Nature and Environmental Ethics in Indigenous Literature: A Study of Linda Hogan's Power and Sherman Alexie's The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven

Abstract

This paper analyzes how nature and environmental ethics are represented in contemporary Indigenous American literature, focusing on Power by Linda Hogan (1998) and The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven by Sherman Alexie (1993). Using ecocritical theory and postcolonial environmental discourse, the study explores Indigenous ecological worldviews and how they challenge dominant Western paradigms. By examining the intersection of cultural persistence, environmental stewardship, and spiritual connection to land, this paper provides a close reading through Lawrence Buell’s ecocritical model. The analysis argues that both authors use narrative techniques to equate ecological damage with cultural erasure, and to propose that ecological renewal and cultural survival are inseparable. Hogan presents nature as a sacred text requiring ceremonial understanding, while Alexie depicts environmental loss as ongoing trauma that fragments identity. The findings show that Indigenous environmental ethics, as portrayed by these authors, offer essential alternative approaches to ecological crisis. This study contributes to ecocritical discourse by foregrounding Indigenous perspectives and highlighting the importance of incorporating Indigenous ecological knowledge in environmental humanities research.