This week’s lecture brought up some especially important things to consider regarding the anthropocene. It was interesting to think about how humans frequently consider themselves the center of cosmic drama when, in fact, we are not. It is this belief that defines anthropocentrism. I found this particularly interesting to consider, as we, as humans, are the ones that have coined the very term “anthropocene.” Such a belief, that we now live in an epoch that completely revolves around humans, lends evidence to the thought that “humans are at the center of the universe” (cosmic) as well as that “human interests outweigh all others” (axiological). In the lecture it was noted that we have not yet left the holocene. And thus, we have certainly not entered the self-proclaimed anthropocene — it is not an epoch where the world functions based on human needs and desires. We have given labels to other epochs in history because of what was exceedingly important in those time periods. So, as humans label this time period the anthropocene, it definitely seems that we consider ourselves dominant. Such is the logic of dominion — that humans are dominant over nature (and essentially everything in the world). Yes this logic is ironically countered by the human embeddedness in nature. As was said in the lecture, “man’s place in nature…is at the present summit of the evolutionary process on this planet; and his role is to conduct that process to still further heights.” With evolution the most fundamental natural process, our role in that process further shows how embedded we really are in the natural world. And while we may differ from other species because we have culture, this does not mean we are superior — merely different. Ultimately, I found that the lecture brought up important points about the concept of the anthropocene. Not only is it crucial to know the meaning of the term anthropocene, but it is also necessary to think about what it truly means for us to declare this time period the anthropocene — to proclaim that we now live in a time that is all about us can have much greater implications than we may have initially imagined.