Environmental Consciousness and Poetry : An Ecocritical study of William Wordsworth and Bhai Vir Singh's Poems

Abstract

Ecocriticism is a newly emerged area of research in the literary field. It has a wide scope and approaches which make it a distinguished field of literary studies. Today, this field of literary criticism is not restricted to only English literature but rapidly burgeoning in other languages. In this research paper, I have analysed the poems of two different languages poets from ecocritical perspective. For this research, I have selected Famous English poet William Wordsworth and Punjab Poet Bhai Vir Singh. Bhai Vir Singh wrote his poem in Punjabi, but his poetry have been translated in English. Both the poets have their unique identity in their respective literature or even beyond it. A lot of research work have been conducted on William Wordsworth’s poetry, but comparative study with famous Punjabi poet Bhai Vir Singh has its own significance. Bhai Vir Singh has the same reputation in Punjabi literature as William Wordsworth has occupied in English literature. In this research paper, I have compared the selected poems of both the writers. The study period are 18th/ 19th century (Romantic) Britain and 20th/ 21th century (Modern) Punjab, the respective spacio- temporal and cultural spaces of the poet have been studied. The justification for the choice of William Wordsworth and Bhai Vir Singh’s poetry is informed by their unique poetic vision and techniques. Environmental discourse has become a contemporary treatise. The poems selected for this study are relevant and unique in their discourse. Both the poets selected for this study do not describe what they saw but they express their feeling and passion as a part of what they appreciate and describe.