Participation Type
Paper
Presentation #1 Title
Where's Ms. Carson?: Ecofeminism and Appalachia
Presentation #1 Abstract or Summary
Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring (1962) is one of the most influential books of the last century. The author’s attack on chemical pesticides led to the current environmental movement. According to the EPA, “In the process of transforming ecology from dispassionate science to activist creed, Carson unwittingly launched the modern idea of environmentalism: a political movement which demanded the state not only preserve the earth but act to regulate and punish those who polluted it” (1). Both Presidents Kennedy and Johnson answered the public outcry prompted by Carson’s book by increasing their commitment to protecting the environment.
Despite the significant and lasting relevance of her work, Carson’s contributions to raising public awareness about the ongoing environmental crisis are often overlooked. In my paper I will suggest that much of this marginalization is due to continued oversight of Carson’s profound contributions within the Appalachian Studies community (perhaps because of her Pennsylvania upbringing and her reputation as a historical figure with an international reputation) as well as within the scientific community (perhaps because that community has been predominantly male-centered). I propose to take an eco-feminist perspective when reassessing Carson, whose work has often been ignored within her home region (even by the environmental justice community within Appalachia). By exploring media images of Carson from her heyday and comparing them to the images of women in the environmental movement today, one can perhaps begin to comprehend the ways that society on every level continues to exclude and devalue the contributions of women.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #1
Kathy Olson teaches in the English Dept. at Lees-McRae College in Banner Elk, NC.
Where's Ms. Carson?: Ecofeminism and Appalachia
Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring (1962) is one of the most influential books of the last century. The author’s attack on chemical pesticides led to the current environmental movement. According to the EPA, “In the process of transforming ecology from dispassionate science to activist creed, Carson unwittingly launched the modern idea of environmentalism: a political movement which demanded the state not only preserve the earth but act to regulate and punish those who polluted it” (1). Both Presidents Kennedy and Johnson answered the public outcry prompted by Carson’s book by increasing their commitment to protecting the environment.
Despite the significant and lasting relevance of her work, Carson’s contributions to raising public awareness about the ongoing environmental crisis are often overlooked. In my paper I will suggest that much of this marginalization is due to continued oversight of Carson’s profound contributions within the Appalachian Studies community (perhaps because of her Pennsylvania upbringing and her reputation as a historical figure with an international reputation) as well as within the scientific community (perhaps because that community has been predominantly male-centered). I propose to take an eco-feminist perspective when reassessing Carson, whose work has often been ignored within her home region (even by the environmental justice community within Appalachia). By exploring media images of Carson from her heyday and comparing them to the images of women in the environmental movement today, one can perhaps begin to comprehend the ways that society on every level continues to exclude and devalue the contributions of women.
