Exploring Ecological Issues in Graphic Narratives

This book positions graphic storytelling at the intersection of ecocriticism, environmental justice, and Comics Studies. It argues that ecological catastrophe is not only a scientific or policy crisis but also a crisis of representation, set against the backdrop of climate change, biodiversity loss, and systemic environmental inequity.

Exploring Ecological Issues in Graphic Narratives positions graphic storytelling at the intersection of ecocriticism, environmental justice, and Comics Studies. This book argues that ecological catastrophe is not only a scientific or policy crisis but also a crisis of representation, set against the backdrop of climate change, biodiversity loss, and systemic environmental inequity. While ecocriticism has expanded significantly, this book largely focuses on canonical prose, overlooking the multimodal and spatial possibilities of graphic narratives. It critically engages with the Anthropocene, highlighting the deep connections between environmental degradation and colonialism, capitalism, caste oppression, and gendered exploitation. Through global case studies—including Indigenous resistance in Canada’s oil sands, Dalit environmental aesthetics in India, Japanese eco-dystopian manga, and urban human-animal reconfigurations—it explores how graphic narratives depict “slow violence,” express nonhuman agency, and challenge anthropocentric binaries. Part of the Global Perspectives in Comics Studies series, this book addresses the multilingual dimensions of the comics medium, often overlooked in ecocriticism, making it a valuable resource for scholars and enthusiasts alike. With its international scope, it will appeal to academics, students, activists, artists, educators, policy-makers, and graphic novel enthusiasts exploring ecological issues, environmental justice, and the interdisciplinary potential of graphic narratives, particularly in regions where comics and graphic novels thrive.