Ecological Consciousness in Award-Winning Young Literature, B.E. 2017 - 2023

Abstract

This research aims to study the representation of ecological consciousness in award-winning youth literature from 2017–2023 (B.E. 2560–2566) by applying Cheryll Glotfelty’s ecocritical concept to analyze ecological consciousness in eleven literary works: Rabbit in the Moon, The Dry Marsh, The World of the Red Ant and the Cucumber (Yes!), The Tree Boy, The Golden Seahorse, The World of the Red Ant and the Cucumber (Yes!): The Secret Beneath the Sand, Mamud’s World, The Little Guardian of Libong Island, Old Saen, Coco and the Missing Phoenix, and The Marvelous Flora (Wang Sa Pathum 3). The analysis examines narrative elements, plot development, characters, setting, dialogue, and language use. The findings reveal two paradigms of ecological consciousness. (1) Anthropocentrism, which has two characteristics. 1.1) Humans as masters of nature, presenting that humans exercise power to manage surrounding resources, resulting in nature being positioned as the acted-upon; and 1.2) Humans as caretakers of nature, presenting environmental crises and human awareness of solutions, while at the same time emphasizing human survival and human benefits as primary. (2) Ecocentrism, which also has two characteristics. 2.1) Reverence for nature, emphasizing the spiritual value of nature, dependence on nature, and the transmission of ecological knowledge to create shared awareness; and 2.2) Equal conservation of nature, presented through environmental conservation projects or activities arising from problems of threats to nature and the oppression of animals. Award-winning youth literature from 2017–2023 therefore functions as a social space for negotiation in critiquing human domination over nature, while emphasizing awareness of the value of all beings in the world that mutually support one another. The ecological consciousness presented in these literary works addresses environmental crises and human solutions and emphasizes awareness of the impacts caused by human actions by encouraging a return to respect for local wisdom through reverence for nature and recognition of the importance of nature conservation.