The Subordinated Other: Exploring Gender and Environmental Subjugation in Barbara Kingsolver’s <i>Prodigal Summer</i> through Val Plumwood’s Theory of Master Model

ABSTRACT One of the fundamental issues in mankind’s pursuit of greater development is the protection of the environment and other subordinated groups, which has been a major concern of ecofeminists in recent decades. Claiming that environmental issues are feminist issues, ecofeminists argue that the domination of women correlates with the exploitation of nature and there are critical linkages between the two. Val Plumwood, one of the most distinguished environmental philosophers, describes the oppression of humans and nature as a phenomenon stemming from a system of dualistic structures. According to this notion, these structures are psychologically manifested through the identity of the Master Model in which the Self recognizes the Other not as a distinct center of agency but rather as either a hindrance to or a resource for its needs. Examining various forms of oppression, Barbara Kingsolver in Prodigal Summer illustrates the social inequalities and the destructive attitudes toward nature and argues that they stem from the existing hierarchical dualisms in society. Accordingly, the article aims to portray these dualistic structures, their consequences, and the ways through which they are manifested psychologically. The article concludes that the domination of women and nature are correlated and lie behind many environmental degradations and oppressive attitudes toward women.