POSTCOLONIAL CLI-FI: ADVOCACY AND THE NOVEL FORM IN THE ANTHROPOCENE by

216 Pages·2017·12.26 MB·English

by  Rachel Rochester

POSTCOLONIAL CLI-FI: ADVOCACY AND THE NOVEL FORM IN THE
ANTHROPOCENE

by

RACHEL HODGES ROCHESTER

A DISSERTATION

Presented to the Department of English
and the Graduate School of the University of Oregon
in partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy

June 2018
DISSERTATION APPROVAL PAGE

Student: Rachel Hodges Rochester

Title: Postcolonial Cli-Fi: Advocacy and the Novel Form in the Anthropocene

This dissertation has been accepted and approved in partial fulfillment of the
requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy degree in the Department of English by:

Sangita Gopal Chairperson
Stephanie LeMenager Core Member
David Vázquez Core Member
Kari Norgaard Institutional Representative

and

Sara D. Hodges Interim Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate School

Original approval signatures are on file with the University of Oregon Graduate School.

Degree awarded June 2018

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© 2018 Rachel Hodges Rochester
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs (United States) License.
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DISSERTATION ABSTRACT

Rachel Hodges Rochester

Doctor of Philosophy

Department of English

June 2018

Title: Postcolonial Cli-Fi: Advocacy and the Novel Form in the Anthropocene

Through the filters of postcolonial theory, environmental humanities, and digital
humanities, this project considers the capabilities and limitations of novels to galvanize
action in response to environmental crises. My findings suggest that novels are well
equipped to engage in environmental education, although some of the form’s conventions
must be disrupted to fully capitalize upon its strengths. The modern novel is
conventionally limited in scope, often resorts to apocalyptic narratives that can breed
hopelessness, is dedicated to a form of realism that belies the dramatic weather events
exacerbated by climate change, defers authority to a single voice, and is logocentric. By
supplementing conventional novels with a variety of paratexts, including digital tools,
scientific findings, non-fiction accounts of past, present, and future activism, and
authorial biography, it is my contention that the novel’s potency as a pedagogical tool
increases.
After addressing this project’s stakes and contexts in my Introduction, Chapter II
assesses three South Asian novels in English that are concerned with sustainable
development: Bhabani Bhattacharya’s Shadow from Ladakh, Bharati Mukherjee’s
Jasmine, and Aravind Adiga’s The White Tiger. I conclude by considering how
StoryMaps might further disrupt pro-sustainable development propaganda alongside
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more traditional novels. Chapter III examines how explicitly activist South Asian
novelists construct authorial personae that propose additional solutions to the
environmental problems identified in their novels, focusing on Amitav Ghosh’s The
Hungry Tide and Indra Sinha’s Animal’s People. Chapter IV coins the term “locus-
colonial novel,” a novel that decenters the human, situating place at the fulcrum of a
work of historical fiction, using Hari Kunzru’s Gods without Men as one exemplar. I
examine Kunzru’s novel alongside promotional materials for planned Mars missions to
consider how narratives of colonialism on Earth might lead to a more socially and
environmentally sustainable colonial model for Mars. Chapter V introduces the concept
of a digital locus-colonial novel that allows users to develop informed, environmentally
focused scenarios for colonial Mars. Through these chapters, this dissertation identifies
specific rhetorical techniques that allow conscientious novels to create imaginative spaces
where readers might explore solutions to the social, economic, and increasingly
environmental problems facing human populations worldwide.

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CURRICULUM VITAE

NAME OF AUTHOR: Rachel Hodges Rochester

GRADUATE AND UNDERGRADUATE SCHOOLS ATTENDED:

University of Oregon, Eugene, OR
Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ
Lesley University, Cambridge, MA

DEGREES AWARDED:

Doctor of Philosophy, English, 2018, University of Oregon
Master of Arts, English, 2011, Arizona State University
Bachelor of Science, Education, 2007, Lesley University

AREAS OF SPECIAL INTEREST:

Digital Humanities
Environmental Humanities and Ecocriticism
Environmental Justice
New Media Studies
Postcolonial Literature and Theory
Speculative Fiction
World Literatures

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:

Instructor, Composition and Literature, University of Oregon, 2013-2018

Assistant Director of Digital Humanities, University of Oregon, 2016-2017

GRANTS, AWARDS, AND HONORS:

Tuition Scholarship, Colonize Mars, Digital Humanities Summer Institute, 2017

Sherwood Research Award, University of Oregon, 2014

Sarah Harkness Kirby Award, “We’re Alive: The Resurrection of the Audio
Drama in the Anthropocene,” University of Oregon, 2014

English Graduate Student Travel Award, University of Oregon, 2013 & 2014
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Graduate Teaching Fellowship, University of Oregon, 2012-2018

PUBLICATIONS:

Rochester, Rachel. “Speculative Diasporas: Hari Kunzru’s Historical Consciousness, the
Rhetoric of Interplanetary Colonization, and the Locus-Colonial Novel.” New
Directions in Diaspora Studies: Cultural and Literary Approaches, edited by
Sarah Ilott, Ana Cristina Mendes, and Lucinda Newns, Rowman & Littlefield,
2018, pp. 55-68.

Rochester, Rachel. “We’re Alive: The Resurrection of the Audio Drama in the
Anthropocene.” Philological Quarterly, vol. 93, no. 3, 2014, pp. 361-381.

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I wish to express my appreciation for all of my committee members, Professors
Stephanie LeMenager, David Vázquez, and Kari Norgaard, for their assistance and
direction throughout the dissertation process. I am particularly thankful to my advisor,
Dr. Sangita Gopal, for her invaluable guidance during my time at the University of
Oregon. I would also like to thank Dr. Heidi Kaufman for initiating me into the world of
Digital Humanities, and Dr. Lara Bovilsky for her help in achieving work-life balance
and navigating academia. There are countless people to thank for their attention and
brilliance throughout my tenure at the University of Oregon, including all the members of
Mesa Verde, both current and former, and my dissertation writing group, Dr. Elizabeth
LeRud, Helen Huang, Paula Wright, and, informally, Dr. Emily Williams. Without your
input and friendship this project would not be what it is today. This project also owes a
debt of gratitude to Dr. Edward Mallot, who co-chaired my Masters Thesis and showed
me the importance of postcolonial theory. Finally, I am incredibly grateful for my
wonderful family: my partner, Jonathan Beckhart, and my parents, Larky and Kip
Hodges. Without your patience and support this would never have happened.

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This dissertation is dedicated to Clementine & Lucinda Beckhart. You motivate me to
imagine the world you deserve.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter Page

I. INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................... 1
II. THE CREST OF DEVELOPMENT’S “TERRIFIC WAVE”: PRO-
DEVELOPMENTAL RHETORIC AND THE MEANS OF RESISTANCE ............ 34

III. THE ACTIVIST AUTHOR: PARATEXTS AND THE NOVEL IN THE
ANTHROPOCENE .................................................................................................... 80

IV. SPECULATIVE DIASPORAS: HARI KUNZRU’S HISTORICAL
CONSCIOUSNESS, THE RHETORIC OF INTERPLANETARY
COLONIZATION, AND THE LOCUS-COLONIAL NOVEL ................................. 129

V. FINAL THOUGHTS: COLONIZE MARS AND THE LOCUS-COLONIAL
NOVEL IN THE DIGITAL AGE ............................................................................... 165

REFERENCES CITED ............................................................................................... 187
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