Unnatural Nature

Introduction

Climate change. Pollution. Toxic waste. When did nature get so unnatural? And what does "nature writing" have to do with any of this? As wilderness spaces shrink and environmentalism responds to contemporary issues, the environment of environmental writing remains an open question. Can it be human? Can it be urban? Can it be agricultural? Can it be imaginary?

These were the major questions explored in "Unnatural Nature: Literature and Ecology," a fall 2013 seminar in Duke’s English Department. Students read widely in environmental literature —fiction, nonfiction, philosophy, poetry, film—and researched significant works of environmental art in various media before crafting the creative final projects displayed in this exhibition.

Students: Jennifer Alspach, Andrew Bieber, ZaKerra Lance, Yuxuan Liu, Cole Lutz, Hannah Morris, Drew Sanguillen, David Shou, and Jennifer Zou

Instructor: Rebecca Evans

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