A Review of the Ecocritical Reading of Water Imagery in Postcolonial Novels

Zhuang+Shaoshuang

【Abstract】The paper provides a review of previous studies on water imagery in postcolonial novels， in order to look for the interjunction of postcolonialism and ecocriticism. This effort will be useful for reading the counter discourse by the colonized.

【Key words】water； postcolonial resistance； ecocriticism； nature/culture

1. Introduction

There lies a common ground， or universal aspects interculturally regarding the way nature and social issues are intertwined. For instance， many writers present an almost overwhelming use of water in their works， highlighting characters struggle with and thirst for it， with which one can always associates pond， swamp， lake， river or sea （Webb， 1988）. Nevertheless， reading water imagery from an ecocritical stance traversing a large range of fictions is scarcely seen in the academic agenda， hence the significance of the study.

2. Literature Review

Bhabha （1994） puts that the postcolonial refers to a disabling ambivalence which impedes one to form identity when his or her cultural background runs contradictory to the other. As Young （2003） adds， postcolonial theory “seeks to intervene， to force its alternative knowledge into the power structures of the west as well as the non-west” （p. 6-7）. Thus， within the U.S. postcolonial context where a myriad of cultures coexist， abundant literary or cultural texts may fall into this category： the American Indian， the African American， the Chinese American， just to name a few. Water imagery is easy to locate in such postcolonial works， because water not only comprises the basic element of human life， but also serves as a source for metaphorical representations （Ko ?vecses， 2005）. Whats more， as postmodernism or postcolonialism are impacted by the ecological turn， the water imagery， from the standpoint of ecocriticism， can ignite readers interest in the intersection between nature and social issues pertinent to race， class， gender and sexuality （Phillips， 2003）.

With respect to water imagery in particular， Cox （2000） investigates the narratives of water imagery in Thomas Kings fiction Green Grass， Running Water （1993）， managing to make sense the image through an ecocritical inquiry. For African American literatures， Wardi （2011） insightfully delves into the interaction of water， ancestral memory and African American historical experience in her book Water and African American Memory： An Ecocritical Perspective， manifesting her reading of water imagery in Langston Hughess poem “The Negro Speaks of Rivers” （1921）， August Wilsons play Gem of the Ocean （2006）， Ntozake Shanges novel Sassafras， Cypress， and Indigo （1982）， Julie Dashs film Daughters of the Dust （1991）， Toni Morrisons novel Beloved （1987） and Tar Baby （1981）. According to Wards finding， these works， albeit differing in style and genre， reveals an inextricable relationship between human worlds and the non-human， treating water as immensely culture-loaded that contributes to the never-ending dialogue of postcolonial resistance.

3. Conclusion

Ecocritics have drawn considerable attention to the interdependence between humans and non-human world in literary canons， but they have done less work on the portray of the natural in postcolonial fictions. Extensive scholarships relate postcolonial works to ecocritical perspective， in an attempt to explore how the colonized strives to live in the modern society and their reverence for nature. The water imagery， which few approaches in terms of its social and cultural implications， marks the intersection between post-colonialism and ecocriticism.

References：

[1]Bhabha，H.K.（1994）2004.The location of culture.London and New York：Routledge.

[2]Cox，J.H.（2000）.“All this water imagery must mean something”：Thomas Kings revisions of narratives of domination and conquest in Green grass，running water.American Indian Quarterly 22（4），219-247.

[3]Kov?ecses，Z.（2005）.Metaphors in culture：universality and variation.Cambridge：Cambridge University Press.

[4]Phillips，Dana.The Truth of Ecology：Nature，Culture，and Literature in America.New York：Oxford UP，2003.

[5]Wardi，A.J.（2011）.Water and African American Memory：An Ecocritical Perspective.Gainesville：The University Press of Florida.

[6]Webb，T.（1988）.The role of water imagery in Uncle Toms Children.MFS Modern Fiction Studies，34（1），5-16.

[7]Young，R.（2003）.Postcolonialism：A very short introduction.Oxford：Oxford University Press.