Epochs, ages, and cycles: Time and environment in literature

This special issue gathers together some of the contributions from the the Association for the Study of Literature and the Environment, UK and Ireland (ASLE-UKI) conference 2022, in the hope of preserving, sharing, and continuing the examination of Burke’s pluri-temporal view through the lens of ecocriticism and literature. Together, these articles offer a wide range of approaches that contribute to the development of critical time studies. From more established themes, such as deep time and grief to evolving areas such as ecological economics and queer time, they remind us there are multiple avenues of thought concerning ways in which we can negotiate living in a present moment in time that hangs between vastly different but intimately inter-connected pasts and futures. The bodies of writing selected for critical exploration by our fabulous group of contributors show us that this relationship and this journey can be changed at any time, and that literature may play a key role in that process.