Nature and Dystopias: Revisited

In my previous post "Eco-Dystopias and Climate Fiction," I discussed the relationship between dystopias and the environment and how that reflects and adjusts the way we interact and talk about nature outside of the fiction. We're revisiting this topic, as many of my classmates addressed these ideas differently, and it is worth adding these ideas to the discussions. While I focused mostly on the sub-genre of eco-dystopian novels and climate fiction, my peers discussed the ideas of nature and the environment in much broader terms. Specifically, many of them presented their ideas through the New Materialism lens, focusing on the breakdown of the human-nature dichotomy.

A Change of Perspective

An ongoing theme from both mine and my classmates blogs, is the New Materialist emphasis on "nature" referring to not only the flora/fauna definition of nature, but to extend that meaning to include economic environment, political environment, and even man-made environments (Kamryn Schneider). Another aspect of New Materialism in regards to nature is the idea that it "has just as much agency as the human protagonists of the story" (Leah Eldred). The agency of nature can be seen in any novel where nature and humans interact. For example, in The Hunger Games, we see agency of both people and nature. The agency of the characters is self-explanatory, but the agency of nature can be seen by its ability to both provide and deny food, water and refuge; seen both in the forests near District 12, and the arena. The use of the arena, controlled by Gamemakers, sees the breakdown of this man-nature dichotomy. In the arena the two become impossible to tell apart, due to the combination of natural elements and the Gamemakers control over the arena. Another example of this breakdown in the novel is the creation of the mutts (Teniola Emmaneul).

Video of original concept art for the muttations in The Hunger Games film. Combining the dead tributes with animal concepts highlights the breakdown of this dichotomy.

The last point I want to draw from my classmates work, is that by not understanding the falsehood of this man-nature dichotomy, humankind "can disrespect those relationships to the point of their own destruction" (Lauren Barbee). This idea is reflected heavily in the majority of modern dystopian novels as climate change or natural disasters are common themes or a partial cause of the apocalypse seen in the novels. By looking at these novels through the New Materialism perspective, specifically focusing on breaking down the man-nature dichotomy, they act as a warning for what could happen if humans don't start to understand how connected we are to nature.

Revisiting My Ideas

In my previous blog post, one of the books I mentioned was New York 2140 (summary here). Throughout the novel, nature can be seen as almost a character as we learn the backstory of the climate and anthropologically influenced events, creating the new environment that this novel is set in. Additionally, this book provides commentary on the political and economic climate, taking inspiration from the 2008 economic crash. This book is a perfect example of the New Materialist perspective on nature and environment, as it allows the reader to understand the agency of the natural environment, the political and economical environments, as well as exploring the literal breakdown of the man-nature dichotomy, depicted by the ocean's gradual takeover of New York City.