An Interpretation Of The Sea Around Us From The Perspective Of Ecological Aesthetics

Rachel Carson (1907-1964), a significant American ecoliterature writer in the 20th century, has gained a world-wide reputation as the pioneer of environmental protection. Throughout her life, Carson was engaged in describing nature, especially the sea, and advocating the idea of environmental protection. The Sea Around Us is one of Carson’s masterpiece, which mainly describes the sea, including the formation of the sea, the birth of the islands, waves, tides and submarine volcanoes.The thesis intents to find the consciousness of ecological aesthetics embodied in Rachel Carson’s The Sea Around Us from the perspective of ecological aesthetics by closely reading the text. Ecological aesthetics is an important branch of ecocriticism and a new breakthrough on the research of ecoliterature. Ecological aesthetics emerged as a reaction to the over-emphasis on the appreciation of art in aesthetics, pursuing the investigation of the aesthetic appreciation of natural environments. There are three aesthetic standards in ecological aesthetic appreciation called the principle of nature, the principle of organic wholeness and the principle of interaction and integrity. The first principle advocates that the environments should be appreciated on its own terms and the scientific knowledge and history about the real natural environment is important. The second principle suggests removing human being’s anthropocentric attitudes and becoming aware of the whole ecosystem. The last principle holds the viewpoint that the appreciator and the appreciated should be engaged with each other rather than the dualistic point of view which treats them as separated and distanced.This thesis consists of three parts:the Introduction, the four chapters and the Conclusion, In the Introduction, a brief survey of Rachel Carson is made in terms of her life and works. The main ideas of the essay are briefly introduced and the reviews concerned are summarized. Besides, the intention and innovation of this thesis are touched upon. Chapter One is the theoretical foundation, a review of the ecological aesthetics. The following three chapters mainly focus on the principle of nature, the principle of organic wholeness and the principle of interaction and integrity as reflected by the aesthetic appreciation of the sea. The conclusion points out that The Sea Around Us embodies Rachel Carson’s consciousness of ecological aesthetics. Carson reveals that the sea should be appreciated as it is by the aid of scientific knowledge and its history; should be appreciated from the angle of ecological holism with the consideration of the whole benefit of the ecosystem; should be appreciated by the appreciators’wholly immersion in the sea.The research of this thesis has its theoretical and practical implications. The thesis introduces the aesthetic standards of ecological aesthetics and interprets The Sea Around Us from the angle of ecological aesthetics, providing a new horizon for the research of The Sea Around Us. Meanwhile, the thesis has some practical significance in terms of helping us to understand Carson’s work and her embodied consciousness of ecological aesthetics, which provides some suggestions on who to truly live harmoniously and engage with the sea.