Ecofear in Mohan Koirala's Ambassadors of the Wetland
Date
2021-04-08
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
In Search of Fearlessness Research Intitute & The Fearology Institute
Abstract
People who are conscious of the impact of environmental degradation become fearful of its consequences. They deal with this issue in their creations. Such creative works including literature function to make the readers both aware of the possibility and fearful of the consequences. As a result, these ecoconscious people will be ready to work for the preservation of the environment. This bifurcated idea of ecofearism (generation of the fear of the impact of environmental degradation through consciousness, and the resultant readiness to preserve the ecology) can be seen in the epic Simasaarakaa Raajdut [Ambassadors of the Wetland] composed by a modernist Nepali poet Mohan Koirala. Written on the poet's deathbed and published posthumously, the epic deals with the fear of the protagonist about the destruction of the flora and fauna of the Nepalese plains. It depicts the fate and fear of the birds and bird conservers. The epic symbolically connects the fear of the poet and the protagonist with the increasing fear of ecoconscious human beings about the possible annihilation of human civilization if the depletion of ecological balance continues in the same extent as it is going on now. In this context, this article interprets the epic to throw light on the connection among growing human consciousness, fear, growing ecological imbalance and the poet's appeal for the preservation of nature. For this qualitative research, the ideas of ecofearism developed by Simon C. Estok, and R. Micheal Fisher and other growing ecofearists have been used as a theoretical perspective. The step-wise formula of ecofearist studies 'Life-Consciousness-Knowledge-Eco-Crisis-Eco-Fearism' has been referred to in the development of the paper.
Description
Keywords
annihilation, ecoconsciousness, ecology, fear, poetry
Citation
Timalsina, R. (2021). Ecofear in Mohan Koirala's Ambassadors of the Wetland. International Journal of Fear Studies, 3(1), 74-82