Introduction: The language employed in literature can contribute to narratives which reflect and affect readers’ perceptions of nonhuman animals. The nonhuman animal is communicated, miscommunicated, or transformed by representation in human language in a multiplicity of ways. Negative or limiting associations can become attached to animal bodies through stereotypical, symbolic, anthropomorphic, or inaccurate representations in literature. These associations influence how people perceive and react to animals in real world encounters, leading to the misunderstanding, containment, and harm of animals.
Key literature references: This presentation examines how language in literature shapes our relationship to the world and the other beings in it by drawing together the philosophical considerations of Jacques Derrida and Donna Haraway, studies in human-animal affect by Rheana Parreñas and Brian Massumi, the ethical ecocritical considerations of Carol J Adams and Marc Bekoff, and examinations of narrative in poetry by Brian McHale and Stuart Cooke.
Principle conclusions and implications for the field: As animals cannot respond to the narratives we create about them, we have an ethical responsibility to question the ways our relationships with animals are constructed and circulated through the acts of writing and reading literature. We can use our knowledge of how our use of language in literature affects our perceptions of animals to create compassion rather than fear or distance. We can also attempt to show the individuality and distinctiveness of animals encountered in the text while not just singling out some individuals as ‘special’ or an ‘exemption’, as pets tend to become. By representing animals in literature as individuals who matter, we can open the way for affective connections and relationships to be built between human and nonhuman animals