An Ecocritical Reading of Water Symbolism in a Selection of Two Female Native American Poets

Abstract

This paper offers an ecocritical and narrative reading of a selection of poems from both Harjo and Hogan. It explores native American legacy and their sense of hope and revival expressed in their poetry. The selection of poems discussed in this paper expands our understanding of narrative, with its plot, time and perspective as basic constituents and how it gives way to multi-focality, timelessness and blurring of main and marginal in the plot covering both anthropocentric and biocentric perspectives without overlooking issues of representation, human cognition and multiple levels of agency. Adopting ecocritical and narrative approaches relocates nature and spirituality, with focus on water symbols, in the centre of artistic expression not overlooking stylistic and textual properties at the representation of human consciousness. Forms of artistic expression offer to expand the oral-tradition and legacy of Native Americans yet in ―English‖ and poetic form.