The problematics of personal eco-identity in the selected Malaysian novels in English
Publication Date
July 25, 2026
Creator
Azlan Abdul Razak
Abstract
In Malaysian English literary and critical discourse, the role of nature is often framed through broad themes such as environmental degradation, land development, and national identity, inter alia. What is frequently overlooked, however, is how individual relationships with the natural world shape personal eco-identity — particularly in the contexts marked by colonial displacement, spiritual beliefs, and individuals’ daily survival. This thesis addresses such gap by examining how personal eco-identity is formed in selected Malaysian English literary novels. The study is guided by three key objectives: first, to examine how nature is represented in selected Malaysian novels written in English and how these representations contribute to the construction of personal eco-identity within the historical and socio-political contexts, second, to explore the ways in which conflict, emotional response, spiritual belief, and interpersonal dynamics inform the formation of these personal eco-identities, and third, to analyse how individual characters’ relationships with the natural world are shaped through affective, behavioural, and experiential engagements. Drawing on the close textual readings of Jungle of Hope by Keris Mas, Yalpanam by Shivani Sivagurunathan, No Harvest but a Thorn by Shahnon Ahmad, Between Lives by K.S. Maniam, and Long Road to Merdeka by Kamarul Zaman Ariff, the thesis traces how nature functions not merely as a backdrop or resource, but as a dynamic force in the shaping of self. These engagements — spiritual, emotional, and practical — unfold across five thematic strands: (i) survival and sustenance, (ii) dominance and materialistic quest, (iii) emotion and affect, (iv) spiritual beliefs and ritualistic practices, and (v) dynamics of inter-human relationships. Situated within a composite of frameworks comprising postcolonial ecocriticism and ecopsychology, hitherto termed as the Framework of Personal Eco-Identity, this thesis argues that identity in these texts is neither static nor autonomous but continually shaped through reciprocal relations with the environment. Foregrounding its contribution to ecocriticism, ecopsychology, and Malaysian literary studies by advancing the concept of personal eco-identity, nature is no longer viewed not a passive setting but appreciated, instead, as a responsive presence — one that influences, participates in, and reflects the shades and contours of human life — bringing attention to the oft-overlooked textures of such environmentally morphed identity — how it is felt, enacted, and negotiated in relation to land, belief, memory, and community.
Item Type
ethesis
Thesis Type
PhD
Supervisors
University of Nottingham, Malaysia
Subjects (LC)
Associated Schools / Departments
UoN Repository URI
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