Disrupting the Discourse Behind the Zoning of the Native Americans: Linda Hogan’s Mean Spirit in the Environmental Racist Perspective

Abstract

This paper disrupts the Euro Americans’ environmental colonialist discourse which involves the practices of racist policies that result in the relocation of the Native Americans to a confinement called reservation. More specifically, it discusses this relocation which is termed as zoning as a dilemma for the Natives because this practice by the Euro Americans, which is primarily involves their economic agenda, not only restricts the Natives to their reservation and denies life opportunities for them but puts the responsibility of their plight on themselves. A qualitative content analysis, the research explores this idea in Linda Hogan’s Mean Spirit in the light of the joint critique of environmental racism and critical discourse analysis. Linguistically, the study applies critical discourse analysis focusing on van Dijk’s concept of discourse and manipulation. The analysis reveals that the discursive and cognitive strategies employed by the Euro Americans for the zoning of the Natives help the former rationalize and legitimize their environmental colonial practices. The discursive process first involves the creation of “othering” and then the tactful presentation of this “othering”. The study also highlights the counter actions taken by the Natives on the basis of the same or similar strategies as have been employed against them, to resist their zoning.