Agricultural ethics in Wendell Berry’s contemporary novels : a place on earth, Remembering and Hannah coulter

Abstract

This thesis examines Wendell Berry’s (1934-) concept of agricultural ethics as reflected in his three novels which capture the changing condition of traditional farming in America during the second half of the twentieth century: A Place on Earth (1967) which depicts the lives of traditional farmers who are encountering the loss of their loved ones to World War II, Remembering (1988) which presents the impact of technologies upon farmers, and Hannah Coulter (2004) which demonstrates an attempt of a farmer who is trying to come to terms with changes during the time of the demise of traditional farming. Applying American conservationist Aldo Leopold’s notion of “land ethics” and Berry’s discussion on the ethical treatment of the land in his non-fiction prose, this thesis argues that Berry’s agricultural ethics constitutes not only the reciprocal relationship between the land and farmers who tend animals and plants with dedicated work and attentive care but also mutual bonds of farmers’ family members and those among neighbors in the same community. His agricultural ethics also includes farmers’ sense of connectedness with their ancestors who cared for the land and their responsibility to protect the land for future generations. Berry strongly believes in traditional farming as conducive to agricultural ethics. In addition to fostering ecological conscience, it also enriches farmers’ lives with an aesthetic sense and provides them with emotional and spiritual fulfillment. Moreover, Berry views that industrial farming and urban living can deprive farmers of their spirit and relationship with the land and bring about the collapse of the family and community.