Decadent ecology in British literature and art, 1860-1910: decay, desire, and the pagan revival

Abstract

The book focuses on the pervasive influence of decadence and paganism on modern understandings of nature and the environment, queer and feminist politics, national identities, and changing social hierarchies on late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century British art, literature, ecological science and paganism. The author digs into works by Simeon Solomon, Algernon Swinburne, Walter Pater, Robert Louis Stevenson, Vernon Lee, Michael Field, Arthur Machen and others to address trans-temporal, trans-species intimacy, the vagabondage of place, the erotics of decomposition, occult ecology, decadent feminism, and neopaganism.

Contents

Introduction : thoughts on Imbolc 2021 -- 1. Decadent ecology and the pagan revival -- 2. "Up & down & horribly natural": Walter Pater and the decadent anthropocene -- 3. The lick of love : trans-species intimacy in Simeon Solomon and Michael Field -- 4. The Genius Loci as spirited vagabond in Robert Louis Stevenson and Vernon Lee -- 5. Occult ecology and the decadent feminism of Moina Mathers and Fiona Farr -- 6. Sinking feeling : intimate decomposition in William Sharp, Arthur Machen, and George Egerton -- Epilogue.