Ecological Dystopia in Paulo Bacigalupi'sThe Water Knife
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Central Department of English
Abstract
The major thrust of this study is to probe the projection of eco-consciousness, ecological
crisis, climate change and socio-economic breakdown of South west America through the cause
of water scarcity in Paulo Bacigalupi’sThe Water Knife. A Las Vegaswater knife, Angel cuts
water for his boss, Catherine Case, ensuring that her luxurious developments can bloom in the
desert, so the rich can stay wet while the poor get dust. The women are more suffers through this
crisis. Women spend most of the time andare closed with nature for their shelter in this
dominated society. When rumors of a game-changing water source surface in drought-ravaged
Phoenix, it seems California is making a play to monopolize the life-giving flow of the river, and
Angel is sent toinvestigate. The concept of ecological dystopia is useful to describing the
situation of a woman who is forced to dwell in a critical situation. It has portrayed the
importance of natural resources in human life for the continuation of the ecological system.
While some kind of crisis appears in nature, all human and non-human beings get suffered. If
ecological integrity breaks down, human existences would face serious threats and dangers. The
degrading environmental condition calls into question the permanence and continuity of human
existence. When the existence of human being faces serious limitations, human beings would be
really at a loss. Thus, this research explores how the hope for scientific progress has turned the
world into toxicity leading to ecological dystopia.
Key Words: Ecological dystopia, water scarcity, patriarchal society, natural destruction,apocalyptic, environmental condition, enlightenment