The Historical Evolution of “Clean” Bodies and Air in European Cultures: Implications for a “Clean” Atmosphere and Imagined Climate Futures

ABSTRACT Amid a sense of crisis, urgency, and political inaction pertaining to climate change, a narrative of “cleaning up” the global atmosphere is emerging in scientific, political, and public discourse. It conveys the need to stabilize the climate by achieving temperature targets and net‐zero carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions. The metaphor of “clean” is a central feature of this narrative, and it emphasizes technological interventions to reduce and remove CO 2 emissions from the atmosphere. Metaphors frame sustainability challenges (e.g., climate change), guide actions, and delineate possible futures. Through a historical reading of “clean” in relation to bodies and air in European cultures, the meaning of a “clean” atmosphere and how it provides order to contemporary societies is explored. Historically, the metaphor functioned in a relational sense—relationships were shaped by shared ideas of cleanliness, informed by religion, science, and, moral and civic considerations, generating practices and reflections on identity. Over time, “clean” came to be interpreted more often than not as a telos—a state of purity defined by science. Today, a “clean” atmosphere is similarly treated as a telos—a condition to be achieved to stabilize the climate, thus aligning economic growth and energy with emissions control and legitimizing human interventions, notably CO 2 removal. In a moment of perceived crisis and cultural plasticity, reclaiming a relational understanding of “clean” that foregrounds context, culture, and ethics, could be desirable. This relational framing could help redirect climate futures and foster more inclusive, socially sensitive, and just approaches to climate change. This article is categorized under: Climate, History, Society, Culture > Technological Aspects and Ideas