Extinction of experience: Nature, loss, and feminist modernist pedagogy

This study examines the pedagogical potential of Ayu Utami’s Saman in an English Language Teaching (ELT) classroom at a Muhammadiyah university in Indonesia. Drawing on the concepts of extinction of experience, ecofeminism, and feminist literary pedagogy, the study explores how literary engagement supports students’ ecological reflection through contextual teaching and learning. Using a qualitative interpretive design, data were collected from 24 undergraduate ELT students through reflective reading journals, classroom discussions, and final reflective essays, and analyzed using thematic analysis. Three interconnected themes emerged: Sensing ecological loss through literary experience, Naming environmental injustice through feminist close reading, and Writing toward Ecological Responsibility through reflective English writing. The findings suggest that culturally situated literary pedagogy can support critical literacy, ecological reflection, and language learning by connecting literary texts with students’ lived experiences and local ethical values. The study proposes a three-stage pedagogical model that contributes to sustainability-oriented and culturally responsive ELT in Global South contexts.