Which stories might we be telling now in the hope of forming part of a 'coherent and useful response' to environmental crisis?

Gabriel, S.H (2014) Which stories might we be telling now in the hope of forming part of a 'coherent and useful response' to environmental crisis? PhD thesis, Bath Spa University.

Abstract

This thesis seeks to address the question, 'which stories might we be telling now in the hope of forming part of a 'coherent and useful response' to environmental crisis?' In so doing, a novel, The Returning, is submitted. Set on Dartmoor, in the south-west of England, and in shifting time frames, characters variously seeking healing or retreat are depicted in the novel, and their relationship with landscape, each other and ecosystems is explored. Parallels are made between human and non-human experience, notably the hazards faced by Second World War escapee prisoners and migrating swallows on their journey north from Africa. The novel also makes use of fairytale to question the role of narrative in relation to environmental sustainability. Informing the narrative, and explored in the rationale, current ecological predicaments are reviewed and cited as an impulse behind the work. Environmental reports, including those by the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC 2007), the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB 2009, 2012, 2013), and the United Nation's (UN) Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (Sarukhan, J and Whyte, A Eds 2005) are drawn upon, as is my own awareness of the flora, fauna and ecosystem services of Dartmoor.

Item Type:	Thesis (PhD)
Divisions:	School of Writing, Publishing and the Humanities
Date Deposited:	20 Jan 2015 14:46
Last Modified:	07 Jan 2022 19:49
URI / Page ID:	https://researchspace.bathspa.ac.uk/id/eprint/5163

	Request a change to this item or report an issue
	Update item (repository staff only)