Aesthetics as a Web of Anxieties in the Postmodern American Literature

Abstract

Aesthetics can be defined as the responsiveness to appreciate and understand nature in its uncontaminated form. However, the existing form of nature has become more ‘toxic’ rather than ‘aesthetic’. The study approaches toxicity by focusing on the aesthetics and ethics of the toxic in Postmodern American literature. Qualitative in nature, it uses Gare’s book Postmodernism and the Environmental Crisis as a theoretical support to explore the connection between toxicity and aesthetics, focusing on the cultural and environmental dimensions. A thematic analysis using close reading technique focuses on how postmodern American literature implies the anxieties of contemporary life and the interplay between narratives and toxicity, to reveal a strong connection between human experiences and ecological realities. The discussion illustrates that the postmodern literature blurs the boundaries between toxicity and aesthetics. It depicts ‘aesthetics’ as a nasty web of ambiguities and tensions. It also illuminates the dual status of aesthetics when apparent beauty often conceals impairment and destruction, leading to apprehension.