Global Journal of Human-Social Science, A: Arts and Humanities, Volume 22 Issue 4

Volume XXII Issue IV Version I 64 ( ) Global Journal of Human Social Science - Year 2022 © 2022 Global Journals A An Ecocritical Reading of Syed Manzoorul Islam’s Shakuner Dana imminent dangers. Most importantly, there are some brave women at the forefront of the movement, and it highlights constructive female power. Speaking from an ecofeminist perspective, this is a glaring example of how the caring and compassionate attitude of women to nature and the environment enables them to mobilize their power against environmental degradation, manufactured or otherwise. g) Text as an Ecocritical Tool Lawrence Buell et al. maintained in a paper titled “Literature and Environment” that ecocriticism has at its core the assumption ‘that the arts of the imagination and the study thereof—by virtue of their grasp of the power of the word, story and image to reinforce, enliven, and direct environmental concern— can contribute significantly to the understanding of environmental problems: the multiple forms of ecodegradation that afflict planet Earth today (418).’ In other words, texts can act as an effective tool to bolster ecocritical analysis and environmental consciousness. The multiple blog posts, email postings, and visuals Orin has used work as influential texts to mobilize public opinion against the anti-environmental undertaking. These texts have also helped create a broader public discourse in online forum discussions, informal chats and exchanges, talk shows, TV interviews, media reports and coverage, all focusing on the environmental concerns of the CMB project. Orin's texts, therefore, have played a pivotal role in accelerating public awareness about ecological issues and environmental problems. Besides, Shakuner Dana as a fictional text has initiated an environmental discourse, which is not prominent in mainstream Bangladeshi literature. Based on certain actual environmental movements held in Bangladesh, this novel aims to boost environmental consciousness in the academic and cultural spheres of Bangladesh. The novel has also shown the creative potentials of ecological issues as materials for fiction. As a consequence, other creative writers may feel encouraged to incorporate the ecological concerns into their writing and create a literary tradition involving the environment, nature, ecological equilibrium, climate change, and other relevant and pressing issues. The novel Shakuner Dana and Orin's social media posts are potent examples of the capacity of the text to advance ecocritical discourses. IV. C onclusion Shakuner Dana (2013) by Syed Manzoorul Islam builds a compelling narrative around an environmental movement. This novel highlights the creative capacity of fiction as a force to mainstream an ecological discourse in the literary and intellectual arenas of Bangladesh. The paper has presented diverse aspects of environmental concerns informing and nourishing the plot of the novel from a variety of ecocritical perspectives. It also examines how the logic of exploitation and domination underlying different ideologies, such as capitalism and patriarchy, are intertwined in their joint offensive against nature and the environment. It also valorizes female power for its capacity to add impetus to environmental activism in preserving and conserving nature and the environment. It appreciates the power of (eco-)fiction in championing environmental movements and harnessing an eco-discourse, which is crucial for a climate- vulnerable country like Bangladesh. Overall, this paper highlights the centrality of ecological concerns underpinning the narrative construction of Shakuner Dana , a not-so-frequent event in the mainstream Bangla language literature produced by Bangladeshi authors. W orks C ited 1. Alam, Fakrul. “Doing Environmental Criticism from Where We Are.” Spectrum , vol. 14 and 15, 2018-19, pp. 97. 2. Boslaugh, Sarah E.. "anthropocentrism". Encyclopedia Britannica , 11 Jan. 2016, https://www. britannica.com/topic/anthropocentrism. Accessed 22 April 2022. 3. Buell, Lawrence. “Ecocriticism: Some Emerging Trends.” Qui Parle , vol. 19, no. 2 (Spring/Summer), 2011, pp. 87-115. 4. Buell, Lawrence et al. “Literature and the Environment.” The Annual Review of Environment and Resources . vol. 36, 2011, pp. 417-440. 5. Buell, Lawrence. “Space, Place, and Imagination.” The Future of Environmental Criticism: Environmental Crisis and Literary Imagination. Blackwell Publishing, 2005. 6. Clark, Timothy. “Environmental justice and the move ‘beyond nature writing’.” The Cambridge Introduction to Literature and the Environment. Cambridge University Press, 2011, pp. 87-95. 7. Gaard, Greta and Patrick D. Murphy. “Introduction,” Ecofeminist Literary Criticism: Theory, Interpretation, Pedagogy, edited by Greta Gaard and Patrick D. Murphy, University of Illinois Press, 1998, pp. 1-13. 8. Garrard, Greg. “Beginnings: Pollution.” Ecocriticism . 2nd ed., Routledge, 2012, pp. 1-17. 9. Glotfelty, Cheryll. “Introduction.” The Ecocriticism Reader: Landmarks in Literary Ecology , edited by Cheryll Glotfelty and Harold Fromm, The University of Georgia Press, 1996, pp. xv-xxxvii. 10. Green, Imelda. “The Vulture Spirit Animal.” Trusted Psychic Mediums , https://trustedpsychicmediums. com/spirit-animals/vulture-spirit-animal/. Accessed April 24 2022. 11. Hutchings, Kevin. “Ecocriticism in British Romantic Studies.” Literature Compass, vol. 4, no. 1, 2007, pp. 172-202, 10.1111/j.1741-4113.2006.00417.x. Accessed 24 April 2022.