Study Of Euro-American Ecocriticism

Ecocriticism is a kind of literary criticism, which probes into the relationship between literature and nature under the guidance of ecologism, especially Ecological Holism. It explores the ideological cultural roots leading to eco-crises through literary research as well as the eco- aesthetic experience and its expression in literary texts.Differing from many other genres of criticism in the 20^th century, ecocriticism did not arise from the literary research itself, but rather was spawned from various impending worldwide eco-crises. We are in a time of eco-disasters which threaten both nature and the very existence of human beings; literary criticism had to address the serious results of eco-crises and the worsening eco-reality. Ecocriticism was thus formed and developed quickly under the context of existing crises of human beings and the Earth. Ecocriticism represents the expression of man's urgent need and strong desire to prevent and lessen eco-disasters. Its appearance was driven by literary researchers having a strong sense of social and natural responsibilities toward saving man and the Earth.The essential mission of ecocriticism is to explore how the thoughts, cultures, science, production or living modes of human beings and social developing patterns have affected ecosystem, and how they even decide man's bad attitudes and abominable behaviors towards nature, leading to eco-crises. The goal of the ecological thinking, firstly, is to revolutionize the ideological culture, and then to give impetus to the revolution of the living modes, production modes, scientific research and the social developing patterns, and finally establish a new civilization and harmonious relationship between man and nature. Though cannot participate in the actual practice of the ecological management, ecocritics can seek out and eradicate the ideological cultural roots which cause the eco-crises, and thus make their contribution to society.Ecocriticism is constructed on the philosophical basis of the eco-theories of Rousseau, Darwin and Engels, "Heideggerian Ecophilosophy" as well as Ecological Holism of Leopold, Rolston, Lovelock and Deep Ecology, the theory of the eco-harmony, and the theory of ecological intersubjectivity.The ideological basis of ecocriticism is Ecological Holism. The central spirit of the ecological holism is: the benefit of the ecosystem is considered of highest value but not the benefit of human beings. The basic rule to judge everything is to see whether it is beneficial to maintain and protect the wholeness, the harmony, the stability and the sustainable existence of the ecosystem, which is thought to be the ultimate criterion to judge the human living patterns, the development of science, economic growth and social development.The natural principle, the holistic principle and the harmonious principle are the three main eco-aesthetic principles of ecocriticism.Ecocriticism studies not only ecoliterature, but also any literary pieces concerning the relationship between man and nature. Even the works which do not directly depict the natural scenery are subject to examination by ecocriticism. What ecocriticism wants to expound is not limited to the contemporary literary works. Ecocriticism wants to reread and reevaluate the literary classics of all times, especially the classics which greatly influenced human civilization and affected the vicissitude of the times, to expose the ecothoughts of the classics which were neglected before but exist in the literary works indeed, and to criticize the non-eco or even anti-eco thoughts and aesthetics from the perspective of ecocriticism. All these efforts are with one purpose, pushing forward the academic circles to reevaluate and reconstruct the literary developing history as a whole, and motivate people to construct the concepts of ecoliterature and eco-aesthetics.Ecocriticism does not refuse the approach to inspect literature from the standpoint of history and development, it does not pick faults of the literary pieces written by our predecessors according to the criterion of contemporary eco-theory, but its approach to "view literature historically" utilizes two methods: One, to discuss objectively whether the literary pieces are for or against ecology within the language circumstances, thus coming to understand the historic necessity that motivated the appearance of ecothought and anti-ecothought in the literary texts, and Two, to analyze and evaluate the historic position of a piece of literary works in the human anti-eco civilization history, inspecting where man went wrong in the development of human civilization, thus judging the historic function of a literary piece by a specific writer. Only in the completion of these tasks, can ecocriticism fulfill its purpose—to expose the ideological cultural roots of eco-crises and prompt people to be conscious of ecology, enhancing their sense of ecology, and propelling the revolution of human culture and construction of eco-civilization.Ecocriticism opens a new perspective and blazes a trail for literary criticism,aesthetics studies and literary theory, putting forward new topics and inputting a new driving force for their development. Ecocriticism advocates that literary studies should point to nature, to the Earth, to the eco-significance and to the eco-aesthetics, which will make up the inadequacies of the literary studies discipline which has been practiced for several thousand years, thus propelling literary criticism to develop systematically with balance. It will help to correct contemporary literary which is over-concerned with the form and analysis of literary texts, thus reversing the tendency of contemporay literary criticism which is getting more and more academic, obscure and unrealistic. On the whole, the biggest contribution ecocriticism can make to literary studies is bringing forth new concepts—the concept of eco-philosophy and the concept of eco-aesthetics and eco-literary arts, infusing literary criticism with its natural and social mission. From the social and natural function of literaure, if we admit that eco-crises is the most serious crises for contemporary and future human beings, thus ecocriticism is and will be the most important and most impending task for a long time to come.Ecocriticism has its limitations. It is only a branch and a dimension of literary criticism. It does not lessen the importance of literary research in other areas. It does not want to, and cannot replace other forms of literary criticism. Ecocriticism advocates the diversity in the whole eco-system, absolutely not the singularity and not the contradictory duality. It respects and understands the value of non-ecological literature, theories and criticism and limits strictly its range to the relationship between man and nature.