The Environment and Agency: An Ecocritical Reading of Richard Maduku’s Kokoro Compound

Abstract

ABSTRACT Many studies have explored the impact of human activities on the environment. Using the framework of ecocriticism, this study examines the theme of rural–urban migration in Richard Maduku’s Kokoro Compound. The central aim is an exploration of the relationships between the characters and their environment and how various environmental realities influence the characters’ lived-experiences. The present study argues that in addressing the issue of rural–urban migration, Maduku’s novel becomes a conjugation of binaries. Thus allied to the identification of rural–urban migration, there are the binary oppositions of tradition–modernity, poverty–opulence, as well as the dichotomies of innocence-experience and male–female gender relations. These oppositions show the relationship the characters have with the environment in their quest for self-actualisation and financial freedom. In addition, the oppositions highlight the struggles of individuals in postcolonial Nigeria. The identifications also contribute to the understanding of the influence the environment has on individuals and groups of people.