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L.M. Montgomery and the Matter of Nature(s) |
eBook Available
A critical study of L.M. Montgomery’s relationship to the material world and the revealing interconnections between nature and culture.
L.M. Montgomery’s writings are replete with enchanting yet subtle and fluid depictions of nature that convey her intense appreciation for the natural world. At a time of ecological crises, intensifying environmental anxiety, and burgeoning eco-critical perspectives, L.M. Montgomery and the Matter of Nature(s) repositions the Canadian author’s relationship to nature in terms of current environmental criticism across several disciplines, introducing a fresh approach to her life and work.
Drawing on a wide range of Montgomery’s novels as well as her journals, this collection suggests that socio-ecological relationships encompass ideas of reciprocity, affiliation, autonomy, and the capacity for transformation in both the human and more-than-human worlds, and that these ideas are integral to Montgomery’s vision and her literary legacy. Framed by the twin themes of materiality and interrelationships, essays by scholars of literature, law, animal studies, anthropology, and ecology examine place, embodiment, and difference in Montgomery’s works and embrace the multiplicities embedded in the concept of nature.
Through innovative critical approaches, L.M. Montgomery and the Matter of Nature(s) opens up conversations about humans’ interactions with nature and the material environment.
Drawing on a wide range of Montgomery’s novels as well as her journals, this collection suggests that socio-ecological relationships encompass ideas of reciprocity, affiliation, autonomy, and the capacity for transformation in both the human and more-than-human worlds, and that these ideas are integral to Montgomery’s vision and her literary legacy. Framed by the twin themes of materiality and interrelationships, essays by scholars of literature, law, animal studies, anthropology, and ecology examine place, embodiment, and difference in Montgomery’s works and embrace the multiplicities embedded in the concept of nature.
Through innovative critical approaches, L.M. Montgomery and the Matter of Nature(s) opens up conversations about humans’ interactions with nature and the material environment.
Details
314 Pages, 6 x 9
4 photos
ISBN 9780773552746
April 2018
Formats: Cloth, Paperback, eBook
“An emphasis on humanity’s interrelatedness with nature extends the significance of L.M. Montgomery and the Matter of Nature(s) past Montgomery studies and Canadian literary and cultural studies to engage with the larger issues of how humans’ interactions with nature shape our daily lives and the future of the planet.” Mary Jeanette Moran, Illinois State University
“This collection is significant for its ability to offer unexpected, highly convincing engagements with L. M. Montgomery’s work and disciplines far beyond the scope of traditional literary studies. It provides new perspectives on Montgomery’s oeuvre, while also extending the definition of environmental study and eco-critical analysis in this field.” Sarah Galletly, James Cook University
"The linked themes of understanding and empathy toward the natural world supply a bridge between the literary and the ecological, between the writer and the places she knew. Matter of Nature(s) is a wonderful opportunity to place one of Canada’s most prolific and well-known authors in a wider environmental history." American Review of Canadian Studies
“[L.M. Montgomery and the Matter of Nature(s)] successfully offers a broad spectrum of insights on the ways in which Montgomery’s fiction and nonfiction address the conceptof interconnectedness between the human and the nonhuman. Each chapter provides a concise and clear analysis that points readers to new perspectives, and the breadth of the collection overall highlights many new avenues of research that remain to be explored.” International Research for Children’s Literature
“This collection is significant for its ability to offer unexpected, highly convincing engagements with L. M. Montgomery’s work and disciplines far beyond the scope of traditional literary studies. It provides new perspectives on Montgomery’s oeuvre, while also extending the definition of environmental study and eco-critical analysis in this field.” Sarah Galletly, James Cook University
"The linked themes of understanding and empathy toward the natural world supply a bridge between the literary and the ecological, between the writer and the places she knew. Matter of Nature(s) is a wonderful opportunity to place one of Canada’s most prolific and well-known authors in a wider environmental history." American Review of Canadian Studies
“[L.M. Montgomery and the Matter of Nature(s)] successfully offers a broad spectrum of insights on the ways in which Montgomery’s fiction and nonfiction address the conceptof interconnectedness between the human and the nonhuman. Each chapter provides a concise and clear analysis that points readers to new perspectives, and the breadth of the collection overall highlights many new avenues of research that remain to be explored.” International Research for Children’s Literature
Rita Bode is professor of English literature at Trent University and co-editor of L.M. Montgomery’s Rainbow Valleys.
Jean Mitchell is associate professor of anthropology at the University of Prince Edward Island and co-editor of Anne around the World.
Jean Mitchell is associate professor of anthropology at the University of Prince Edward Island and co-editor of Anne around the World.
Illustrations / vii
Acknowledgments / ix
Permissions / xi
Introduction: L.M. Montgomery and the Matter of Nature(s) / 3
Rita Bode and Jean Mitchell
Part One: Nature’s Places
1 Fire, Fantasy, and Futurity: Queer Ecology Visits Silver Bush / 27
Catriona Sandilands
2 The Scotsman, the Scribe, and the Spyglass: Going Back with L.M. Montgomery to Prince Edward Island / 42
Jennifer H. Litster
3 Romantic Novelist as Naturalist: John Foster and the Bird Woman / 58
Nancy Holmes
4 L.M. Montgomery’s “Indoors and Out”: Imagining an Organic Architecture / 74
Rita Bode
Part Two: Nature’s Embodiments
5 Natural Bridge: L.M. Montgomery and the Architecture of Imaginative Landscapes / 89
Elizabeth Rollins Epperly
6 L.M. Montgomery’s Neurasthenia: Embodied Nature and the Matter of Nerves / 112
Jean Mitchell
7 The Education of Emily: Tempering a Force of Nature through Lessons in Law / 128
Kate Sutherland
8 The Spirit of Inquiry: Nature Study and the Sense of Wonder in L.M. Montgomery’s Anne Books / 141
Tara K. Parmiter
Part Three: Nature’s Otherness
9 “No London street Arabs for me”: The Unnatural Orphan in Anne of Green Gables / 157
Paul Keen
10 Kindred Spirits: Kinship and the Nature of Nature in Anne’s House of Dreams and The Blue Castle / 171
Laura M. Robinson
11 The Empathic Poetic Sensibility: Discerning and Embodying Nature’s Secrets / 184
Lesley D. Clement
12 The Nature of the Beast: Pets and People in L.M. Montgomery’s Fiction / 198
Idette Noomé
Notes / 213
Bibliography / 251
Contributors / 279
Index / 285
Acknowledgments / ix
Permissions / xi
Introduction: L.M. Montgomery and the Matter of Nature(s) / 3
Rita Bode and Jean Mitchell
Part One: Nature’s Places
1 Fire, Fantasy, and Futurity: Queer Ecology Visits Silver Bush / 27
Catriona Sandilands
2 The Scotsman, the Scribe, and the Spyglass: Going Back with L.M. Montgomery to Prince Edward Island / 42
Jennifer H. Litster
3 Romantic Novelist as Naturalist: John Foster and the Bird Woman / 58
Nancy Holmes
4 L.M. Montgomery’s “Indoors and Out”: Imagining an Organic Architecture / 74
Rita Bode
Part Two: Nature’s Embodiments
5 Natural Bridge: L.M. Montgomery and the Architecture of Imaginative Landscapes / 89
Elizabeth Rollins Epperly
6 L.M. Montgomery’s Neurasthenia: Embodied Nature and the Matter of Nerves / 112
Jean Mitchell
7 The Education of Emily: Tempering a Force of Nature through Lessons in Law / 128
Kate Sutherland
8 The Spirit of Inquiry: Nature Study and the Sense of Wonder in L.M. Montgomery’s Anne Books / 141
Tara K. Parmiter
Part Three: Nature’s Otherness
9 “No London street Arabs for me”: The Unnatural Orphan in Anne of Green Gables / 157
Paul Keen
10 Kindred Spirits: Kinship and the Nature of Nature in Anne’s House of Dreams and The Blue Castle / 171
Laura M. Robinson
11 The Empathic Poetic Sensibility: Discerning and Embodying Nature’s Secrets / 184
Lesley D. Clement
12 The Nature of the Beast: Pets and People in L.M. Montgomery’s Fiction / 198
Idette Noomé
Notes / 213
Bibliography / 251
Contributors / 279
Index / 285
Review by the Canadian Studies Network
Jean Mitchell interview with Karen Mair for CBC Mainstreet PEI
Jean Mitchell interview with Karen Mair for CBC Mainstreet PEI
Winner
Gabrielle Roy Prize
The Association for Canadian and Québec Literatures
2019
Gabrielle Roy Prize
The Association for Canadian and Québec Literatures
2019
