Woman-Nature Connection in Camille T. Dungy’s Soil: The Story of a Black Mother’s Garden (2023): A Constructive Stone in The Ecowomanist Discussion

Year 2025, Volume: 13 Issue: 37, 117 - 136, 30.09.2025

Wafa Merahbaoui , Salim Kerboua

https://doi.org/10.31126/akrajournal.1667642

Abstract

The present paper investigates the issue of woman-nature connection through the theoretical framework of ecowomanism. The portrayal of women's connection to nature has long been a subject of debate within ecofeminism, the first critical approach to address the unjust practices towards women and nature. Nonetheless, while ecofeminism is one of the foundational frameworks upon which eco-womanism was built, it overlooked the concerns of Black women and their ecological experiences. Hence, ecowomanism has emerged in reaction to the limitations identified within ecofeminism. Ecowomanism, while similar to ecofeminism, introduces a distinct and more involved discourse that moves beyond earlier debates. The analysis conducted in this article reveals that women of African descent and their communities have an empowering connection with the earth; a connection that has various dimensions: inclusive, spiritual, remedial, epistemological, and even paradoxical. They are both a part of the web of life which interconnects humanity, nature and the divine. In order to examine these findings, the discussion is directed towards Camille T. Dungy's memoir, Soil: The Story of a Black Mother's Garden (2023) as a literary work by an African American female writer that echoes and exemplifies such empo-wering multi-dimensional connections. Through detailed thematic and textual an-alysis, the article examines how the author views gardening as more than a physical act, but an act of resistance, personal growth, and connection to the earth.

Keywords

African-Descended Women , Ecowomanism , Multi-Dimensional Connections , Nature , Soil

Camille T. Dungy’nin Soil: Bir Siyah Anne’nin Bahçesi (2023) Eserinde Kadın-Doğa Bağı: Eco-Womanist Tartışmasında Yapıcı Bir Taş

Abstract

Bu makale, kadın-doğa bağlantısı sorununu ekokadıncılık teorik çerçevesiyle incelemektedir. Kadınların doğayla ilişkisi, kadınlara ve doğaya yönelik adaletsiz uygulamalara dikkat çeken ilk eleştirel yaklaşım olan ekofeminizm içinde uzun süredir tartışılan bir konudur. Ancak ekofeminizm, ekokadıncılığın temelini oluşturmasına rağmen, siyah kadınların ve onların ekolojik deneyimlerinin kaygılarını göz ardı etmiştir. Bu nedenle, ekokadıncılık ekofeminizmdeki sınırlamalara tepki olarak ortaya çıkmıştır. Ekokadıncılık, ekofemizme benzerlik taşısa da, önceki tartışmaların ötesine geçen özgün ve daha kapsamlı bir söylem sunar. Bu makalede yapılan analiz, Afrika kökenli kadınlar ve topluluklarının doğayla güçlendirici bir bağa sahip olduğunu ortaya koymaktadır; bu bağ kapsayıcı, ruhani, iyileştirici, epistemolojik ve hatta paradoksal olmak üzere çeşitli boyutlara sahiptir. Onlar, insanlık, doğa ve ilahi arasındaki yaşam ağına dâhildirler. Bu bulguları incelemek amacıyla, tartışma Afrika Amerikalı kadın yazar Camille T. Dungy’nin 2023 tarihli anı kitabı Soil: The Story of a Black Mother's Garden üzerinden yürütülmüştür; bu eser, güçlendirici çok boyutlu bağları yansıtan ve örnekleyen bir çalışmadır. Ayrıntılı tematik ve metin analizi yoluyla, makale yazarın bahçeciliği sadece fiziksel bir eylem olarak değil, aynı zamanda bir dire eniş, kişisel gelişim ve toprakla bağ kurma eylemi olarak gördüğünü incelemektedir.

Keywords

Afrika Kökenli Kadınlar , Ekokadıncılık , Çok Boyutlu Bağlantılar , Doğa , Toprak

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