Eco-Spiritual Reverence in the Poetry of Robert Graves

The relationship between man and nature had been a central concern in
British Literature before it gained precedence in intellectual discourses
in the 19th and 20th centuries. In Robert Graves’s poetry, eco-poetic
paradigms of reverence have not been profoundly investigated. Therefore,
this article highlights the eco-poetic perspectives inherent in Graves’s
response to nature with a particular emphasis on the
pantheistic/spiritual dimensions of his ecology. Premised on the
argument that although Graves’s poetry is replete with humanist
tendencies, his relationship with the natural environment is religious, the
researcher borrows critical insights from eco-critical theories to sustain
the discussion of Graves’s representation of nature concerning human
activity and goddess spirituality. The paper, thus, fosters the discourses
for the sustainable management of the natural environment, which have
gained global attention via platforms like the Paris Agreement and COP
Conferences. The paper is subdivided into an introduction, three sections, and a conclusion.

Keywords: Ecology, Spirituality, Nature, Reverence