Position paper: Of dogs and biotranslation (and phlogiston)

Abstract

Editor's note: Responses are invited to the following position paper about a hot topic in Biotranslation. The whole debate will be published in a forthcoming issue.

The position paper explores the onto-epistemological assumptions and rhetorical strategies used in ecological debates in the humanities in general and in translation studies in particular. It does so by referring to an example of dog behaviour that was discussed in an online meeting of the Eco-humanities Network. It cautions against anthropomorphism in ecological debates as well as against uncritical anti-science stances. By invoking Popper, the paper argues that ecology arguments should be falsifiable.