From colonization to conservation: examining representations of nonhuman Arctic animals in British children's literature during the long nineteenth century

Abstract

This paper examines the impact of British children's literature on shaping attitudes toward the Arctic and its nonhuman animals during the long nineteenth century. As the British renewed their interest in the Arctic, authors used children's literature to convey imperial ambitions and shape beliefs about the region. Using an ecocritical lens, this analysis demonstrates that the crafting of nonhuman animal portrayals helped shape children's beliefs about the Arctic and its role in the British Empire. The literature showcased illustrates a significant shift in British attitudes toward the human-environment relationship, moving from exploration to exploitation to protection. Early exploration narratives introduced the idea of limitless wildlife populations and encouraged children's interest in natural history, while later anthropocentric adventure stories reinforced beliefs about empire by pitting humans against wild creatures. Ecocentric Arctic fiction published in the last third of the period challenged beliefs about resource colonization and fostered conversations about conservation by using ecohorror and writing from the perspectives of wild creatures to evoke empathy in readers, ultimately decentering people and shifting British beliefs about Arctic nonhuman animals moving into the twentieth century.