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The following link, will guide you to my recent Dr. A. V., Varughese Memorial Lecture (2020) in Kerala, India

To listen to my lecture you best start the video at the 21:20 mark 

My talk is about ecocriticism as a newly emerging field in the last few decades, that involves literary criticism and ecology. I focus on a particular way I interpret this field and how it can better be holistic-integral in integrating the work on fear, fearism, and fearlessness. Fear as a vector in ecocriticism, and literary criticism, ought to take into account a term I coined in the talk, called Egocriticism. It is the combination of Ecocriticism and Egocriticism that I believe will be the better way to go in the future for truly critical analysis that really cuts through. The last 1/2 of the video is made up of questions from the audience and me answering them. 

-enjoy, 

M. 

p.s. If you want my edited version, with me talking about my lecture in commentary, go to: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVpArm2cwPw 

This Technical Paper No. 68, "Eco-Philosophy of Fearism and Ecocriticism: In an Age of Terror" is the 3rd in a series of five Technical Papers on ecocriticsm and how it interrelates to my work on fear and fearlessness. In this paper the focus is on how ecocriticism, ecophobia, and eco-issues are relevant to Desh Subba's philosophy of fearism. I propose an Eco-Fear Problem concept throughout this series of papers and end up herein sketching out the beginning of a new branch I am calling "Eco-Philosophy of Fearism." See Abstract below: 

R. Michael Fisher

Technical Paper No. 68

 Abstract – This is the 3^rd technical paper in a five part series on “ecocriticism” as it relates to the author’s work on fear and fearlessness. Technical Paper No. 68 addresses both his focused engagement with Desh Subba’s philosophy of fearism in the last three years, and with his attempting to link Subba’s notion of “fearism” and the “fearist perspective” (lens) with ecocriticism (especially, Estok’s view). The synthesis is one that has led the author to propose herein a very basic description and outline of what is a new branch of thought called Eco-Philosophy of fearism. 

Continuing on with the series of five technical papers on ecocriticism, I am pleased to offer this 2nd one: "Ecocriticism, Ecophobia and the Culture of Fear: Autobiographical Reflections" (Technical Paper 67). 

R. Michael Fisher

Technical Paper No. 67

Abstract – This second of five Technical Papers on ecocriticism, and in particular with a critical focus on discourse(s) on ecophobia (e.g., Estok’s “Hypothesis of Ecophobia”), is intended to assist the author and reader to integrate the basics from the postmodern field of ecocriticism. The author utilizes a brief autobiographical and historical ‘coming out’ as an early ecocritic and eventual academic critic of the larger phenomenon of the “culture of fear” as central to the author’s project (since 1989). He contends that despite not having accessed the ecocriticism scholarship over the past three decades or so, he has been attracted ‘naturally’ (from his late teens) to critiquing the very environmental and ecological (‘green’) movements he so loved. Though, mostly, he critiqued the mainstream society and media in how it depicted these movements. Within this autobiographical narrative the author brings in several theoretical guides (e.g., primary influence of the integral philosopher Ken Wilber) and shares his own theorizing on the “culture of fear” (and its critics), and ‘Fear’ Studies.   

I have recently come across the notion of "ecophobia" thanks to Barbara passing on a popular magazine article. The more I looked into what "ecophobia" meant, the more complex my research got and it stirred up many things of interest to me and my work on fear and fearlessness--and, the philosophy of fearism. I have attached the Technical Paper 66 I just wrote: "Why Ecocriticism Now?: Pathways to the Eco-Fear-Problem and Ecophobia."

R. Michael Fisher

Technical Paper No. 66

Abstract – The very recent discovery by the author of the field of postmodern “ecocriticism” within literary criticism, is a welcomed avenue for creative growth. It offers a site of critical reflection upon the authors’ own research and teaching trajectory to define the Fear Problem over the past 28 years. This paper has two main objectives: (1) to outline a series of five technical papers on ecocriticism, of which No. 66 is the first introductory work and, (2) to inquire into the what, who, why of “ecocriticism” as it is portrayed in literary criticism, emphasizing a two-way (or split) in the thinking about its nature and function, especially in regard to the concept of “ecophobia” (i.e., via David Sobel contra Simon Estok). The author is particularly aligned with Estok’s general direction of thinking to the point of reconceptualizing the Fear Problem within the immanent crises of a tragic global future called the Anthropocene era, as meta-context. With this influence, focus shifts to articulating the Eco-Fear Problem. Implications lead the author to an eventual invoking of a new branch of Subba’s philosophy of fearism field of study to what Fisher is calling eco-philosophy of fearism. Overall, throughout this series of technical papers, and beyond, the author desires to add a rich set of layering and lenses to bring into the field of ecocriticism, to enable a mutual cross-fertilization with the richness of ecocriticism and in particular Estok’s “Ecophobia Hypothesis.”  

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ECOFEMINISM response to the cascading "extinction" crises now and coming... is a bit of a different angle on the eco-fear problem, and that is that women may generally prefer to work on eco-grief... so I included the work here of Heidi Hunter as someone to read, watch her video and find guidance from through these times--along with the more masculine approaches (like my paper above)... http://www.heidihutner.com/ecofeminism-mothering/2015/11/29/eco-grief-and-ecofeminism