Re-storying Nature: An Eco-critical Reading of Parkes’s Tail of the Blue Bird

Abstract

This paper applies African eco-criticism to analyse human-nature relationships in Nii Ayikwei Parkes’s Tail of the Blue Bird. From the discussions, vivid depictions of rivers, forests, animals and spirits showcase profound connections through which nature shapes cultural identities. Specifically, Parkes’s use of metaphors and rich sensory details immerses readers in the bond between society and habitat. Parkes’s use of proverbs conveys the ethics of sustainability, while seasonal bounties mark cycles of interdependency with the land. The narrative, woven on the tensions between modernity and ancestral traditions is carved around nature. While Parkes appreciates rivers over roads, lamenting losses, he acknowledges adapting wisdom to current challenges. These insights affirm rich Ghanaian/African philosophical frameworks fostering environmental stewardship. Representing nature as a vibrant, agentic force with subjectivity, Parkes’s novel reconfigures destructive notions of human exceptionalism that drives ecological decline. It prompts deeper reflection on Africa’s ecology and recognition of our inheritance in the natural world.