Coming to Terms with Toxicity: Elements of a ‘Philosophical Toxicology’

In this article, I outline elements of a ‘philosophical toxicology’, as recently proposed by Jens Soentgen. At that, I understand philosophy as a contemplation of orientation in the world. As there is a growing sentiment that we live in a ‘toxic age’, a philosophical toxicology aims at fostering orientation in a world marked by chemical pollution. I suggest nine points where philosophical approaches can contribute to the clarification of questions posed by modern toxicity phenomena. I then focus on one of them, namely the conceptual analysis of the terms poison and toxicity. I propose Wittgenstein’s family resemblance framework as a means to represent the growing diversity of toxicity phenomena. I describe the problem of arbitrariness connected to it and ask what gives the term toxicity its contour. I answer this by positing four focal points of meaning for the concepts of poison and toxicity, before ending with a phenomenological account of the poisoned body.