ECOCRITICAL INTERPRETATION OF ALICE WALKER’S POETRY AND ESSAYS
Journal Title: Наукові праці. Серія "Філологія. Літературознавство" - Year 2016, Vol 271, Issue 259
Abstract
The article addresses the poetry and essays of Alice Walker – a prominent African American writer, a poet and essayist, a feminist and womanist, an activist who fights against racism, classism, gender and economic injustice, and multiple forms of oppression. In the research we explore Alice Walker’s poetic and non-fiction narratives of the Earth oppression, stating that the writer focuses on the environmental issues and problems of the Earth liberation, and reflects on ethical imperative to struggle for the Earth’s survival. The study begins with the overview of ecocritical, ecological feminist theories, and the concepts of womanism. The main body of the article focuses on the interpretation of Walker’s poetry and essays through the lens of ecofeminism and womanism. In the article we argue that Alice Walker’s ideology is primarily ecowomanist. It’s important to note that a womanist thought focuses on theological and religious perspectives, encompassing biblical studies and ethics that emerged from Alice Walker’s definition of a womanist. Although both ecofeminism and ecowomanism express concerns about nature and environmental issues, Alice Walker’s perspective is distinguished by the belief in Nature’s spirituality and sacredness, by the idea of wholeness, and the vision of good community with the Nature as an integral part of it. As Walker expresses in her poetic writings and essays, men and women are supposed to be united in their fight for the sacredness of the Earth. Versatile images and motifs of nature – those of the garden, the tree, the flowers, the rose and rose petals, the mountains and water are analyzed in the article. In the essays, recognizing the Earth as a part of the community, Alice Walker underlines the interconnectedness and interdependence between the Earth/Nature and human beings. Through her poetry and essays the African American writer draws attention to the damage caused to the planet by the civilization of consumption and corporates, and voices the agenda of the environmental issues. The methodology of the research is based on ecocritical theories and the works of ecological feminists and womanists.
Authors and Affiliations
I. Yakovenko
Keywords
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