Ecological Posthumanism and Environmental Ethics in Richard Powers’ The Overstory and Barbara Kingsolver’s Flight Behaviour

Abstract

The focus of this research paper is to investigate the environmental themes of ecological posthumanism alongside human-centred ideology in Richard Powers’ The Overstory and Barbara Kingsolver’s Flight Behaviour. Both works delineate stories that shift the focus away from humans and highlight the importance of non-human beings, such as trees and butterflies. These creatures significantly symbolize a greater understanding of nature. This research examines how characters shift from associating nature with selfish or practical motives to understanding how everything in Earth's ecosystems depends on one another. These changes pave the way for the moral values, where people become more aware of environmental issues through their experiences, knowledge, and feelings. The novels highlight how storytelling can help people understand and care about the environment. In the end, this research suggests that Human beings should think about nature in a way that recognises it as everything. It also emphasizes the urgent need for all to take an accountable responsibility in dealing with environmental issues.