The Affective Affordances of Ecopoetry. Notes from Simon Armitage’s "Cryosphere"

Abstract

Scientific communication about the ongoing ecological crisis is not working effectively; other approaches are needed in order to reduce psychological distancing and indifference. The article moves from the premise that ecopoetry is such an approach because it has the ability to provoke an emotional reaction in readers—that is, it carries affective affordances. But how does an ecopoem engender affective engagement in readers? Theoretically, the article brings together hitherto disconnected disciplinary perspectives from ecocriticism, psychology, affect theory, and ecology, to build theoretical grounding for the arguments that affective engagement is crucial in environmental communication, and therefore ecopoetry is uniquely positioned to address ecological topics. Analytically, the article focuses on the poems by UK Poet Laureate Simon Armitage included in the Cryosphere pamphlet. It identifies and discusses a set of narrative and thematic approaches—developing a sense of place; activating the senses through synaesthesia; stimulating emotional connection through individuation; inviting participation in melancholia; and embracing vulnerability—which are deployed to engender affective engagement in readers. In so doing, the article contributes to create a better understanding of the affective and ecological potential of poetry.