Posthumanist Perspectives on Literary and Cultural Animals

This book explores Posthumanist readings of animal-centric literary and cultural texts, challenging humanism's precepts and premises by considering the animal presence in texts from varied interdisciplinary perspectives. It emphasizes the importance of close reading practices in rethinking the hierarchical order of beings and problematizing the separation of humans from other animals. The book offers fresh perspectives on Posthumanist theory and constitutes a valuable scholarly resource on the politics of representation of animals in literature and culture.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 188 pages
Publication date: 13 September 2022
Publisher: Springer Nature Switzerland AG

This book delves into Posthumanist interpretations of animal-centric literary and cultural texts, challenging the principles and foundations of humanism by examining the profound presence of animals within these texts. The collection of essays presented here primarily focuses on literary and cultural works from diverse theoretical backgrounds, enriched by critical approaches such as Critical Animal Studies and Posthumanism. Contributors carefully select texts that transcend geographical and temporal boundaries, showcasing how close readings unveil new ways of thinking about animals. By incorporating the "animal turn" into the realm of literary and cultural studies, this book prompts us to question the artificial divide between humans and other animals and reevaluate the hierarchical order of beings through a meticulous examination of select texts. It presents fresh perspectives on Posthumanist theory, encouraging readers to revisit the criteria that have established species differences throughout the early stages of human civilization. This book serves as a comprehensive and scholarly resource on the politics of animal representation in literature and culture. The essays included in this volume are empirically grounded and theoretically informed, exploring a wide array of dynamic, captivating, and profoundly relevant topics. Comprising over 15 chapters authored by a team of international contributors, this book is organized into four sections: Contestation over Species Hierarchy and Categorization, Animal (Re)constructions, Interspecies Relationalities, and Intersectionality- Animal and Gender. This book will be of utmost importance to students and scholars engaged in Critical Animal Studies and Environmental Studies.

Weight: 320g
Dimension: 235 x 155 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9783030761615
Edition number: 1st ed. 2021