A Study of the Climate Fiction Flight Behavior from the Perspective of Ecofeminism

Beijing Language and Culture University,Beijing,China E-mail:15733131307@163.com

[Abstract]The contemporary American woman writer Barbara Kingsolver’s seventh novel Flight Behavior tells the story that Dellarobia Turnbow,a housewife leading an impoverished and monotonous life with her family on a farm in Appalachia,participates in the process of saving the monarch butterflies which are affected by global warming and have to change the hibernation habitat to survive.The living predicament of the monarch butterflies strikes a chord with Dellarobia who is imprisoned in the patriarchal family.This thesis aims at analyzing Flight Behavior from the ecofeminist perspective,showing the author’s expectation to break the boundary between human and nature,human and non-human species and the inequality between the two sexes as well.

[Keywords]Flight Behavior;Ecofeminism;the Other

Introduction

Barbara Kingsolver’s novelFlight Behavioris a typical climate change fiction,which is centered on two protagonists--the Monarch butterflies that are in existential crisis and Dellarobia who is in the marriage crisis.At the beginning of the novel,the“Flight Behavior”of the butterflies to escape from extinction is in parallel with Dellarobia’s“Flight Behavior”to escape from marriage.And at the end of the novel,both Dellarobia and the butterflies“take flight to”the“new earth”successfully.The researches abroad onFlight Behaviorare largely concerned with“the transformation of localities faced with global climate change”(Mehnert,2016,p.56),“global connectedness”and“deterritorialization”,exploring the reconstruction of the living space of human beings and non-human species under the background of climate change and global warming.InClimate Change Fiction:Representations of Global Warming in American Literature,Antonia Mehnert(2016,p.59)points out that“Flight Behaviorillustrates that natural and cultural processes shape each other without regard for local or national borders”.Although the geographical boundaries do exist,under the effects of climate change,people’s sense of regionalism is becoming weaker and weaker.And also Sylvia Mayer(2016,p.499)studiesFlight Behaviorfrom the perspective of ecological cosmopolitanism,claiming that“with the recognition of the deterritorializing impact of global ecological,economic,and cultural forces,Dellarobia’s sense of place becomes increasingly globalized”.The abnormal migration of monarch butterflies shows the invisible effects of climate change on breaking the regional boundaries.As for the domestic studies onFlight Behavior,they mainly focus on the interdisciplinary and ecocriticism perspective.In“The Encounter of Science and Literature--a review of Barbara Kingsolver’s New WorkFlight Behavior”,Hu Biyuan(2015,p.88)points out the“combination of literature and science”inFlight Behavior,revealing the great significance of using scientific theme through fiction.And in“‘Knowledge’and‘Faith’:Ecological Self inFlight Behavior”,Hu Biyuan(2015,p.42)uses ArneNaess’s deep ecological theory to explore the reconstruction of Dellarobia’s identity from“ego”to“ecological self”,pointing out“the belief in feminism autonomy from an interdisciplinary perspective”.

This paper aims at analyzing Dellarobia’s self-awakening and self-growth in the process of studying and protecting the monarch butterflies that have changed their hibernation habitat due to the weird weather caused by global warming,exploringFlight Behaviorfrom the perspective of ecofeminism.“Ecofeminism has contributed a great deal both to activist struggle and to theorizing links between women’s oppression and the domination of nature”(Plumwood,2003,p.1).And also inClimate Change is a Feminism Issue,Laurie Zoloth(2017,p.151)emphasizes the strong connection between feminist consciousness and climate novels by saying that“we must develop a practice of feminist ethics that foregrounds the urgency of climate change on both a personal and political level”.Dellarobia,as a rural woman leading impoverished and monotonous life,empathizes with the monarch butterflies that are oppressed by anthropocentrism.The butterflies“l(fā)ed astray”(Kingsolver,2012,p.244)by the climate change stimulates Dellarobia’s self-awakening and further leads her to form a new ecological view.Ecofeminism regards anthropocentrism led by male discourse as the source of ecological crisis.Under the oppression of patriarchy and anthropocentrism,the subordinate position of women and nature as“other”promotes women to resonate strongly with nature in their actions against ecological destruction.Furthermore,Wei Qingqi and Li Jialuan(2019,p.85)inEcofeminismbelieve that“ecofeminism focuses not only on women and nature,but on all oppressed objects,including minorities,the bottom people,non-human species and so on”.“Ecological feminism provides an excellent framework for the exploration of interconnections”(Plumwood,2003,as cited in Ruther,1989).InFlight Behavior,this kind of“interconnection”is presented as the interrelationship between Dellarobia and the butterflies,further the harmonious coexistence between human and nature,human and non-human species.

The Inseparable Relationship between Dellarobia and the Monarch Butterflies

InFlight Behavior,the monarch butterflies migrate several hundred miles from its normal habitat in Mexico to settle for the winter on the Tennessee farm due to the climate change caused by global warming.However,Dr.Byron predicts that the new habitat is not the safe place for the Monarch either since the crisis of climate change influences their new habitat too.As is described in the novel,“The weird weather must have bewildered everyone to some extent….It felt like no season at all”(Kingsolver,2012,p.93).So it is very possible that the butterflies which will not survive the cold winter in Feathertown are threatened with extinction.“The butterflies had no choice but to trust in their world of signs,the sun’s angle set against a turn of the seasons,and something inside all that had betrayed them”(Kingsolver,2012,p.263).And the arrival of them is of enormous consequence to Feathertown.However,“nobody was asking why the butterflies were here; the big news was just that they were”(Kingsolver,2012,p.228).Someone wants to exploit the butterflies for sightseeing;someone never cares about the butterflies’death,determining to sell the woods which are the hibernation habitat of the butterflies to pay off a looming debt.And at the same time,a lot of reporters and tourists are attracted by the spectacle and mystery brought by the butterflies.Someone even suggests to“make the butterflies Disneyland kind of thing”(Kingsolver,2012,p.274).Even though Dellarobia said that“the butterflies are all going to die,as soon as the temperature goes down into the teens.This could be it already,they might be dying now”(Kingsolver,2012,p.274),her husband Cub treats the death of butterflies indifferently as usual by attributing the appearance of the Monarchs and climate change to the“Lord’s business”(Kingsolver,2012,p.280),“The Good Lord supplies the butterflies,and Feathertown gets the economics”(Kingsolver,2012,p.274).Cub,just like most people,puts either the climate change or the survival of those butterflies outside his mind,which is no doubt the anthropocentric opinion.“They need things to be a certain way,financially,so they think nature will organize itself around what suits them”(Kingsolver,2012,p.275).Val Plumwood(2003,p.2)in her bookFeminism and the Mastery of naturesaid that:

I argue that western culture has treated the human/nature relation as a dualism and this explains many of the problematic features of the west’s treatment of nature which underline the environmental crisis,especially the western construction of human identity as‘outside’nature.

The butterflies are materialized and consumed,just as Dellarobia points out that“what those guys are saying about the butterflies,is that it’s all centered around what they want”(Kingsolver,2012,p.275).Likewise,the social media merely devotes“to shore up the prevailing view of their audience and sponsors”(Kingsolver,2012,p.248).For example,in the interview between Ovid and Tina,Tina as a reporter puts the emphasis onto the beauty of the butterflies in order to cater to the audiences and sponsors.However,when Ovid talks about the pervasive environmental damage and the disruption of ecosystem caused by climate change,she changes the subject deliberately for fear of messing the mystery of the butterflies.

InFlight Behavior,the monarch butterflies are marginalized as the other.Wang Ning(2020,p.36)inThe“Animal Turn”in Contemporary Ecocriticismclaims that“the consciousness of caring for animals and protecting animals begin to appear frequently in today's ecological literature works and critical works,which,to some extent,marks the as a sort of“animal turn”in contemporary ecocriticism”.And this kind of“animal turn”in ecocriticism can make an alliance with feminist criticism.Jiang Lifu(2013,p.70)inAnimal Studies and Criticism in English Literary Criticismargues that“it is necessary to combine feminist movement with animal liberation,which makes the combination of feminism and animal criticism in literary criticism”.Women and animals are in similar position of being oppressed and consumed under the patriarchal power discourse.InFlight Behavior,the relationship between Dellarobia and butterflies is inseparable and it is obvious that the appearance of the monarch butterflies transforms Dellarobia’s life.At the beginning of the novel,Dellarobia is about to tryst her secret lover Jimmy,however,the monarch Butterflies that appear unexpectedly lead Dellarobia to hold back her plan.Dellarobia views them as God’s sign that symbolizes the disapproval of her upcoming tryst and she becomes the first person who finds the monarch butterflies,which brings her under the spotlight of social media.She becomes a celebrity immediately who begins to face many interviews.The local church of Feathertown regards the arrival of the butterflies as a sign of grace and treats Dellarobia as“the girl who is receiving grace”(Kingsolver,2012,p.65).And what cannot be ignored is that Dellarobia is named after“the Butterfly Venus”by the mass media and her picture is distorted as“the naked chick standing on the shell”over the Internet.As is described in the novel:

It couldn’t possibly be herself,but it was,her own orange hair blowing loose from its ribbon in back,her left hand in her pocket and her right hand across her chest,posed like the naked Venus girl on the open wings of her shell.…She was not exactly naked the picture,her clothing was faded to a neutral shade,but naked was how she felt.Scared and exposed.This thing looked vaguely pornographic.(Kingsolver,2012,p.230)

“The consumption of women can be presented as the visual consumption of female images”(Jiang,2013,p.70).Dellarobia,being shown as“the naked Venus girl”with“vaguely pornographic”color,is observed just like the butterflies being consumed and marginalized.Greta Gard(1993,p.64)in her bookEcofeminist Criticism:Women,Animals and Naturepoints out that“animals feature more prominently in the concern of ecofeminism”.And inFlight Behavior,Dellarobia and the butterflies are closely related because of their similar positions as the other.

The Breakthrough of Dellarobia and the Survival of the Monarch Butterflies

Flight Behavioris centered on two main subjects--Dellarobia and the monarch Butterflies,the non-human species.And Dellarobia can identify herself with those butterflies that are utilized and marginalized.Warren K.(2000,p.126)inEcofeminist Philosophy:A Western Perspective on What It Is and Why It Matterssaid that“the unjustified dominations,objectification,and the commodification of woman and nonhuman animals occur in mutually reinforcing and conceptually inseparable ways”.InFlight Behavior,after being appreciated by Dr.Byron who aims at studying the monarch butterflies,Dellarobia is hired by his lab to do some researches about the butterflies.And with the further understanding of the butterflies,Dellarobia not only begins to try her best to protect them,but also starts to have a deeper understanding of her own position as a woman under the oppression of the patriarchy.Dellarobia sympathizes with the upcoming extinction of the butterflies,gets inspiration from the butterflies and she is simultaneously angry at some people who take advantage of the monarch butterflies.When she realizes that the patriarchy which governs her home seeks to oppress the butterflies,she further gains empathy with them.She is highly stimulated by the similarity between the butterflies and herself since they are both in a passive position.Her efforts to protect the butterfly correspond to the process of fighting for herself as a woman.“She’d thought surely something had changed,for all the strange fortune those butterflies had brought her.She’d thought she could be free”(Kingsolver,2012,p.273).Dellarobia is determined to spare no efforts to protect these butterflies that are misguided and also get away from her failed marriage by means of pursuing her original dream,rather than by having an affair with the other man.

Li Jialuan and Wei Qingqi(2019,p.103)inThe Rise of Cli-Fi and Its Theoretical Dimensionsassume that“the most direct embodiment in many climate novels is that the positive protagonists are women,and the negative characters are often men who stick to the traditional way of life”.InFlight Behavior,Dellarobia,as a housewife who lives in a typical patriarchal family,has no power of discourse and cannot decide her own fate.However,after resonating with the endangered monarch butterflies,Dellarobia begins to get up the courage to stand up against the absolute authority of the family--her father-in-law Bear by pointing out that logging is the short-sighted behavior,and the destruction of the woods would not only endanger the survival of monarch butterflies,but also lead to inevitable disasters such as landslides.Eventually,with the help of his mother-in-law Hester and her husband Cub,Dellarobia manages to persuade Bear into abandoning the logging program.With her wisdom and strength,Dellarobia successfully saves the woods from being destroyed and protects the hibernation habitat of those endangered monarch butterflies.

InFlight Behavior,Dellarobia speaks for the monarch butterflies and speaks for herself as well.In her mind,human and the monarch butterflies,as non-human species,are equal.Through the interaction with those monarch butterflies,the combination of ecological consciousness and female consciousness begins to germinate in her mind,and her growth is not only embedded by female awakening but also her new ecological view.At first,when she was told that“the monarchs had to leave the Mexican roost sites earlier every year because of seasonality changes from climatic warming”(Kingsolver,2012,p.184),“she wondered whether any of this was proved”(Kingsolver,2012,p.185).So Dellarobia,at the very beginning of the encounter with the monarch butterflies,is wary of the truth of climatic warming.Due to the guide of the entomologist Ovid as well as her advancements of the researches on monarch butterflies,she generally forms a brand new ecological view.Instead of treating climate change as“God’s business”and taking advantage of nature and the monarch butterflies just like other villagers in her town,Dellarobia is conscious of the seriousness of ecological destruction,as well as the great significance of coexisting with nature harmoniously.Just like what she said,“Men against nature.Of all the possible conflicts,that was the one that hopeless.Even a slim education had taught her this much:Man loses”(Kingsolver,2012,p.339),“they clear-cut the mountain,and a flood brought the whole thing down on top of them”(Kingsolver,2012,p.184).Dellarobia has already been conscious that human beings are not outside nature or the opposite of nature,but a part of nature.Human society and nature should be an integral organism.Dellarobia’s new ecological view combined with female awakening paves way for her determination to protect the habitat of the monarch butterflies and save them from the cold winter in Appalachia.

At the end of the novel,the survival of the monarch butterflies parallels Dellarobia’s decision to start a brand new life.“A perfect female is the lady that can go out and start a new colony by herself“(Kingsolver,2012,p.418).Dellarobia,who is trapped by the dull marriage life caused by the accidental pregnancy,makes up her mind to start a new life.She is going to leave her unhappy marriage and go to college,making it possible for her son Preston to become a scientist as well.Just like Dellarobia who achieves the breakthrough by rebuilding her new identity,the monarch butterflies,which are predicated that“survival wasn’t possible”(Kingsolver,2012,p.445),achieve the reversal of fortune as well.The ending of the book is not only the embodiment the“flight behavior”of the Monarchs to find their“new earth”,but also the“fight behavior”of Dellarobia who flies away to embrace her brand new life.

Conclusion

The ending ofFlight Behaviorimplies the mutual liberation of Dellarobia and the butterflies and also symbolizes the author’s intention of appealing to people to pay attention to the worsening environmental issue and the endangered animals as well.Since human’s oppression on nature and animals corresponds to man’s oppression on woman,the awareness of equality should be aroused.By analyzingFlight Behaviorfrom the ecofeminist perspective,the feminist line and ecological line interact with each other,which demonstrates the interconnection and interdependence between human and nature,as well as human and non-human species.

Acknowledgments

This research project is supported by the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities,and the Research Funds of Beijing Language and Culture University(Grant No.：20YCX064).