Ecocriticism

[intextrovert]

Anyone out there interested in studying sense of place in literature (ecocriticism, cultural geography, psychogeography, etc.)? I know it's a relatively new focus, and I'm not quite sure I'm doing a great job finding out the best programs for it. I'm currently swooning over Michigan and Stanford. Does anyone have some insight into other schools who have people working on issues of place? I worry sometimes that it appears to be too narrow, even though I don't actually believe it is. It's not my only interest, and I indicate that in my SoP, but I'm worried about how it's perceived, since I'm essentially selling it as my primary focus. If I had to pin myself to a period it would be late 19th/early 20th century. Should I emphasize that more?

Also, Oregon seems to be trying to sell itself as THE ecocriticism school. But their ranking is in the 50s. I know, the rankings are unreliable and subjective, but it has to say something about reputation and job placement ability, right?

[hadunc]

Just because Oregon is ranked in the 50s doesn't mean you shouldn't apply there. When you have a fairly narrow focus that is not something you could study at most schools, I think the fact that a particular school has a lot of faculty members working in your field is much more important than its ranking. I'm not into ecocriticism, but I have an equally narrow focus and I'm basically disregarding rankings this time around (it's my second time applying). Last time I made the mistake of only shooting for schools ranked in the top 30 or so and I paid less attention to the "fit" of each program. Now I really wish I hadn't been so driven by prestige in my choices. The fact is that while the highly ranked schools all have great programs, that doesn't mean they're all right for you. You could be at a great school but if they can't accommodate your interests, you won't get much out of it. I would say forget the rankings and apply to places where you know you'll be able to explore your interest in ecocriticism.

Edited October 29, 2009 by hadunc

[callmelilyb]

University of Nevada Reno is supposed to be THE PLACE for ecocriticism as far as I know. Cheryll Glotfelty who edited "The Ecocriticism Reader" -- one of the publications that gave momentum to the field teaches -- there. Her co-editor Harold Fromm is at U of Arizona.

Go look at the Wikipedia article on Ecocriticism, and put those people's names into google and see where they are teaching (especially the people listed on sources). That should help you track down where this sort of work is being done.

[callmelilyb]

While going through program websites again today, I noticed that Davis claims they are strong in "Environmental Literature" -- not sure if this is exactly the same thing but you might want to check them out.

[Brokenmoped]

I'm at Davis right now for undergrad and there are at least three or four people here who are really into ecocriticism. From the english website:

W. Jack Hicks, Ph.D. (University of North Carolina): literature of California; literature of nature & wilderness; creative writing.

Timothy Morton, D. Phil. (Oxford): literature & the environment; Romanticism; literatures & cultures of food & diet; literary & cultural theory.

Michael Ziser, Ph.D. (Harvard): American literature; literature & the environment; ecocriticism.

I haven't taken any classes taught by Morton or Hicks (though I've heard really good things for both), but Professor Ziser is extremely friendly, intelligent and helpful. Lawrence Buell (practically the founder of ecocriticism) was his dissertation chair at Harvard.

Also, ASLE has a comprehensive list of programs that are good for lit and the environment: http://www.asle.org/site/publications/graduate-handbook/programs/

[melusine]

a little aside here...

every time i see this thread's title, i for some reason read "eroticism"!

there's something wrong with me.

[intextrovert]

Thanks for the help! That list is great (and I thought I had exhausted that website!), and I'm definitely looking closer at Davis now.

[Brokenmoped]

Thanks for the help! That list is great (and I thought I had exhausted that website!), and I'm definitely looking closer at Davis now.

No problem! If you have any questions about Davis, let me know. One more thing, you said you're "swooning" over Stanford? Besides Ursula Heise, who else is doing research in ecocriticism over there?

[intextrovert]

One more thing, you said you're "swooning" over Stanford? Besides Ursula Heise, who else is doing research in ecocriticism over there?

Well, Ursula Heise is of course the main ecocritic, and I love her work. But there are several people there working on issues of place even if they don't call it ecocriticism. John Felstiner does what I would call ecopoetics, Franco Moretti and Stephen Hong Sohn are all about cultural geography, Judith Richardson, Nicholas Jenkins, and several other people who work in regional literature or globalization. I'm interested in spatial theory in general, and there are a lot of people doing that with a sort of cognitive approach. Some of my other interests also intersect with a lot of the faculty's work, but there are definitely a lot of "place and space" people.

Basically, it's my dream school. Though Michigan is up there, too.

[rising_star]

Some of my other interests also intersect with a lot of the faculty's work, but there are definitely a lot of "place and space" people.

If cultural geography, literature, and space and place are what you're looking for, check out Univ of Toronto's geography program.

[Texsox]

Hmm, do I bump a three year old thread, or start a new one? This is post one for me here, and I do not know the preferences of this board. I am taking the risk and hope y'all will indulge my bump because I see the original poster, intextrovert, seems to be at Michigan, a place intextrovert swooned for. Perhaps intextrovert will still be receiving notices of new posts, or will see this and offer their current perspective.

For anyone else, I am presently in a terminal M.A. program and thinking about the next step. I'm not 100% certain advancing beyond my M.A. is feasible at my age (currently 51). If I do, ecocriticism would probably be the emphasis I would pursue.

I am interested in current thoughts as to top programs, although ranking may be well down my list of factors when I make the decision.

Thank you.

[wreckofthehope]

On 9/6/2012 at 8:47 PM, Texsox said:

Hmm, do I bump a three year old thread, or start a new one? This is post one for me here, and I do not know the preferences of this board. I am taking the risk and hope y'all will indulge my bump because I see the original poster, intextrovert, seems to be at Michigan, a place intextrovert swooned for. Perhaps intextrovert will still be receiving notices of new posts, or will see this and offer their current perspective.

For anyone else, I am presently in a terminal M.A. program and thinking about the next step. I'm not 100% certain advancing beyond my M.A. is feasible at my age (currently 51). If I do, ecocriticism would probably be the emphasis I would pursue.

I am interested in current thoughts as to top programs, although ranking may be well down my list of factors when I make the decision.

Thank you.

Some strong ecocritical schools to look into:

UC Davis

From this semester, UCLA

UCSB

Oregon

Nevada, Reno

Nebraska

Texas Tech

(perhaps Michigan, Harvard and WUSTL, depending on your interests)

UCLA has made a serious commitment to ecocriticism with its new hires - I would definitely want to apply there right now if I was applying this time around.

What's your focus within the field?

You should look at the ASLE website too, if you haven't already. They maintain a helpful guide for graduate students and applicants wanting to focus on ecocriticism.

[Texsox]

Thank you for the response. I am still exploring and have not really found a focus yet. Part of this exploration includes analyzing if it is really feasible to earn a PhD in my 50s.