The Modernist Anthropocene: Nonhuman Life and Planetary Change in James Joyce, Virginia Woolf and Djuna Barnes

The Modernist Anthropocene explores how modernist writers responded to rapid planetary change and emergent ideas about nonhuman life, environmental change, and the human species. It resituates key works of modernist fiction within the ecological moment of the early twentieth century, arguing that the period is pivotal in understanding the Anthropocene as a planetary epoch and critical concept.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 252 pages
Publication date: 14 February 2024
Publisher: Edinburgh University Press

The Modernist Anthropocene delves into the captivating ways in which modernist writers approached the rapidly evolving planetary conditions and the emerging perspectives on nonhuman life, environmental change, and the human species. By employing ecocritical analysis, posthumanist theory, archival research, and environmental history, this book reimagines the significance of key modernist fiction within the ecological context of the early twentieth century. This period witnessed the emergence of novel configurations of the interplay between human existence and the natural world, as these relationships traversed the domains of science, philosophy, and literary culture. The author argues that the early twentieth century holds a pivotal role in our understanding of the Anthropocene, both as a planetary epoch and as a critical concept. Through the lens of James Joyce, Djuna Barnes, and Virginia Woolf, the author showcases how these writers' oeuvres are intricately shaped by and actively respond to the ever-changing ideas about nonhuman existence, resonating with us even today.

The Modernist Anthropocene explores the innovative responses of modernist writers to the rapidly changing planetary conditions and emerging ideas about nonhuman life, environmental change, and the human species. By integrating ecocritical analysis, posthumanist theory, archival research, and environmental history, this book reinterprets the significance of key modernist fiction within the ecological context of the early twentieth century. During this period, novel configurations of the relationship between human existence and the natural world emerged, as these interactions traversed the domains of science, philosophy, and literary culture. The author contends that the early twentieth century holds a pivotal role in our understanding of the Anthropocene, both as a planetary epoch and as a critical concept. By examining the works of James Joyce, Djuna Barnes, and Virginia Woolf, the author demonstrates how these writers' oeuvres are intricately shaped by and actively respond to the evolving ideas about nonhuman existence, resonating with us even today.

Weight: 390g
Dimension: 156 x 235 x 17 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781474481977