• Imran Ahmad Wani

Nature, as Tom J. Hillard says, has always been a source of fear, danger, and contempt. This phenomenon of fear of nature is termed as ecophobia. Ecophobia, in simple terms, can be defined as an unfounded belief in and fear of the destructive powers of nature. The term has been variously defined as i) “an irrational fear of home” (Arikan). ii) “A feeling of powerlessness to prevent cataclysmic environmental change, apocalypse, etc.” (en.wiktionary.org/wiki/ecophobia) iii) “an irrational fear (sometimes, of course, leading to a contempt or hatred) of the agency (real or imagined) of nature” (Estok 74). Taking definitions (i) and (iii), particularly, on board, this paper employs close textual analysis, to explore and analyze how negativity is associated with nature, in part first of Neel Mukherjee’s novel, A State of Freedom. It further argues that nature in itself is neutral—neither good nor bad, therefore the (negative) qualities associated with it are nothing but the projections and reflections of the (unnamed) protagonist’s own fears.

Nature, Death, Fear, Ecophobia, Projection

"Images of Death: Ecophobia in Part I of Neel Mukherjee’s A State of Freedom", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.12, Issue 5, page no.a452-a455, May-2025, Available :http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR2505047.pdf

"Images of Death: Ecophobia in Part I of Neel Mukherjee’s A State of Freedom", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org | UGC and issn Approved), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.12, Issue 5, page no. ppa452-a455, May-2025, Available at : http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR2505047.pdf