

At a mere glance, the notion that humans could (should strive for?) bond emotionally with an entire planet, Earth, sounds hyperbolic at best and psychologically unsound at worst. For although humans might be motivated to act in ways that pass for “bonding,” perhaps assisted by intentions and sentiments to care for a whole planet, the question remains: Which notion of Earth are they really investing all their emotions in? Important to psychologists would be to inquire whether incomplete, idealized, oversimplified, or fantastic notions of “Earth,” or bonding, turn out to be transference-love-like, platonic, overidealized forms of affect, which seldom develop into mature person- environment or person-to-person relations.

The International Journal of Ecopsychology (IJE)Vol. 11(1)
Openalex Percentile: Top 32%
Humanities and Social Sciences
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Bonding with Earth: Hyperbole, Metaphor, or Fanciful Teleology? · The International Journal of Ecopsychology (IJE) (2025) | TGRS Research Map | TGRS