Land Deterioration and Environmental Damage: A Postcolonial Eco-critical Study of How Beautiful We Were (2021)

Abstract

The paper tries to answer, how western corporations are responsible for land deterioration and environmental damage under the guise of development. It brings forth neocolonial forces into the limelight that have caused ecological damage. The study is guided by the postcolonial eco- critical model of Huggan and Tiffin (2010). Huggan and Tiffin assert the intertwined correlation among environmental violence, marginalization of the indigenous groups, and destruction of land by the neocolonial agencies. The findings are based on data supplied by textual analysis of the novel. The study reveals the ways in which oil corporations exploit the resources, contaminate the land, damage the environment, and cause economic inequality. It is a typical fictional study of neocolonial agencies’ ironic dreams of development and progress. The novel not only voices the environmental injustices and the disastrous consequences of Oil Corporation but also the cultural and social marginalization of locals. It has been suggested that western neocolonial corporations are the real culprits of ecological damage in Asia and Africa. Therefore, time is ripe for the world to reverse the damage and take a step towards inclusive and human-centered sustainable development.