“In response to the industrial revolution of the late 18th century” (Scheese 6) a new field of literary studies has been established. Derived from former pastoralism, authors now engage into what is called ‘nature writing’. Addressing the concerns of life in the country, attention is directed to the different forms of nature as well. One of these nature writers can be found in Mary Hunter Austin, an American writer who expresses her “affinity for nature, and more particularly the desert” (Scheese 76) by describing the landscape of the Mojave Desert in Southern California the way she perceived it during her walks through it.
Austin successfully creates a whole new picture of it in her work "The Land of Little Rain". Through her celebration of a land often perceived as sterile and uninteresting, Austin helped create in America what had not existed before the turn of the century: a desert aesthetic.
What Scheese here calls “a desert aesthetic” (Scheese 75) describes the establishment of a literary discourse exclusively centered around literature about the desert. Desert literature itself offers numerous possibilities for writers at the beginning of the twentieth century, especially for female writers as it “inspired cultural fantasies and enabled real and imagined experiences of solitude, comntemplative repose, divine revelation” (Gersdorf 16). As a consequence, the stories of female writers can be understood as symbolic since the action is moved from a former domestic space to the public sphere in form of the desert. This also conforms to the character of the concept of ‘New Womanhood’ which signifies a newly gained freedom for women at the end of the nineteenth century as their determination of staying within the domestic sphere was finally abandoned.
To prove this statement, the following essay initially gives a short overview of the literary study of nature writing and its more recent descendant, namely ‘desert literature’. Moreover, the second part of the essay will show how Mary Hunter Austin succeeds in transferring her appreciation of the desert into
her short story collection "The Land of Little Rain", where she attributes utopian qualities to the theme of the desert. The third part will finally analyze Austin’s novel with regard to her gender, her concern for nature and the developments concerning the ecofeminist movement at the beginning of the
twentieth century.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Nature Writing
2.1 Desert Literature
2.2 Definition of the Term “Desert”
2.3 The Desert as a Critical Concept in Literature
3. Austin’s Appreciation of the Desert in The Land of Little Rain
4. The Concern of Women for Nature
4.1 Definition of Ecofeminism
4.2 Traces of Ecofeminism in The Land of Little Rain
5. Conclusion
Research Goals and Key Themes
This academic paper examines Mary Hunter Austin's literary representation of the desert in her work "The Land of Little Rain," aiming to analyze how she establishes a unique "desert aesthetic" while exploring the intersection of her gender and her connection to nature within the framework of early twentieth-century ecofeminism.
- The evolution of the "nature writing" genre and the specific literary discourse of the desert.
- Mary Austin’s transformation of the desert from a symbol of barrenness to a space of utopian quality.
- The adaptation of human communities—specifically Native American groups—to desert environments.
- The influence of the "New Womanhood" movement on female authorship and spatial freedom.
- Ecofeminist connections between the marginalization of women and the exploitation of the natural environment.
Excerpt from the Book
1. Introduction
“In response to the industrial revolution of the late 18th century” (Scheese 6), a new field of literary studies has established. Derived from former pastoralism, authors now engage into what is called ‘nature writing’. Addressing the concerns of life in the country (Gifford 1), attention is directed to the different forms of nature as well. One of these nature writers can be found in Mary Hunter Austin, a female American writer who expresses her “affinity for nature, and more particularly the desert” (Scheese 76), by describing the landscape of the Mojave Desert in Southern California the way she perceived it during her walks through it. Although the theme of the desert is often referred to in literature as a symbol of “anxieties of loss, disorientation, and death” (Gersdorf 16), Austin successfully creates a whole new picture of it in her work The Land of Little Rain:
Through her celebration of a land often perceived as sterile and uninteresting, Austin helped create in America what had not existed before the turn of the century: a desert aesthetic. (Scheese 75)
What Scheese here calls “a desert aesthetic” (Scheese 75) describes the establishment of a literary discourse exclusively centered around literature about the desert. Desert literature itself offers numerous possibilities for writers at the beginning of the twentieth century, especially for female writers as it “inspired cultural fantasies and enabled real and imagined experiences of solitude, comntemplative repose, divine revelation” (Gersdorf 16). As a consequence, the stories of female writers can be understood as symbolic since the action is moved from a former domestic space to the public sphere in form of the desert. This also conforms to the character of the concept of ‘New Womanhood’ which signifies a newly gained freedom for women at the end of the nineteenth century as their determination of staying within the domestic sphere was finally abandoned ( Cott 459).
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: This chapter introduces the genre of nature writing and posits Mary Hunter Austin as a pivotal figure who created a positive "desert aesthetic" in her work.
2. Nature Writing: This section defines the historical roots of nature writing in pastoralism and explores the specific categorization and symbolic importance of "desert literature."
3. Austin’s Appreciation of the Desert in The Land of Little Rain: This chapter analyzes how Austin utilizes metaphors and observations of indigenous life to reframe the desert as a vibrant, functional, and divine ecosystem.
4. The Concern of Women for Nature: This section investigates the link between ecofeminism and Austin's writing, arguing that her work reflects a critique of patriarchal structures and an aspiration for gender equality.
5. Conclusion: The concluding chapter synthesizes the main arguments, reaffirming Austin's success in merging her environmental appreciation with the social discourse of her time.
Keywords
Nature writing, Mary Hunter Austin, The Land of Little Rain, Desert aesthetic, Ecofeminism, New Womanhood, Mojave Desert, Pastoralism, Gender equality, Native Americans, Literature, Environment, Domestic sphere, Public sphere, Utopian vision.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this academic paper?
The paper focuses on Mary Hunter Austin’s short story collection "The Land of Little Rain" and explores how she reframes the desert from a place of barrenness to a space of beauty, solitude, and utopian potential.
What are the primary thematic areas covered?
The primary themes include the development of the nature writing genre, the literary construction of the desert, the role of gender in literature, and the ecological and feminist intersections inherent in Austin's descriptions of the Mojave Desert.
What is the central research question?
The research explores how Mary Hunter Austin expresses her appreciation for the desert and examines the extent to which her role as a female writer influences her perspective on nature and the environment.
Which methodology is employed in this research?
The author employs a qualitative literary analysis, utilizing ecofeminist theory and historical context regarding the "New Womanhood" movement to interpret the symbolic and literal landscapes in Austin's work.
What is analyzed in the main body of the text?
The main body examines the history of nature writing, defines the desert as a critical concept, provides an analysis of Austin's specific metaphors and depictions of human-environment interaction, and investigates traces of ecofeminism in her stories.
Which keywords best characterize this work?
Keywords include nature writing, desert aesthetic, ecofeminism, New Womanhood, Mojave Desert, and gender equality.
How does Austin redefine the desert in her work?
Austin challenges the conventional view of the desert as a sterile, "villainous" place by describing it as a functional ecosystem that offers compensations, divine revelation, and a sense of freedom, particularly for women stepping out of domestic spheres.
In what way does the paper connect Austin to ecofeminism?
The paper argues that Austin’s work exhibits ecofeminist tendencies by questioning the patriarchal domination of both nature and women, suggesting that Native Americans and women are uniquely capable of living in harmony with the environment.
- Arbeit zitieren
- Ann-Kathrin Stahl (Autor:in), 2014, The Concern of Women for Nature. Mary Austin’s Appreciation of the Desert in "The Land of Little Rain", München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/345387
