Ecofeminist science fiction international perspectives on gender, ecology, and literature / edited by Douglas A. Vakoch.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Vakoch, Douglas A., editor.

Series:

Routledge Studies in World Literatures and the Environment

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Ecocriticism.

Ecofeminism.

Science fiction--21st century--History and criticism.

Science fiction.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (280 pages)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

London : Routledge, 2021.

Summary:

Ecofeminist Science Fiction: International Perspectives on Gender, Ecology, and Literature provides guidance in navigating some of the most pressing dangers we face today. Science fiction helps us face problems that threaten the very existence of humankind by giving us the emotional distance to see our current situation from afar, separated in our imaginations through time, space, or circumstance. Extrapolating from contemporary science, science fiction allows a critique of modern society, imagining more life-affirming alternatives. In this collection, ecocritics from five continents scrutinize science fiction for insights into the fundamental changes we need to make to survive and thrive as a species. Contributors examine ecofeminist themes in films, such as Avatar, Star Wars, and The Stepford Wives, as well as television series including Doctor Who and Westworld. Other scholars explore an internationally diverse group of both canonical and lesser-known science fiction writers including Oreet Ashery, Iraj Fazel Bakhsheshi, Liu Cixin, Louise Erdrich, Hanns Heinz Ewers, Larissa Lai, Ursula K. Le Guin, Chen Qiufan, Mary Doria Russell, Larissa Sansour, Karen Traviss, and Jeanette Winterson. Ecofeminist Science Fiction explores the origins of human-caused environmental change in the twin oppressions of women and of nature, driven by patriarchal power and ideologies. Female embodiment is examined through diverse natural and artificial forms, and queer ecologies challenge heteronormativity. The links between war and environmental destruction are analyzed, and the capitalist motivations and means for exploiting nature are critiqued through postcolonial perspectives.

Contents:

Intro

Cover

Endorsements

Half-Title

Series

Title

Copyright

Dedication

Contents

List of contributors

Preface

Acknowledgments

Introduction

PART 1 Female BodiesPlants and Animals, Cyborgs and Robots

1 "Mothered by the Arid Sand": Hanns Heinz Ewers' Alraune with an Ecofeminist Twist

2 The Runa and Female Otherness in Mary Doria Russell's The Sparrow

3 Reproduction, Utilitarianism, and Speciesism in Sleep Dealer and Westworld

4 The Living Spaces of Robots: An Ecofeminist Reading of The Stepford Wives

PART 2 Queer Ecologies

5 Anthropocentric and Androcentric Ideologies in Jeanette Winterson's The Stone Gods: An Ecofeminist Reading

6 Speculative Sex: Queering Aqueous Natures and Biotechnological Futures in Larissa Lai's Salt Fish Girl

7 Queering Doctor Who and Supernatural: An Ecofeminist Response to Bill Potts and Charlie Bradbury

PART 3 War and Ecoterrorism

8 No Easy Answers in Karen Traviss's The Wess'har Wars Series

9 "The Force Is Strong with This One": A Material Feminist Approach to Star Wars

10 Chinese Science Fiction and Representations of Ecofeminists: Mad Women or Women Warriors

PART 4 Capitalism and Colonization

11 Hegemonic Masculinity and Tropes of Domination: An Ecofeminist Analysis of James Cameron's 2009 Film Avatar

12 Eco-Heroines and Saviors in Iraj Fazel Bakhsheshi's Men and Supertowers and The Sun's Sons

13 Rethinking Resistance: An Ecofeminist Approach to Anti-Colonialism in Louise Erdrich's Future Home of the Living God, and Oreet Ashery and Larissa Sansour's The Novel of Nonel and Vovel

14 The Road to Sinshan: Ecophilia in Ursula K. Le Guin's Early Hainish Novels

Index.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

1-00-315304-6

1-003-15304-6

1-000-37632-X

1-000-37636-2

9781003153047

OCLC:

1243555180