Four Lyric Poems on Autumn by Four Poets (Martin Malone, Daniel Fraser, Ghadmali Sarrami and Fazel Nazari) in compare and Contrast: An Ecocritical Approach

Four lyric poems on autumn by four poets, namely, Martin Malone (1963- ), Daniel Fraser (1987- ), Ghadmali Sarrami (1943- ) and Fazel Nazari (1979- ) are studied here. The approach adopted is ecocritical and the main question to answer is how sensitive each poem is to environmental concerns, if at all. The concerns include global warming, extinction of species, water pollution, air pollution and climate change among many other similar ones for which man is to be blamed almost exclusively. The methodology is descriptive-analytical, and the findings show that Malone and Fraser, being more conscious to environmental concerns, use “autumn” as a backbone to piece together a set of interconnected cases of destruction and disruptions brought about to nature by human beings; while Sarrami and Nazari use it symbolically to answer some ancient philosophical questions and to express their innermost individual cares and concerns, respectively, nature.
1. Introduction
Ecocriticism as a critical term is not new. First coined by William Rueckert in 1978 and later introduced into the critical mainstream by Cheryll Glotfelty and Glen Love in 1989, it has been in fashion since. That does not, however, mean that all parts of the world have embraced it equally or have reacted to it with the same degree if sensitivity and emergency even though its very coinage and use symptomize the vitality of “the critical questions of our times-really the only question of our time” (Carruthers, 2022: 5) which can be tersely stated as the way man relates to his environment or as Carruthers herself puts it: “how do we our world and halt climate crisis?” (Carruthers, 2022:5)
In response to that question and in line with the requirements of ecocriticism, four poems, with the same or almost the same titles, by four contemporary poets are examined here: Autumn by Daniel Fraser, A Northern Autumn by Martin Malone, Fall from Autumn Leaves or پاییز را از برگ‌های پاییز by Ghadamali Sarrami, and Autumn by Fazel Nazari with a view on their reception of the question of the environment and climate change. Given that all the four are lyric poems by contemporary poets, similarities are expected while differences are inevitable. The main objective here is a close examination of these four compare and contrast that can hopefully reveal the presence or absence of environmental concerns which can make a dramatic difference in the way we take care of life on Earth by reaction to the key environmental issues of our times.
2. Research Method
The study adopts an ecocritical approach. Accordingly, the questions asked and the answers given are directly concerned with the environment, the fate of man, life on Earth and how man’s actions can endanger and ruin or save all. It is a qualitative rather than quantitative research, embracing a comparative-analytical methodology, carried out through library-based research that relies on notes and note taking as the main instruments of data collection. Journals, magazines, articles, books and internet databases are the main sites where the required data is expected to come. Induction and deduction in the process of data analysis are most frequently used in studies of this kind and the present one is no exception.
3. Discussion
The four poems in focus are short lyrical compositions by contemporary poets. At least partly. They bear the name of a season, that is “Autumn” as title, and that makes expectations of deep concern with nature reasonable and likely. Two poets, out of the four, have composed in Farsi and the two others, in English. Whatever the cause, research shows that the English composers of the lyrical poems show a more poignant awareness of the environmental issues and the causes and consequences of climate change as well as the destruction that man has equally brought upon the Earth and his future on the planer, while the composers of the Farsi poems, namely, Sarrami and Nazari, are much more concerned with the natural beauties introduced by the coming of autumn, and the finding of words, phrases, similes, metaphors and images that can best describe the beauties than how the coming of autumn can reveal the change and destruction loosened by man’s filthy action upon the Earth.
 The general atmosphere in the two Farsi poems is a jolly one full of joy, celebrating the lucky chance and praising the status quo, rather than criticizing it or making suggestions to change it as it is the case in the two English poems. The gloomy air so prevalent and predominant in the English poems are blown and blasted away thanks to the surprising images that Sarrami and Nazari devise in their Farsi compositions in which being overtaken by the spectacular scenery seems to be the primary purpose of compositions or at least one of the most important ones.
In the two Farsi poems, man is not introduced as the destructive power behind the gloomy condition. He is rather implied to be the indisputable master with the unique right to enjoy the beauty of nature where nature looks like a servant that presents the master and owner with still another one of its beautiful sources of solace, as if nature beautifies itself in many ways one of which is manifested in the show to keep man, the master, happy and contented.
4. Conclusion
Love of nature a source of solace and beauty and concerns about the environment and the mother Earth might be traced back to pre-historic, ancient times. But as a modern movement, conscious of its principles and defined objectives, ecocriticism developed in the late 20^th century and flourished to affect almost all aspects of life universally, including the political, social, industrial and cultural life of man. The major dichotomy that divides the world in the ecocritical sphere of action and thought is that of man and nature with the first as the ungrateful parasite that destroys its generous host, the only source and site without which it could have no life and no existence. The narrow-minded, selfish man in his anthropocentric approach lacks all respect and regard for an environment which is his sole chance of existence.
Ecocentrism as the antithesis of anthropocentrism puts the blame on man and dethrones him. The movement tries to partly put right the human faults that have put almost everything on Earth at risk of annihilation, through literature, culture and consciousness rising, and partly through practical industrial and political measures.
Ecocriticism seeks for signs of concern over the environment, climate change, global warming, extinction of species, and air and water pollution in literary works. Yearly, awards and prizes are bestowed in those writers and poets who take an effective step to stop the man-made chaos of death and destruction. Daniel Fraser and Martin Malone who received prizes and special attention in 2020 and 2021, have been actively contributing to the rescue campaign. Two poems pivoting around the motif of autumn by these two poets were compared and contrasted with two more by outstanding Iranian poet, namely Sarrami and Nazari to show that environmental concerns do not receive the same degree of centrality and attention, and that can act as an alarm to warn the coming generations of poets and writers of the emergency of the situation.
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