Ethnobiological equivocation and other misunderstandings in the interpretation of natures

FURLAN, VIOLETA; MEDRANO, CELESTE; ZAMUDIO, FERNANDO; JIMÉNEZ ESCOBAR, NÉSTOR DAVID

Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part C Studies in History and Philosophy of Biological and Biomedical Sciences

Elsevier Ltd.

Año: 2020

1369-8486

Ethnobiological equivocation and other misunderstandings in the interpretation of naturesAbstract: In this contribution we seek to enrich the theoretical and methodological approaches of ethnobiology. The essay takes elements of Amerindian anthropology, classical ethnobiological studies and the freedoms provided by feminist philosophers to open up reflection. The central background of the essay is the method of "controlled equivocation? proposed by Viveiros de Castro (2004). We present a series of five ethnobiological equivocations ranging from the subtle equivocal, to the categorical equivocal, to the strictly ontological ones. The cases occurred in different territories of Argentina, including a case in an academic context. Through the fieldwork cases, we give an account of the origin of equivocations, the context for their emergence, which are the disciplinary nuances that cause them and even some academics? preconceptions. To inhabit the equivocation allows opening the possibilities of coexistence among people ?and their respective worlds?, especially if these people are in different power positions. We propose the method of controlled equivocation as a theoretical-discursive tool, which permits us to rethink the current concepts of ethnobiology. Thus, we want to broaden the current definition of ethnobiology understood as a dialogue from different scientific points of view.