This essay explores the different levels of scale used in Richard Powers’ novel The Overstory. The central thesis of this essay, “The Novel on a New Scale: Considering the World in a Tree’s Lifetime,” examines the different levels of scale, from the general concept to the particular scale of the novel as a medium, as well as the spatial and temporal scales of human and non-human entities in The Overstory. This exploration unfolds through four sections, each with its own sub-sections: Scale, History to Fiction, The Character and the Decentering of the Human, and the Temporal Scale. By examining how The Overstory tackles the challenges of operating on multiple scales to provide an authentic narrative, this essay contributes to the emerging field of Anthropocene fiction. It further emphasizes the need to acknowledge multiple scales both as authors and readers, as they inherit the power to shift perspectives. Richard Powers is a novelist who successfully brings the natural world closer to his readers while truthfully addressing the critical issues of climate change and deforestation.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:mau-67410 |
| Date | January 2024 |
| Creators | Dahlmann, Carlotta |
| Publisher | Malmö universitet, Institutionen för konst, kultur och kommunikation (K3) |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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