Narrating the Anthropocene: Eco-Criticism and the Literature of Environmental Crisis

Theoretical Perspectives on Nature and Agency in the 21st Century

Abstract

This article explores the emergence of the Anthropocene as a dominant theme in contemporary literary production. As global environmental crises accelerate, literature has shifted from traditional "nature writing" toward a more critical "eco-criticism" that interrogates human exceptionalism and the ethics of ecological collapse. Drawing on the theories of Timothy Morton and Donna Haraway, the research analyzes how contemporary novels and essays represent "hyperobjects"—phenomena like climate change that exceed human comprehension. The study argues that literature serves as an essential tool for reimagining our ontological relationship with the non-human world. This concluding article for the inaugural issue of the Journal of Literary & Cultural Studies (JLCS) emphasizes the urgent role of the humanities in addressing the global climate emergency.