Article Details
  • Published Online:
    June  2024
  • Product Name:
    The IUP Journal of English Studies
  • Product Type:
    Article
  • Product Code:
    IJES080624
  • Author Name:
    Mridul Sharma, Sheetal Devi and Vandana Sharma
  • Availability:
    YES
  • Subject/Domain:
    Arts and Humanities
  • Download Format:
    PDF
  • Pages:
    12
Environmental Uncanny: Eco-Cosmopolitanism and Advaita in Amitav Ghosh’s The Great Derangement and Gun Island
Abstract

The environmental uncanny, as Amitav Ghosh proclaims in The Great Derangement, is the statistically improbable weather phenomena observed across the globe. The recent unprecedented increase in the occurrence of such events presents an onto-epistemological challenge to the global capitalist superstructure. Taking a cue from this, the paper investigates Ghosh’s two powerful works, Gun Island and The Great Derangement, within the theoretical paradigm of eco-cosmopolitanism and the onto-epistemological system of Advaita. By synthesizing elements of eco-cosmopolitanism—an evolving paradigm that posits a global, interconnected approach to environmental concerns—and the ancient non-dualist philosophical system of Advaita, this paper seeks to unravel layers of ecological consciousness, resilience, and transformative potential of religious faiths and indigenous knowledge traditions inherent in Ghosh’s literary tapestry.

Introduction

The global environmental crisis has been the defining issue for countries across the globe for the better part of the last century. Nations have pooled resources, academic and financial, to understand and address the recent unpredictable weather phenomena. Scientific research has long ascertained that unsustainable human activities in one part of the globe directly affect climate patterns in the other, blurring traditional boundaries between nations, cultures, and civilizations.