CMPL 312 - Deserts, Islands, Forests: Environmental Imaginaries from the Global South

FC ARHU CD

4 credits
This course examines representations of the environment in literature, art, and film from the global south. How does the art of indigenous, colonized, and marginalized peoples reflect their relationship to place? In what ways do their ideas challenge more dominant views of nature and the environment? And what can this work teach us about how to think about climate change and environmental degradation? Engaging with the deserts of North Africa, the islands of the Caribbean, and the forests of South Asia, we will explore diverse interpretations of the idea of “nature.” Topics under discussion will include plant-animal-human relations, coloniality and postcoloniality, myth, memory, and the politics of space and place.