Ecocritical Outlaws

Sponsoring Organization(s)

International Association for Robin Hood Studies (IARHS)

Organizer Name

Kristin Bovaird-Abbo, Valerie B. Johnson, Alexander L. Kaufman

Organizer Affiliation

Univ. of Northern Colorado, Georgia Institute of Technology, Auburn Univ.-Montgomery

Presider Name

Kristin Bovaird-Abbo

Paper Title 1

Fen ond Fæsten: the Anglo-Saxon Fenlands of the Gesta Herewardi

Presenter 1 Name

Ben Reinhard

Presenter 1 Affiliation

Christendom College

Paper Title 2

Under the grene wode tre: Sherwood Forest as Preservationist Green Space

Presenter 2 Name

Ann Martinez

Presenter 2 Affiliation

Kent State Univ.-Stark

Paper Title 3

The Medieval Outlaw as Indicator Species

Presenter 3 Name

Jeremy DeAngelo

Presenter 3 Affiliation

Rutgers Univ.

Paper Title 4

The "Matter" of the Greenwood: The More-than-Human World of Robin Hood

Presenter 4 Name

Jason Hogue

Presenter 4 Affiliation

Univ. of Texas-Arlington

Start Date

14-5-2016 10:00 AM

Session Location

Bernhard 158

Description

At an ICMS session in 2015, a panel posed the question "What Can Medieval Studies Bring to Ecocriticism?" Although the responses were diverse, none touched on the specific subgenre of outlaw literature, and this absence is reflected in much of the published ecocriticism scholarship. This panel will initiate conversations about ecocritical issues in various outlaw tales, including but not limited to those that feature Robin Hood, Hereward, and Grettir the Stong. Given the liminal spaces which these tales occupy, as well as their frequent movements from greenwood into urban spaces, these tales are rich for ecological study. What do these stories reveal about medieval forest practices or perspectives towards animals (and their relationships and/or kinships to humans)? To what extent do these tales critique medieval ecological beliefs or offer alternative perspectives (that is, do they reveal a plurality of attitudes towards nature co-existing during the medieval period)? Given that Rebecca Douglass, in “Ecocriticism and Middle English Literature,” argues that “[E]cocriticism is . . . informed by a desire to understand past and present connections between literature and human attitudes regarding the earth,” what does the study of medieval outlaw tales offer to ecocritical studies? This panel welcomes a variety of approaches, including ecofeminist perspectives, cultural ecology, deep ecology, animal studies, and ecolinguistics.

Alexander L. Kaufman

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May 14th, 10:00 AM

Ecocritical Outlaws

Bernhard 158

At an ICMS session in 2015, a panel posed the question "What Can Medieval Studies Bring to Ecocriticism?" Although the responses were diverse, none touched on the specific subgenre of outlaw literature, and this absence is reflected in much of the published ecocriticism scholarship. This panel will initiate conversations about ecocritical issues in various outlaw tales, including but not limited to those that feature Robin Hood, Hereward, and Grettir the Stong. Given the liminal spaces which these tales occupy, as well as their frequent movements from greenwood into urban spaces, these tales are rich for ecological study. What do these stories reveal about medieval forest practices or perspectives towards animals (and their relationships and/or kinships to humans)? To what extent do these tales critique medieval ecological beliefs or offer alternative perspectives (that is, do they reveal a plurality of attitudes towards nature co-existing during the medieval period)? Given that Rebecca Douglass, in “Ecocriticism and Middle English Literature,” argues that “[E]cocriticism is . . . informed by a desire to understand past and present connections between literature and human attitudes regarding the earth,” what does the study of medieval outlaw tales offer to ecocritical studies? This panel welcomes a variety of approaches, including ecofeminist perspectives, cultural ecology, deep ecology, animal studies, and ecolinguistics.

Alexander L. Kaufman