Poeticizing Ecology/Ecologizing Poetry: Reading Elizabeth Bishop’s “Poem” Ecologically

In “Poeticizing Ecology/Ecologizing Poetry: Reading Elizabeth Bishop’s ‘Poem’ Ecologically,” we argue that ecological poetry is a kind of ecopoetry that undergirds “nature poetry” and environmental/activist poetry. Ecological poetry is also best put into conversation with deconstruction. This argument, informed by Timothy Morton’s claim that “deconstruction and ecology should talk to one another,” entails challenging previous arguments about what counts as ecopoetry but also the status of the lyric in general. We synthesize James Longenbach’s position in The Resistance of Poetry with Nick Selby’s argument in “Ecopoetries in America” to examine the relationship between close reading and reading ecologically. Rather than an ethical stance perceived in the content of the poem, to read ecologically requires attention to form and linguistic indeterminacy, not only because deconstruction and ecology are alike, but also because poetry is comprised of language, the usage of which “revels in duplicity and disjunction.” Deconstruction is the best approach to divergent perspectives on nature, or the way a poem offers, in Nick Selby’s view, not a clear purchase or single overarching view, but “a struggle to get nature right.” We contend that to give space to alterity, to allow the otherness not only of nature but also of language itself in its capacity for referentiality is to expand the “marked” space of ecology (in the terms set forth by G. Spencer Brown’s Laws of Form). We support this claim with a reading of Bishop’s “Poem,” which we acknowledge as an atypical choice for what constitutes ecological poetry. A borderline ekphrastic poem, “Poem” allows us to talk not only about the space inherent in nature and language but between text and image, or poem and painting. What we find in our reading of Bishop’s “Poem” is a contingency between the poem and the painting, rather than a classical attempt of one to overpower the other, to speak for the other as the more authoritative sign. We find the uncanny or strange quality of Bishop’s ekphrastic approach to an amateurish painting that she calls “sketch” a way to further substantiate Morton’s claim about the relevance of deconstruction to ecology. Through our reading of the poem we argue that no entity completely coincides with itself because ecological thinking has helped us to see how every entity is shot-through with traces of the other; we ourselves are made up of other lifeforms; life is made up of nonlife. To think ecologically is to think the other within the self (especially including all the nonhuman others), within any entity whatsoever.

REPRESENTASI MANUSIA DAN ALAM DALAM PUISI AKU, HUTAN JATI, DAN INDONESIA KARYA YACINTA KURNIASIH [Human and Nature Representation in “Aku, Hutan Jati, and Indonesia” by Yacinta Kurniasih]

Environmental issues are important to talk about. Talking about the environment is talking about human, because it sustains of human life. If the environment damaged, human life will be disturbed and being extinct. Many things can be done to reduce the damage that occurs in the environment. One of them is changing the humans view through the literary works. Aku, Hutan Jati, dan Indoensia is an example of green literature tries to reflect the love of the environment and show the problems in it. The poetry is important to review because literary work with ecocriticism is limited. This study was a part of literary utilization and real step for ecological crises solving through the formation of human ecological morals and ethics. The poem was reviewed by the theory of literary ecology. The research method used hermeneutic. The results show that Aku, Hutan Jati, dan Indonesiawas a reflection of human caring for the environment, especially teak forests with ecology’s words highlighted by the love of the environment and expressed anxiety in responding to the environmental damage was the logging of teak forests. Ecological poetry is expected to provide awareness and enlightenment that can make people aware of the importance of preserving nature and the environment.Permasalahan lingkungan menjadi hal yang penting untuk dibicarakan. Jika berbicara tentang lingkungan berarti berbicara tentang manusia karena lingkungan yang menopang kehidupan manusia. Jika lingkungan rusak, maka kehidupan manusia akan terganggu bahkan dapat menyebabkan kepunahan umat manusia. Banyak hal yang dapat dilakukan untuk membantu mengurangi kerusakan yang terjadi pada lingkungan. Salah satunya adalah mengubah pandangan kepada manusia melalui karya sastra. Puisi Aku, Hutan Jati, dan Indonesia adalah satu contoh sastra hijau yang merefleksikan kecintaan terhadap lingkungan dan memperlihatkan berbagai persoalan di dalamnya. Puisi ini penting dikaji mengingat terbatasnya kajian dan karya sastra berperspektif ekologi. Kajian ini sebagai bentuk pemanfaatan karya sastra dan langka untuk penanganan krisis ekologi melalui pembentukan moral dan mengubah pola pikir manusia. Puisi tersebut ditelaah dengan memanfaatkan teori ekologi sastra. Metode penelitian yang digunakan adalah metode hermeneutika. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa puisi Aku, Hutan Jati, dan Indonesia adalah refleksi kecintaan manusia terhadap lingkungan khususnya hutan jati dengan menonjolkan diksi ekologi yang berlandaskan rasa cinta terhadap lingkungan dan mengungkapkan kegelisahan dalam menyikapi adanya kerusakan lingkungan yaitu penebangan hutan jati. Puisi-puisi bernuansa ekologi diharapkan dapat memberikan penyadaran dan pencerahan yang dapat menyadarkan manusia akan pentingnya menjaga dan melestarikan alam dan lingkungan.