9 6
ECOLOGY OF EVERYDAY LIFE
may begin to uncover new ways to articulate what it is that we really yearn for
when we talk about ‘nature5. Often framed in terms of a spiritual or romantic
longing for connectedness, wholeness, and integrity, the social desire for nature
is often contrasted to universalizing notions of rationality and technology that
are accused of destroying all that is good in the world.8 Again, conflating
rationality with a particular kind of rationalization, ‘nature lovers5 often propose
a return to an intuition and spirituality that would better resonate with ecological
principles such as connectedness, diversity, or inter-dependence. However, as
we shall see, it is possible to think rationally, with great feeling, about the social
desire for nature. Instead of appealing to ideas of spirit and intuition to identify
moments of meaning, connectedness, and integrity, we may appeal to the
embodied and relational idiom of the sodo-erotic.
TIhe FivE FiNqERS
Of Socbl DesIre
■When a child reaches out to the world, it reaches with both hands. Often, the
child reaches for something it needs physically or for some form of sodal
interaction that it desires. As we dive into the vast blue world of the
sodo-erotic, we no longer define desire as the singular will to satisfy an
individualistic longing for that which we do not have, nor do we reduce desire
to material need. Instead, we may explore desire as a rich dialectic, as a
yearning to unfold all that we can feel and do together within a free sodety. In
particular, sodal desire represents an organic and profoundly social spectrum
of potentialities, inclinations, or tendendes. It represents a will to know
ourselves, each other, and the world. From within this spectrum of sodal
desire, there emerge five dimensions of desire, “five fingers of sodal desire,55
which are implicit within the social tradition itself. These dimensions are linked
to the desire for sensuality, assodation, differentiation, development, and
political opposition. And like the graceful movements of a hand,
the
socio-erotic can best grasp the world when all five fingers and palm work in
unison.
SensuaI DEsiRE: TIhe DESiRE To Know
Let us begin with one of the most common understandings of desire, one with
which we are most familiar. The first finger of desire, sensual desire, is the
desire for sensual expression, satisfaction, and engagement with any one, or
all, of our senses. Sensual desire begins with the assertion, “I want to know"
sensually, engaging ourselves on a visceral level. The idea of sensual desire
represents the most unmediated dimension of desire, referring to a will to
know through the senses, to express our potential for sensual enjoyment and
experience. When we think of sensual desire, we may think of the way
children seek out the world through their mouths and fingers, yearning in
return for nourishment and affection. We may let the little finger symbolize