The Ecologically Noble Savage or the Pursuit of an Ecological Identity in Luis Sepúlveda’s Environmental Novels
Subject Area
Spanish American Studies
Abstract
The main aim of this paper is to analyze the image of the indigenous people presented in Chilean writer Luis Sepúlveda’s three novels Un viejo que leía novelas de amor, Mundo del fin del mundo, and Yakaré, inquiring how the concept of the “ecologically noble savage” is reflected in these texts. Conservation biologist Kent H. Redford first introduced the concept of “ecologically noble savage,” and, according to Ter Ellingson, in this version of the myth of the noble savage the indigenous communities are perceived as human communities that can establish a truly harmonious relationship with the natural environment. This is due to their knowledge of the environment, which has allowed them to develop better methods to work and relate to the land than those used by non-indigenous communities. In Sepúlveda’s novels, this version of the noble savage is reproduced to propose an ecological identity that allows the human being to understand nature from an ecocentric perspective rather than an anthropocentric one.
Brief Bio Note
Claudia M. Páez-Lotero is a PhD student in the Spanish and Portuguese Program at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Her field of specialization is in 20th-century Latin American literature, and her research interests include the ecological and environmental novel, fantasy literature, and the representation of space and place in literature.
Keywords
Luis Sepúlveda, environmental novel, ecologically noble savage, ecological identity
Location
Room 212
Presentation Year
2018
Start Date
4-5-2018 2:15 PM
Embargo
11-26-2017
Recommended Citation
Páez-Lotero, Claudia M., "The Ecologically Noble Savage or the Pursuit of an Ecological Identity in Luis Sepúlveda’s Environmental Novels" (2018). South East Coastal Conference on Languages & Literatures (SECCLL). 19.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/seccll/2018/2018/19
The Ecologically Noble Savage or the Pursuit of an Ecological Identity in Luis Sepúlveda’s Environmental Novels
Room 212
The main aim of this paper is to analyze the image of the indigenous people presented in Chilean writer Luis Sepúlveda’s three novels Un viejo que leía novelas de amor, Mundo del fin del mundo, and Yakaré, inquiring how the concept of the “ecologically noble savage” is reflected in these texts. Conservation biologist Kent H. Redford first introduced the concept of “ecologically noble savage,” and, according to Ter Ellingson, in this version of the myth of the noble savage the indigenous communities are perceived as human communities that can establish a truly harmonious relationship with the natural environment. This is due to their knowledge of the environment, which has allowed them to develop better methods to work and relate to the land than those used by non-indigenous communities. In Sepúlveda’s novels, this version of the noble savage is reproduced to propose an ecological identity that allows the human being to understand nature from an ecocentric perspective rather than an anthropocentric one.
