Eco-criticism in The Life &Times of Michael K

Contemporary concern with the environmental crisis, and how humans and the natural environment interact is fundamental to ecocriticism, a relatively new branch of literary theory. In this article, I will analyze this novel by South African writers who reflect on themes of ecology and environmentalism. In specific, I will examine how their characters relate to land. I will show what the writers’ views are on what it means to be green in South Africa. To be more specific, the novels analyzed offer insight into and perhaps solutions to the contemporary complex discourse of practicing environmental justice in South Africa. The writer addresses nature, or Eco-critical concerns, and introduce many readers to postcolonial ecological thinking. The main question, therefore, which this article seeks to answer will therefore: In The Life &Times of Michael K, what views do this author present in regard of the eco-critical debate of what one conserves and who pays for it.

Keywords:

Eco-criticism , Life &Times of Michael K , Human and the natural environment