Climate Changes and its Psychological Impacts on African Americans: An Ecocritical Reading of “Floodtide” by Askia M.Toure

Authors

  • Hafna H Institute of English, University of Kerala, India

Keywords:

Climate change, Natural disaster, Floods, Eco-Anxiety, Transformational Resilience

Abstract

Natural disasters, climate changes and reminiscences of past collective memories often triggered tensions and rifts between the African Americans and the natural world. The natural hazards and severe climate changes cause psychological impacts and disrupt the mental health of African Americans. The mental health of a person is vulnerable and susceptible to sudden shocks and uncertainties. There is a high chance of risk in the disruption of mental equilibrium of a person who got impacted by the natural disaster and severe changes in the climate. It induces acute and chronic psychological impacts including trauma, Post Traumatic Stress Disorders, tensions in social affairs, depression, aggression and feelings of helplessness, fear, fatalism etc. The natural catastrophes induced by climate change have a high potential for sudden and severe psychological traumatic experiences raised due to the demise of a loved one, destruction to or loss of personal possession or physical injuries. But this did not result in a complete break away from nature.  They own a deeper dynamic connection with nature. From nature, they experienced both its nectar and the thorns. The paper aspires to analyse the numerous ways in which nature constitutes and defines the lives of African Americans through the ecocritical reading of the African American nature poem “Floodtide” by Askia M. Toure.

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Published

2021-12-15