Hacettepe University Graduate School of Social Sciences Department of English Language and Literature English Language and Literature REPRESENTATIONS OF THE ANTHROPOCENE FROM THE NINETEENTH CENTURY TO THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY: RICHARD JEFFERIES’S AFTER LONDON, OR WILD ENGLAND, DORIS LESSING’S MARA AND DANN: AN ADVENTURE AND ADAM NEVILL’S LOST GIRL Kübra BAYSAL Ph.D. Dissertation Ankara, 2019 REPRESENTATIONS OF THE ANTHROPOCENE FROM THE NINETEENTH CENTURY TO THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY: RICHARD JEFFERIES’S AFTER LONDON, OR WILD ENGLAND, DORIS LESSING’S MARA AND DANN: AN ADVENTURE AND ADAM NEVILL’S LOST GIRL Kübra BAYSAL Hacettepe University Graduate School of Social Sciences Department of English Language and Literature English Language and Literature Ph.D. Dissertation Ankara, 2019 v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This dissertation has been born of a hard, ardent but equally fruitful Ph.D. journey during which I had countless mind-opening courses from most respected professors of the Department of English Language and Literature at Hacettepe University that shaped the academic path of my life since the first day I started my university adventure. Getting to test my intellectual as well as bodily limits and learning that there is no end to acquiring knowledge, I have opened my eyes and mind to the realities of the world that readily find a place in the fictional worlds of literary works, namely novels, which explains how the inspiration for this dissertation came to me. Within this context, I want to express my first heartfelt gratitude to my thesis supervisor, Prof. Dr. Aytül ÖZÜM, whose strong academic profile has put me in the right track in my doctoral endeavour, for harnessing this inspiration and leading the way in a most professional way all throughout the writing phase of this dissertation with her sincere, warm, direct and constantly positive attitude along with her valuable scholarly advice. I am also indebted to her for the precious novel courses I have taken from her since my B.A. education. Similarly, I am so grateful to Prof. Dr. Serpil OPPERMANN, who gave me the inspiration for advancing in the environmental humanities studies through the interesting courses she gave and her guidance in the first phases of the dissertation as a committee member. I would also like to thank Prof. Dr. Belgin ELBİR for her warm and encouraging attitude and distinct point of view during the committee meetings and in the defence exam. In the same manner, I feel lucky to have Ass. Prof. Dr. Alev KARADUMAN, from whom I got valuable B.A. courses, in the committee and defence exam due to her sincere, kind and professional manner. Guiding me as my course supervisor before I moved onto writing my dissertation, Prof. Dr. Hande SEBER, to whom I am so grateful for the poetry courses and her guidance, has also a very special place in my heart for she constantly supported me during my proficiency adventure and took me through the end of it. In addition, I want to acknowledge my special thanks to the head of the department, Prof. Dr. Burçin EROL, who has always been a great role model and an endless source of motivation for me since my B.A. years when I first had a chance to participate in her Mythology course, with her energy, positive attitude, invaluable academic advice and support. Furthermore, vi I would like to state my sincere gratitude to Prof. Dr. Deniz BOZER, from whom I feel lucky to take several courses during my B.A. and Ph.D. education that immensely contributed to my specialisation in the field of English literature. Likewise, I extend my special thanks to Prof. Dr. Huriye REİS, from whom I also had poetry and culture courses during my B.A. education, for her always kind and warm attitude and her insightful suggestions during and after the defence exam. I would like to thank Assoc. Prof. Dr. Şebnem KAYA for the drama courses she gave during my B.A. years and her friendly manner. Finally, I am so glad for having met Assoc. Prof. Dr. Zeynep Zeren ATAYURT FENGE and thank her for her illuminative suggestions and positive attitude during my defence exam. Likewise, I cannot thank Mr. Adam NEVILL enough for his novel, Lost Girl, which constructs a vital part of this dissertation and moreover, for his friendly, kind and motivating approach towards me since the approval of my dissertation proposal. He was most surprised and happy for his novel, Lost Girl to be studied in the academia when I first contacted and informed him about the subject of my dissertation. Afterwards, he provided me with the information when I needed guidance about different sources written on his novel, which are so rare to find. Last but not least, I have my deepest gratitude to my family: my parents, Sabiha and Mehmet BAYSAL, for always seeing the best in me and reminding me of it whenever I am at an impasse, and to my brothers, Sercan and Enes BAYSAL and my sister-in-law, Esra BAYSAL for always being there to support me in my good and bad moments. Similarly, I want to thank my best friends, Niğmet ÇETİNER and Kevser CÜNEDİOĞLU among other precious ones, whom I consider my sisters, for never stopping having their faith in me and always pushing me forward during the challenging adventures and bumpy roads of my life. Finally, I cannot help mentioning my pet bunny, Toprak, now three and a half years old, for accompanying me as my housemate since he was a tiny baby while I struggled with Ph.D. courses and during the whole writing process of this dissertation and for providing me with the joy and motivation I always need. vii ÖZET BAYSAL, Kübra. “On Dokuzuncu Yüzyıldan Yirmi Birinci Yüzyıla Antroposenin Tasviri: Richard Jefferies’in Londra’dan Sonra, ya da Vahşi İngiltere, Doris Lessing’in Mara ve Dann: Bir Macera ve Adam Nevill’in Kayıp Kız Romanları” Doktora Tezi, Ankara, 2019. On dokuzuncu yüzyıldan Richard Jefferies’in kıyamet-sonrası Londra’dan Sonra, ya da Vahşi İngiltere (1885), yirminci yüzyıldan Doris Lessing’in kıyamet-sonrası Mara ve Dann: Bir Macera (1999) ve yirmi birinci yüzyıldan Adam Nevill’in kıyamet-öncesi Kayıp Kız (2015) eserleri olmak üzere üç romanı Antroposen bakış açısı kapsamında bir araya getiren bu tez, İngiliz romanının üç yüzyıl boyunca insan müdahalesi sonucunda doğada meydana gelen gerçek ve/veya hayal ürünü olayları ve felaketleri ele alma biçimini yansıtmayı hedeflemektedir. Antroposen, özellikle on sekizinci yüzyıl sonundaki Endüstri Devrimi’nden sonra giderek hızlanan ve beraberinde teknolojik ilerleme, kentleşme ve nüfus artışını getiren insanın yüzyıllardır doğa üzerinde bıraktığı etkiyi yansıtan çağın adıdır. Doğada meydana gelen antropojen (insan kaynaklı) dönüşüm, kendini felaketler ve doğadaki yıkım ile ortaya koyan bozulmuş dünya dengesini gözler önüne sermektedir. Bu bakış açısıyla tez, ayrıca zamanın giderek kötüleşen çevresel koşulları ve yazarların bireysel hayat deneyimleri sonucunda bakış açılarının nasıl büyük ölçüde farklılık gösterdiğine odaklanmaktadır. Bu romanların çevresel sorunları ele alan benzer romanlar içerisindeki yeri de tezin diğer bir çalışma konusudur. İncelenen üç roman, Londra’dan Sonra, ya da Vahşi İngiltere, Mara ve Dann: Bir Macera ile Kayıp Kız romanları, insan-sonrası ve Yeni Materyalizm kuramlarının çevreci bakış açısını içinde bulunduran Anthroposen kuramıyla incelenecektir ki bu bakış açısı, insan merkezli bakış açısının terk edilmesi yoluyla yirmi birinci yüzyıl çevresel, sosyal ve siyasi krizleri için etkili çözüm üretme potansiyeline sahiptir. Anahtar Sözcükler Richard Jefferies, Doris Lessing, Adam Nevill, Londra’dan Sonra, ya da Vahşi İngiltere, Mara ve Dann: Bir Macera, Kayıp Kız, Antroposen, doğa, felaket, iklim değişikliği kurgusu. viii ABSTRACT BAYSAL, Kübra. “Representations of the Anthropocene from the Nineteenth Century to the Twenty-First Century: Richard Jefferies’s After London, or Wild England, Doris Lessing’s Mara and Dann: An Adventure and Adam Nevill’s Lost Girl” Ph.D. Dissertation, Ankara, 2019. Bringing three novels together, namely Richard Jefferies’s post-apocalyptic work After London, or Wild England (1885) from the nineteenth century, Doris Lessing’s post- apocalyptic Mara and Dann: An Adventure (1999) from the twentieth century, and Adam Nevill’s pre-apocalyptic Lost Girl (2015) from the twenty-first century of England within the scope of the Anthropocene, this dissertation aims at displaying the way English novel deals with the actual and/or imagined events and catastrophes in nature due to human intervention for three centuries. The Anthropocene is the name of the epoch reflecting the human impact on the nonhuman nature for centuries constantly accelerating especially after the Industrial Revolution in the late eighteenth century that brought along technological advancement, urbanisation and increased population. The anthropogenic transformation in the nonhuman environment displays the disturbed balance of the Earth that manifests itself through catastrophes and destruction in nature. With this perspective, the focus of the dissertation is also on how the authors’ perspective dramatically alters as a result of worsening environmental conditions of their time and their individual experiences of life. The position of these novels among similar novels dealing with environmental problems will be another focus of study for this dissertation. The three novels in focus, After London, or Wild England, Mara and Dann: An Adventure and Lost Girl will be studied through the Anthropocene theory embodying the green perspective of posthumanism and New Materialisms which bear a potential to generate