Event Title
"Awful Doubt, or Faith so Mild": Skepticism and Environmental Morality in Percy Bysshe Shelley's "Mont Blanc"
Presentation Type
Oral and/or Visual Presentation
Presenter Major(s)
English
Mentor Information
Brian Deyo
Department
English
Location
Kirkhof Center 2263
Start Date
11-4-2012 9:00 AM
Keywords
Changing Ideas/Changing Worlds, Environment, Ethics, Philosophy/ Literature
Abstract
In his preface to "A History of a Six-Weeks' Tour," Shelley describes the area of Mont Blanc as "a sentiment of ecstatic wonder, not unallied to madness." Though captivated by the power of the mountain, he regards it differently than his contemporaries. While William Wordsworth describes Nature in a divine light, Shelley is an advocate for skepticism, for the inherent power of the natural world. Unsure whether the universe was created by a deity, Shelley is reticent to concede that it belongs to humanity, as the Bible may suggest. In my paper, I argue that Shelley crafts "Mont Blanc" in response to the dominionist attitude toward Nature often associated with Genesis, and that "Mont Blanc" is in conversation with Wordsworth's "Tintern Abbey," a poem that suffuses Nature with divine significance. I also examine the possible result of Shelley's skepticism used as an antidote to modern dominionist mindset, and how a skeptical view may raise one's awareness of mankind's relation to Nature.
"Awful Doubt, or Faith so Mild": Skepticism and Environmental Morality in Percy Bysshe Shelley's "Mont Blanc"
Kirkhof Center 2263
In his preface to "A History of a Six-Weeks' Tour," Shelley describes the area of Mont Blanc as "a sentiment of ecstatic wonder, not unallied to madness." Though captivated by the power of the mountain, he regards it differently than his contemporaries. While William Wordsworth describes Nature in a divine light, Shelley is an advocate for skepticism, for the inherent power of the natural world. Unsure whether the universe was created by a deity, Shelley is reticent to concede that it belongs to humanity, as the Bible may suggest. In my paper, I argue that Shelley crafts "Mont Blanc" in response to the dominionist attitude toward Nature often associated with Genesis, and that "Mont Blanc" is in conversation with Wordsworth's "Tintern Abbey," a poem that suffuses Nature with divine significance. I also examine the possible result of Shelley's skepticism used as an antidote to modern dominionist mindset, and how a skeptical view may raise one's awareness of mankind's relation to Nature.