The anthropocene seeks to explore the phenomenon of the “human era” and how it has manifested in different ways. How does the presence of capitalism and class in Parable of the Sower and other novels present its role in the development of the perceived Anthropocene?

Updated research question: How does religion shape Nirmal’s perspectives and practices on the environmental crisis and the benefits it brings for the environmental crisis?

Sumati, Yadav. (PDF) The Hungry Tide: Climate Sustainability En Route from Ancient Texts to Modern Fiction to Humanity, www.researchgate.net/publication/321171688_THE_HUNGRY_TIDE_CLIMATE_SUSTAINABILITY_EN_ROUTE_FROM_ANCIENT_TEXTS_TO_MODERN_FICTION_TO_HUMANITY.  

The passage provided evidence for the positive influence of mythologies and religion on people’s ecological views. The passage provides an alternative perspective on environmental deterioration due to moral deterioration and religion plays a huge role. Hence, it provides evidence of religion’s benefit in the environmental crisis. 

Juxtaposing Myth and Reality: An Ecogothic Study of Amitav Ghosh’s The Hungry Tide

http://jbcollege.digitallibrary.co.in/bitstream/123456789/17/1/Layout%20Setting%20File.pdf#page=78 

The passage further explains how the myth instills fear in the residents of the Sundarbans as a survival technique. This adds to my thesis because survival techniques are required to live on the islands and to balance the human-nature relationship. 

Bora, Zélia, and S. Murali, editors. Narratives of Environmental Challenges in Brazil and India : Losing Nature. Lexington Books, 2019.

https://cuny-hc.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/01CUNY_HC/m880uq/alma9994445181906133 

The passage provides evidence that religion plays a large role in cultures around the globe and shares the relationship between humans and nature. Moreover, understanding the importance of religion could lead to possible solutions for the environmental crisis.   

Myth and Ecology: An Ecocritical Study of Amitav Ghosh’s The Hungry Tide

https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/106687846/17539.pdf-libre.pdf?1697547657=&response-content-disposition=inline%3B+filename%3DMyth_and_Ecology_An_Ecocritical_Study_of.pdf&Expires=1732917302&Signature=QK-IM0fxR6nW2GAq2IGIPt7TOUfhX4QOZME18SisihhT6MXLmp22jTP-SChdemfcLd9nHnCvYn6CsTPWdEh83qYC-4GgaRNP~TBsgWTQj8iN1zb3tJPGolo1RVngIuSixpPCEUWmaAwr4RzYO9nl8QMaR6c5Oem~WwxeYiwiGv7zoQjNmnzCw0RZj5-s2vKSurgZdCa2cNsynfn05HBL~gIZFfs6D83mEq2oFebV4lmeXAbmJbxNNUJUwiQq~HA~Z-CxPk4XQ-rMcs4uoQMvyAjYEDtBxPS77dGcalKolWIMeFNu01LpRe0BrtVx3w~4EfvXWLcfgTw58awoEDKYYQ__&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJLOHF5GGSLRBV4ZA 

The passage proved that myths could help connect people with their environment through Nirmal. Myths provide basic knowledge of understanding natural phenomena for people who could not acquire scientific knowledge. Hence, this knowledge protects humans from harming the environment and protects the environment and vice versa. 

Bonbibi Myth: Environmental Concerns in Amitav Ghosh’s Narrative

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Shahaji-Mastud/publication/357116612_Bonbibi_Myth_Environmental_Concerns_in_Amitav_Ghosh’s_Narrative/links/61c96420e669ee0f5c691831/Bonbibi-Myth-Environmental-Concerns-in-Amitav-Ghoshs-Narrative.pdf?origin=journalDetail&_tp=eyJwYWdlIjoiam91cm5hbERldGFpbCJ9 

This passage provided evidence that myth could be reinterpreted to express deeper truth and address current problems hence it could be beneficial towards environmental problems. It explains how the myth of Bonbibi led to the balance of land between human settlements and nature Furthermore, it also explains myths are important in restricting human desires and their actions of destroying the environment. 

TPS on Annotated Biblio:

What was difficult about the annotated bibliography stage? Was it challenging to “decode” the sources and figure out their main arguments efficiently? Were you able to see a “conversation” of sorts around the “primary text” (the novel by Butler/Ghosh/Offill) on the part of a handful of critics? Do you have a sense of what you want to say and how it relates to what “they say”

Questions on Kruger:

1. What was Kruger’s “research question” (or questions) when she started this research, do you imagine? What did she need to know in order to answer it? How would you describe her methodology? Who is she “in conversation” with in this piece?
2. What is Kruger’s central argument in this essay? Where do we find it, and what do you notice about how she guides readers through the structure of the essay?
3. We’ve talked a good bit about how “Englishy” methodologies put the text at the center and offer readings of the “text” rather than the “world.” But of course lit crit has things to say about the world as well (though the prism, so to speak, of the “text”!). How does Kruger use Offil’s novel and Levy’s memoir to point to aspects of “real life”? How does reading Weather help us understand aspects of the real world we inhabit?
4. By the end of the essay, how do you understand Offill’s novel differently, especially in its differences from Butler’s and Ghosh’s work? How does a focus on the temporality of “milling” and “maintenance” allow us to see what’s distinctive about Offill’s novel and how it relates to the norms that have made novels “tick” for almost 3 centuries?

Question:  I want to look into this piece of literature at a different angle that considers the underlying narrative that situates Lauren as an exemplary and influential person in society. The, Parable of the Sower, shows Lauren’s character development as an encapsulation of a morally benevolent person which can be understood through Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytic studies; what does it say about the Climate fiction literature motif paradigm to move people towards a direction of action?

Holt, Robert R. “Freud’s Impact on Modern Morality.” The Hastings Center Report, vol. 10, no. 2, 1980, pp. 38–45. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/3561279

Robert R. Holt argues that Freud’s impact on modern morality is profoundly revolutionary, influencing not only psychology but also how one thinks about ethical behavior, responsibility, and the formation of moral values. This is a lifeline to how my essay unpacks much of Lauren’s psyche and the Freudian evaluation of her actions and reactions in a climate fiction sense of literature.

Nilges, Mathias. “‘We Need the Stars’: Change, Community, and the Absent Father in Octavia Butler’s ‘Parable of the Sower’ and ‘Parable of the Talents.’” Callaloo, vol. 32, no. 4, 2009, pp. 1332–52. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/27743152. Accessed 19 Nov. 2024.

Mathias Nilges examines the themes of change, community, and the figure of the absent father in Octavia Butler’s two novels. The father figure is certainly related to Freud’s father complex which shows up as a theme for Lauren highlighting the necessity of abandoning outdated patriarchal systems to build a new and more inclusive society grounded in cooperation and adaptability. Her weaknesses and strengths build for a complex character that showcases a set of morals that aren’t any less labyrinth, nevertheless, that may be exemplary for times of crises.

Leavenworth, Maria  Lindgren. “Climate Fiction and Young Learners’ Thoughts—A Dialogue …” Researchgate | Find and Share Research, www.researchgate.net/publication/347401335_Climate_fiction_and_young_learners’_thoughts-a_dialogue_between_literature_and_education.

Maria Lindgren Leavenworth’s study focuses on the ways in which cli-fi, a genre of literature that imagines future scenarios shaped by climate change, can spark dialogue and reflection among young people. The article highlights the veracious educational value of utilizing cli-fi to help young learners develop a more effective understanding of the weight of climate-related issues, in terms of scientific knowledge and moral considerations. Leavenworth mentions the vitality of the genre in invoking empathy and encouraging engagement, showing how fiction can move beyond just educational use to beseech emotional and intellectual responses that can motivate future action.

Ghosh, Amitav. The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable. The University of Chicago Press, 2017.

Amitav Ghosh addresses the existential vicissitude in relation to the climate crisis. He unpacks the inadequacies of contemporary thought, inviting one to consider thinking beyond the reachable scope of problem solving, a collective approach. Through this lens, Asha Ummat symbolizes the vehement necessity for a new global consciousness that is capable of dealing with the magnitude of climate disruption. It may seem hippie to attempt an integrational relation to the world, but it may be exactly how Lauren was able to guide others in her religion to a place of survival and revival.

Haraway, Donna. “Anthropocene, Capitalocene, Plantationocene, Chthulucene: Making Kin.” Researchgate | Find and Share Research, www.researchgate.net/publication/304074136_Anthropocene_Capitalocene_Plantationocene_Chthulucene_Making_Kin.

Donna Haraway puts forth the cultivation of what she coins “kinship” as a way to go beyond human boundaries, advocating for a recognition of interdependence among all beings, human and non-human, in the face of ecological crises. The essay emphasizes the vitality of storytelling as an imaginative ground for solidarity in order to navigate and reimagine life in the future. This touches base with my take on cli-fi speaking for more than environmental issues, tackling the catalyzing phenomena that are creating the climate crisis in the first place. In order to achieve such revelation, a certain moral standing ground must be present in order to incorporate kinship in one’s life which Lauren does.