"A remarkable work in three areas: the field of ecocriticism, to which
it contributes a huge amount of historical and bibliographic
information; the practice of genetic criticism in Joyce studies; and the
exploration of ecological interests, themes, allusions, arguments, and
manifestations in Finnegans Wake."--Margot Norris, editor of the
Norton Critical Edition of Joyce's Dubliners
"A terrifically useful study. Makes the text shimmer with new
possibilities by alerting the reader to Joyce's interest in
hydro-engineering, green belts, meteorology, polar exploration, and much
more."--Cheryl Temple Herr, author of Critical Regionalism and Cultural
Studies
"Demonstrates the promise of an 'urban ecological criticism' that
integrates the largely pastoral emphases of ecocritical inquiry into
modernist studies."--Thomas Jackson Rice, author of Cannibal Joyce
In this book--one of the first ecocritical explorations of both Irish
literature and modernism--Alison Lacivita defies the popular view of
James Joyce as a thoroughly urban writer by bringing to light his
consistent engagement with nature. Using genetic criticism to
investigate Joyce's source texts, notebooks, and proofs, Lacivita shows
how Joyce developed ecological themes in Finnegans Wake over
successive drafts.
Making apparent a love of growing things and a lively connection with
the natural world across his texts, Lacivita's approach reveals Joyce's
keen attention to the Irish landscape, meteorology, urban planning,
Dublin's ecology, the exploitation of nature, and fertility and
reproduction. Lacivita unearths a vital quality of Joyce's work that has
largely gone undetected, decisively aligning ecocriticism with both
modernism and Irish studies.
