Contextualizing Narratives: Interdisciplinary Intellectual Masturbation

This topic submitted by Brian, Jason, Maggie, Randy, Ryan on 2/13/03. [ Rivers Team: Brian, Jason, Maggie, Randy, Ryan-Section: Blaisdell/Wolfe]

Introduction
The problem our group (henceforth dubbed the I.M.O.Õs) is addressing is a problem that has plagued our species for too long. This problem is the lack of emotional/spiritual connection we have to the cycles of Earth and the increasingly obtuse ecological understanding humans have in regards to the "natural" world. In order to circumvent the larger cultures constant barrage of attacks on individuals and systems that attempt to increase environmental consciousness our group intends to write a set of narratives. These narratives will be written from different perspectives of organisms that are found in and about the Four-Mile Creek area located in Southwest Ohio (e.g. a tree, a man, an African-American woman, a fish, or a twig in the stream).
Our hypothesis is that by writing stories from an array of perspectives that we do not necessarily consider on a daily basis, we will increase our ability to empathize with not just other people, but also other species. We also hypothesize that a reader would be similarly affected. Since the texts will present different perspectives on a singular river, a reader will be forced to analyze and interpret those perspectives, giving the viewpoints an inherent degree of validity. If this works, the set of narratives will then also act as mechanisms that increase environmental understanding and empathy.
Our group plans to accomplish the task of both expanding our environmental understanding and create a body of work that acts as a road map leading to environmental empathy for reader. Though this seems quite optimistic, our group feels that it is still worth attempting. Utilizing the venue of story-telling and our creative talents, our group will at least expand our ability to emulate differing creatures and empathize with organisms of all kind. This study seems extremely relevant because of its difficult task of creating narratives which have the ability to change how one feels and/or thinks about nature.
By using perspectives that are very wide ranging in our narratives, we will be able to incorporate the views of numerous different disciplines in creating a more comprehensive understanding of the problem we are studying. Only by looking at a problem from a variety of facets at one time will we be able to more coherently understand it as a diverse, complex issue, with many sides. Through our multiple narrative stories in our project, we will tap into numerous disciplnes that span the sciences, humanities and social sciences.

Relevance of Our Research Question
Environmentalism and increasing environmental consciousness has been around for a very long time. Very few have ever claimed to have found a way to integrate the "human" world and the "natural" world and those who have, have yet to see their ideas come to fruition.
Below is a list of related sources or sources that have inspired us to some degree to address this problem in the manner we have chosen.

Bass, Rick. "On Wilderness and Wallace Stegner". The Amicus Journal (Spring 1997).
This article responds to the question of whether nature or wilderness has any intrinsic value; that is value outside of providing natural resources. This piece is very important because it provides empirical evidence using psychology and sociology to concretely respond that, yes, the wilderness does have intrinsic value.

Brooks, Bruce. The Red Wasteland: A Personal Selection of Writings about Nature. New York: Library Of Congress, 1998.
This reader is a compilation of writing from an collection of authors who are concerned with raising environmental consciousness. This reader contains authors like Rachel Carson, Italo Calvino and J.H. Fabre. This book contains a lot of useful examples of how to write a scientifically significant fictional narrative.

Byrnes, Patricia. Environmental Pioneers. Oliver Press, 1998.
Byrnes writes a holistic summary of the American environmental movement. The book focuses on eight major environmental figures. It provides a large portion of information about environmental psychology and anthropological studies are used to juxtapose results in America with other cultures.

Carson, Rachel. Silent Spring. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1962.
CarsonÕs monumental text, Silent Spring, has inspired many to rethink and revise how they feel about the environment and how they treat it. Rachel Carson was a visionary for the environmental movement early on and was at the forefront of causing many early environmental changes. Her use of narrative-style intertwined with scientific reasoning influenced many readers.
Clark, John. The Anarchist Moment: Reflections on Culture, Nature & Power. (MontrŽal: Black Rose Books, 1984). "What is Social Ecology?". Our Generation, 1992.
An anarchist perspective is one often overlooked within an environmental discourse. Our group reference this book because in order to have a truly well-rounded narrative style, we need to include more than just conservative and liberal environmentalism. This article provides many facts and statistics and shows the significance any form of systemic economy has on an ecological system.

Commoner, Barry. The Closing Circle: Nature, Man, and Technology. New York: Knopf, 1971.
This book offers a distinct look at the interconnectedness of nature, man and technology. Commoner examines what he calls the "Technological Problem" with man. This book is especially important in understanding how to weave a believable narrative about an environmentally and human friendly world.

Commoner, Barry. Energy and Human Welfare: The Social Costs of Power Production Vol 1. New York: Knopf, 1975.
Another Commoner book, Energy and Human Welfare provides statistics and data about how much energy is gained from damming and the effects it has on both the humanÕs surroundings and the ecosystemÕs health.

Cronon, William. Changes in the Land: Indians, Colonists & the Ecology of New England. New York: Hill & Wang, 1983.
This amazing text gives a beautiful linear history of how the environment has been effected by the different forms of civilization. This text grants our group more knowledge about differing perspectives and adds a much needed dynamic to our narratives.

Devall, Bill, and George Sessions. Deep Ecology: Living as if Nature Mattered. Salt Lake City, UT: Peregrine Smith Books, 1982.
Devall is a classic ecology writer who has a way of causing dissonance in any reader. He writes in his book Deep Ecology about how one should live in harmony with nature. He lays down a firm thesis about why, how and when humans should live as a part of nature rather than apart from nature.

Diamond, Irene, and Gloria Orenstein, eds. Reweaving the World: The Emergence of Ecofeminism. San Francisco: Sierra Club Books, 1990.
These three authors convincingly argue for a complete annihilation of the current lens the dominant culture view nature through. The three argue that women have been oppressed for thousands of years and that because of many matriarchal religionsÕ focus on nature, nature has been oppressed as well. This text will aid us in writing from an ecofeministÕs perspective if we so choose.

Fort, Bruce. (1998). "American Slave Narratives". http://xroads.virginia.edu/~hyper/wpa/wpahome.html
This website had references to numerous slave narratives from American history. Our group felt it necessary to look at how other authors in the past have used narratives as a transformative venue so that we may refine our skills at mimicking their efforts (in relation to environmental empathy).

Gaudet, Marcia. (1999). "Gaines' Fifteen Narrators: Narrative Styles and Storytelling Technique in A Gathering of Old Men". http://www.crt.state.la.us/folklife/main_misc_gaines_old_men.html.
This useful article by Gaudet espouses the numerous styles an author could use when writing a narrative text. Although somewhat longwinded, the articleÕs fifteen styles are extremely relevant.

Gilliam, Harold. Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Bay: The Struggle to Save San Francisco Bay. San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1969.
Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Bay is an excellent piece of environmental writing that describes the struggles that thousands of people went through in order to save a dying ecosystem. This text is an imperative piece of evidence for our study, showing that nature does have value and that we are apart of it.

Hippolyte, Michael. (1995). "Nonlinear Writing Styles", http://users.rcn.com/mash.interport/nonlin.html.
This website was used by our group to develop our ability to write a non-linear narrative. We feel that in order to portray the differing consciousnesses that our narratives will tap into, we will need to test out diverse writing styles.

Manes, Christopher. Green Rage: Radical Environmentalism and the Unmaking of Civilization. Boston: Little, Brown, 1990.
ManesÕ book outlines the history of radical environmentalism across the globe. His book focuses on the goals of such groups and how they go about reaching those goals. This book contains many useful facts and grants us a view into a perspective we may write about.

Rossiter, Marsha. (2002). "Narrative and Stories in Adult Teaching and Learning". http://ericacve.org/docgen.asp?tbl=digests&ID=126.
Narratives have always held a strong grip on educators according to this website. This site is another web-based program to encourage the use of narratives in certain settings (in this case an educational setting). Our group found this useful because of its considerate support forthe use of narratives as a means of shifting paradigms.

Wong, Paul T. P. (2001). "Transformative narrative therapy". http://www.meaning.ca/articles/presidents_column/Transformative_narrative_therapy_sept02.htm.
Paul Wong is a psychologist who has written many texts revolving around the idea of narrative as a transformative agent in therapy sessions. This website reviews and discusses some of the efforts that Wong endorses. Our group found this to be quite intriguing and illuminate some of the possibilities of the narrative style.

Our research relates to a much larger issue than just writing fictional narratives or scientific study; the larger questions that we hope to address throughout our study are as follows: How do humans interact with nature in the Four-Mile Creek area (and other areas near bodies of water)? What perceptions might other species near the Four-Mile Creek area have of the world around them? How can story-telling be used to foster a higher level of environmental consciousness? To what degree can humans be expected to empathize with species so dissimilar than themselves?
These questions will all be investigated throughout our research and, hopefully, some answers will be reached. This study relates to a vast body of study and disciplines, although the core theoretical foundation will be environmentalism/environmental ethics, nature psychology, and power implications in narration.

Interdisciplinarity Approach (cultural, social, scientific perspectives)
At the heart of interdisciplinarity as a whole is the idea of contextualization; taking specific instances, places, objects, and occurrences and placing them inside a variety of reference points or perspectives. Only by delving and exploring through various contexts surrounding particular specific perspectives can one truly attain a comprehensive understanding of the system surrounding their inquiry. To explore these various insights coming from different contexts and vantage points, we will be using the narrative form.
By using narratives, we will be able to capture individual nuances and insights coming from the various viewpoints we will be writing from. These various viewpoints will give us further insight into how a variety of disciplines intertwine in the study of the problem we are inquiring about, that of the lack of emotional/spiritual connection we have with the natural world and the lack of connection with the ecology of our planet, with specific regard to the area of Four Mile Creek. These narratives will act as foci of the various disciplines that cross over this problem and will not only act to give us a better interdisciplinary understanding of the problem, but also an intercultural understanding as well.
Numerous disciplines and fields will be incorporated into the various narratives we write. By writing from the perspective of an African-American woman, we will be able to include ideas from anthropology, environmental studies, cultural studies, sociology, and others through discussion of topics such as humanity and nature, African-American studies, pollution and many others. By writing from the perspective of a fish living in the creek, we can include ideas from biology, ecology, and environmental studies. Through the use of narratives as focus points for discussion amongst various disciplines and fields of study, we can make a comprehensive understanding of the problem more accessible and easily reached and related to.
By using the fictional narrative as our exploration tool, we can use its form to seek out and integrate the ways in which various ideas, concepts, disciplines, and perspectives come into play in different contexts relating to a single problem. A great deal of fiction writing deals with multiple facets of a variety of problems, it is often done unconsciously as part of a human experience involving numerous complex systems. In contrast, our fictional narratives will be written with a particular problem in mind as a foundation. Our stories will be written in a purposeful way to not only include, but explore and investigate the relations and interconnectedness between multiple facets of the problem from each perspective we choose to write from.

Specific Research Design
In order to come to any informed conclusions on whether our study has truly addressed the proposed issues, our group will need to have a complex understanding of the body of water that acts as the setting for our narratives. To develop this comprehension, our group plans to go on hikes near Four-Mile creek to gather data about the culture along the stream, the fishes inhabiting the stream, and general reactions of those living near the stream.
One study our group must complete is a biodiversity study. This research will be done in order to study the different types of organisms present in the ecosystem. Our plan to discover the different types of fish is to take out a shock-stick to the creek and travel along the creek while stopping to shock the fish and tally up the different forms of organisms. We must also scan the area for insects and fungus and what plant life exists along the creek as well. After we have a firm grasp of what kinds of organisms inhabit the Four-Mile Creek area, our group must then learn what the life of those organisms is like for those inhabiting Four-Mile Creek. Then our group will be prepared to write a narrative from many different organisms around the Four-Mile Creek area.
In order to write a comprehensive narrative about a humanÕs perception, our group plans on interviewing students and faculty of Miami Of Ohio University who have lived on or near Four-Mile Creek. These interviews will hopefully yield information about how certain identity issues (e.g. gender, race, age, sexual orientation and ethnicity) affect oneÕs frame of mind in regards to Four-Mile Creek and the creatures around that area.
After all of this data is gathered and all of our research is done, our group will then begin to write narratives from different speciesÕ perspectives. These stories will all take place at the same moment and be about the same happenings. However, each story will contain a unique analysis of these activities. After each member has written a narrative, we plan to attempt to weave the stories together to create a cohesive tale from multiple points-of-view.

Materials And Methods
The materials we, the I.M.O.Õs will use throughout our project include the fish-shocker, nets, buckets, a pad of paper and writing utensils, lost of creativity, the aforementioned books and a computer. The fish-shocker will be used to send electric currents through the body of the precious fishes. After they have been successfully electrocuted to a point of paralysis, we will use our net to swipe their soft bodies from the water. Once in our net, we will place them in the bucket that will be filled with water because we would hate to see the fishes we have just fried via electricity to lack the ability to breath, being that the I.M.O.Õs are a nice group of individuals. Finally we will record the fishesÕ species using our handy pad of paper and writing utensil.
After studying the fishes and performing our research on people who live in the Four-Mile Creek area, we will begin writing our narratives from the perspectives that our groups chooses.
Our research team plans on interacting in a very fluid manner. Although we have delineated roles to members of the I.M.O. team, if a member wishes to perform different tasks, we have come to a consensus that these changes would be allowed. The roles of specific group members are that each member is responsible for at least one narrative written from a perspective unique to an organism (taking into account societal factors for humans). Also, all members are required to attend the research that sends us out to the Four-Mile Creek area. The I.M.O. team is a team and will perform all research as a group.
The statistics we will use in our scientific analysis are those gathered from the census taken on what sorts of organisms live in the Four-Mile Creek area. These will more than likely just be a chart of the different organisms and how they fit into the Four-Mile CreekÕs circle of life.

Timeline For The I.M.O.Õs projectÉ
Feb. 12th Ð Typing "Proposal"
Feb. 28th-Mar. 3rd Ð Go out to Four-Mile Creek and take inventory of organisms present
Mar. 5th -Mar. 10th Ð Research and attempt to piece together life cycle of Four-Mile Creek.
Mar. 15th-Mar 20th Ð Begin researching human interaction with Four-Mile Creek (including human research mentioned earlier).
Apr. 1st-Apr. 15th Ð Type up "creative" narratives of chosen organisms.

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