ECO-CENTRIC NARRATIVES AND LINGUISTIC CHOICES: A SYSTEMIC FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS OF SHAMSIE’S BURNT SHADOWS AND POWERS’ THE OVERSTORY

Abstract

The present study examines the use of ecological ethics, empathy, and nonhuman agency as linguistic constructs in Shamsie’s Burnt Shadows (2009) and Powers’ The Overstory (2018). Applying an ecocentrism, Eco-stylistic approach grounded in Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL), the research integrates transitivity analysis, Appraisal Theory, eco-lexical mapping, and metaphor study to reveal how contemporary fiction works to decentre the human. Using purposive sampling, twelve to twenty eco-scenes across both novels were closely analysed to trace the representation of human and nonhuman actors, and to assess how evaluative language expresses ecological stance. The findings indicate that Burnt Shadows maintains an anthropocentric distribution of agency, where humans and political systems dominate as actor roles, and landscapes function primarily as repositories of trauma tied to war and nuclear violence. In contrast, The Overstory grammatically animates trees and ecosystems through material and mental processes, fostering a biocentric worldview grounded in multispecies interdependence and ecological resistance. Appraisal analysis further explains that Shamsie’s narrative encodes negative emotional weight and moral judgment associated with human-made destruction. At the same time, Powers constructs positive appreciation and ethical alignment with forests and environmental activism. The study suggests the application of the Eco-Stylistic SFL Model (ESFLM) as a methodological innovation for operationalizing ecological ethics in language. It concludes that forms of language and judgment, as well as meaning, are the focus of reimagining the relationship between humans and nonhumans in crisis.