Anxieties about the future: Ecocriticism and dystopian landscapes in the three stigmata of Palmer Eldritch and selected fiction by Philip K. Dick

Author

Nickolas Michael SykoraFollow

Graduation Date

Spring 2024

Document Type

Project

Program

Master of Arts degree with a major in English, emphasis in Applied English Studies

Committee Chair Name

Nikola Hobbel

Committee Chair Affiliation

HSU Faculty or Staff

Second Committee Member Name

Janelle Adsit

Second Committee Member Affiliation

HSU Faculty or Staff

Keywords

Ecocriticism, Anthropocene, Dystopia, Science fiction, Ontology, Artificial intelligence, Cyborg, Christian mysticism, Philip K Dick, The three stigmata of Palmer Eldritch, Second variety, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?

Subject Categories

English

Abstract

In a literary analysis of selected fiction by Philip K Dick through an ecocritical framework, the focus of this study reveals the consequences of ecological destruction on futuristic societies reflecting the Anthropocene. Drawing correlations between various texts by the author, the separation of nature from humanity demonstrates how dystopian landscapes influence the identity of the characters in these settings and how dystopia serves as a prism which distorts or reflects what it means to be human. With this, ontology and artificial intelligence are analyzed as a notable facet of his literature which addresses the progress of innovation in society and the author’s prescience of anticipating the fraught reality of integrated technologies. Centered around the novel The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch, the research also evaluates the psychological and religious implications in relation to other texts with a critical analysis of empathy and the human condition after global ecological change. This project offers a comprehensive study of selected fiction by Philip K Dick that addresses the epistemic connection and uncoupling of nature and humanity, and the psychological implications of this divergence.

Citation Style

MLA

Recommended Citation

Sykora, Nickolas Michael, "Anxieties about the future: Ecocriticism and dystopian landscapes in the three stigmata of Palmer Eldritch and selected fiction by Philip K. Dick" (2024). Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects. 760.
https://digitalcommons.humboldt.edu/etd/760