Murray, J. (2021). Women Navigating the Climate Catastrophe: Challenging Anthropocentrism in Selected Fiction. Journal of Literary Studies, 37(3), 15–33. https://doi.org/10.1080/02564718.2021.1959760

• Murray discusses how different novels address climate catastrophe and the emotional pressure that comes with caring for the planet. Even though her argument focuses on women in these stories, the part that actually helps my project is her discussion of the emotional side of climate anxiety,  things like feeling overwhelmed, responsible, or stuck between everyday life and global disaster. I’m using this source because it gives me a vocabulary for understanding the kind of climate worry and emotional “weight” that shows up in Weather. Murray’s ideas about ecological fear and the burden of caring for the world help me explain how Offill’s fragmented style captures that same feeling, even though my paper isn’t explicitly focused on gender.

De Cristofaro, D. (2024). ‘How do you sleep at night knowing all this?’: climate breakdown, sleep, and extractive capitalism in contemporary literature and culture. Textual Practice, 38(10), 1601–1623. https://doi.org/10.1080/0950236X.2023.2265887

• De Cristofaro examines how contemporary literature represents climate anxiety through disrupted sleep, arguing that insomnia becomes an emotional and political response to living in a world structured by extractive capitalism. What interests me for my paper is the idea that climate knowledge produces a constant background stress, a low-level psychological pressure that shows up in daily life. This connects directly to Weather, where Lizzie’s thoughts jump between ordinary routines and an ever-present dread about the future. I’m using this source because it helps explain how Offill’s writing mirrors that restless mental state. The feeling of never being able to entirely “rest” when you’re aware of everything that’s falling apart.

Peinado Abarrio, Rubén. “’Fragmented and bewildering:’ The New Risk Society in Jenny Offill’s Weather”. Revista De Estudios Norteamericanos, vol. 26, Dec. 2022,          https://doi.org/10.12795/REN.2022.i26.11        

• Peinado-Abarrio reads Weather through the idea of a “risk society,” arguing that the novel’s fragmented style reflects the unstable, rapidly shifting world they live in. He talks about how Weather has this consent flow of worries, information, and global threats that affect daily life. This source is helpful for my paper because it helps me explore why fragmentation isn’t just a writing choice but is also connected to emotional and social pressure and to living with constant concerns.

Wharton, Amy S. “The Sociology of Emotional Labor.” Annual Review of Sociology, vol. 35, 2009, pp. 147–65. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/27800073

• Wharton’s article explains the idea of emotional labor,  how people manage their feelings to meet social expectations, and the effects this has on stress and mental health. Even though she focuses on workplaces, I’m using this source because it helps me think about the emotional weight of caring in general. In Weather, Lizzie constantly balances her own anxiety, concern for others, and awareness of global problems, which creates a kind of ongoing emotional strain similar to what Wharton describes.

Fisher, Clare. “The centrality of the trivial: reading Jenny Offill’s weather.” Alluvium: 21st-Century Writing, 21st-Century Approaches 8.2 (2020).

• Fisher’s article looks at how Offill uses small, everyday details to shape the narrative of Weather. She argues that these “trivial” moments, observations about groceries, Weather, or minor interactions are central to understanding Lizzie’s  emotional world. I’m using this source because it helps me see how the novel’s focus on seemingly minor details contributes to how it conveys anxiety, care, and attention to the world. This article supports my research question: the novel’s fragmentary approach captures Lizzie’s emotional strain, showing that caring for others and the world is part of her daily life.

Kruger, Katherine. “Aging through Precarious Time: Maintenance and Milling in The Cost of Living and Weather.” Poetics Today 44.1-2 (2023): 89-110. https://doi.org/10.1215/03335372-10342099

• Kruger explores how Offill captures daily life in Weather, focusing on Lizzie’s small, repetitive tasks and routines that structure her experience. She argues that these patterns show how people try to maintain some sense of order and stability in uncertain times. I am using this source because it helps me see how the novel’s brief, fragmented glimpses of Lizzie’s everyday life reveal the constant effort and attention required to care for others and stay aware of the world. Kruger’s analysis gives me a way to connect Lizzie’s personal routines with the emotional weight of responsibility, showing how her day-to-day actions carry more profound significance.

Working/Current thesis: In Oryx and Crake, how does the contrast between Jimmy’s humanistic values and Crake’s techno-scientific utopianism reveal the dangers of treating the Anthropocene as a problem that can be solved solely through scientific engineering?

Atwood, Margaret. Oryx and Crake. Virago, 2020. 

This novel is the core text for my thesis. It presents the ideological conflict between Jimmy — who preserves humanistic, emotional, ecological values — and Crake — who embraces genetic engineering, scientific mastery, and techno-utopianism. Because the novel itself dramatizes this conflict and its catastrophic consequences, it provides the narrative evidence I need to argue that Atwood uses their contrast to warn readers about the dangers of seeing the Anthropocene as solvable through scientific engineering.

Ciobanu, Calina. “Rewriting the Human at the End of the Anthropocene in Margaret Atwood’s Maddaddam Trilogy.” The Minnesota Review, vol. 2014, no. 83, 1 Nov. 2014, pp. 153–162, doi:10.1215/00265667-2782351. 

Ciobanu argues that at the end of the trilogy (which begins with Oryx and Crake) Atwood doesn’t just show environmental collapse — she redefines what it means to be human under Anthropocene conditions. This perspective helps me show that Atwood goes beyond mere dystopia: she proposes a transformation of humanity’s identity and values in response to ecological catastrophe. Using this article supports the idea that the “solution” the novel offers is not scientific engineering, but a rethinking of humanity.

Dahal, Alisa. “The Posthuman Homo Faber in Atwood’s Oryx and Crake: An Ironic Portrayal.” Pursuits: A Journal of English Studies, vol. 7, no. 1, 8 June 2023, pp. 1–8, doi:10.3126/pursuits.v7i1.55369. 

Dahal describes Crake as a “posthuman Homo faber” — a human-as-maker who tries to reshape life and solve existential/ecological problems through engineering. The article emphasizes the irony: Crake’s supposedly “scientific salvation” leads not to progress, but to devastation and dehumanization. I will use this source to show how Atwood critiques scientific hubris: invoking the novel’s internal logic, it helps me argue that Crake’s ideology is exposed as dangerous, not heroic.

Gonçalves, Davi Silva, and Luciana Wrege Rassier. “Posthuman Affect in Margaret Atwood’s Science Fiction Oryx & Crake.” Letras, no. 57, 28 Nov. 2018, p. 173, doi:10.5902/2176148529424.

This article focuses on affect — on emotions, empathy, care, human relationships — and shows how posthuman transformation in Atwood’s world threatens these humanistic bonds. This is important for my thewsis because I need to show what is lost when the Anthropocene is treated only as a technical problem: not only the environment, but human emotional and ethical capacities. This article helps me argue that Atwood’s warning is not just ecological, but also moral and existential.

Kabak, Murat. “Margaret Atwood’s ‘Oryx and Crake’ as a Critique of Technological Utopianism.” English Studies at NBU, vol. 7, no. 1, 1 June 2021, pp. 37–50, doi:10.33919/esnbu.21.1.3. 

Kabak contends that the novel challenges the idea of technological utopia — the belief that genetic engineering or biotech can solve human or environmental problems once and for all. According to Kabak, Atwood reveals how such utopian ambitions backfire, resulting in ecological collapse and human extinction. This article will help me build the central argument of my thesis: that the novel warns against the seductive temptation to “fix” the Anthropocene through science and engineering alone.

Sharma, Kamal. “Post-Human Bodies in Atwood’s Oryx and Crake.” Pursuits: A Journal of English Studies, vol. 8, no. 1, 7 May 2024, pp. 74–85, doi:10.3126/pursuits.v8i1.65339. 

Sharma analyzes how, in Atwood’s dystopian world, bodies become objects of scientific control, commodification, and bio-engineering. The “post-human” bodies (such as the Crakers) challenge fundamental assumptions about identity, life, and humanity. This is useful for my thesis because it shows concrete, corporeal consequences of treating life and ecology as engineering problems — not just in abstract ideas, but in the very bodies of beings. It helps me argue that Atwood warns about the deep, embodied dangers of techno-scientific solutions to the Anthropocene.

NEW THESIS: Atwood’s use of dark humor and absurdity in Oryx and Crake is effective in shedding light on societal issues and induces a sense of climate consciousness, especially in the aftermath of a post covid world.

Jergenson, C. (2019). Negative Utopianism and Catastrophe in Margaret Atwood’s MaddAddam Trilogy. Utopian Studies, 30(3), 486–504. https://doi.org/10.5325/utopianstudies.30.3.0486

This piece talks about the entirety of the MaddAddam Trilogy and how a core skill used to depict a positive reality. Negative Urbanism (related to tragicomedy as it presents dark themes often in an exaggerated way) is used to show that the ideas associated with a stereotypical utopia provide a false sense of stability surrounding the outcome for the climate crisis. At times, the author does specify Oryx and Crake with the creation of the Crakers providing a basis for utopian neutralization, making this a great fit for establishing what makes a utopia, just that.

Akşehi̇r Uygur, M. (2014). Utopia and Dystopia Intertwined: The Problem of Ecology in Margaret Atwood’s Oryx and Crake, the Year of the Flood and Maddadddam. Journal of International Social Research, 7(31), 41–48. https://research.ebsco.com/c/lyrnq6/viewer/pdf/bdmmlgsxcz

This text also talks about the entirety of the MaddAddam Trilogy. The stains of humanity are left behind and serve as reminders of a disjointed past with a bleak future. Adam’s choice to use a standard climate setting around the turn of the climax and the escalation to total annihilation of the human race is a reflection of her concerns about where the climate will be not too long after when the book is set. Oryx and Crake implies that the dystopia set up from the events that take place turns into a utopia but the last entry in the trilogy confirms it. This can help me further develop my basis for one “topia” relying on the other and build on justifying why such a relationship is true.,

Akhter, T. (2021). COVID-19 Pandemic and Apocalyptic Literature: An Analysis of Margaret Atwood’s Oryx and Crake at the time of Coronavirus. Arab World English Journal, 1, 235–243. https://doi.org/10.24093/awej/covid.18

The main point is to speak on the real world parallels of the events of Oryx and Crake with the Covid-19 pandemic. It addresses the relationship between science and the arts throughout the novel; science was prioritized over the arts with those gifted with stem skills pursuing successful careers. Humanity ended up being responsible for its own demise, despite how many intelligent workhorses were present among society. The decisions of the intelligent minority outweighed the target demographic of the minority. I feel any thesis surrounding this text should revolve around such a revelation on academic resourcefulness, and might tweak my thesis to be allowed to include this smoothly.

Zakiyah Tasnim. (2025). Storytelling as Environmental Discourse in Oryx and Crake: Climate Change and the Hope for Survival. Canadian Journal of Language and Literature Studies, 5(5)1.https://doi.org/10.53103/cjlls.v5i5.226

This literary review emphasises the importance of Snowman clinging to memories and feelings of a not so distant past. Atwood’s storytelling is not just a world of fiction, but a mirror of reality and what has a likely chance of happening no matter how outlandish it may seem. While Atwood is telling a story, Snowman is also telling a story (to the Crakers), and he serves as the physical bridge between past and present. This serves as a great connection to distinguish the state of the human mindset between two totally different realities, which can serve as great support to the societal issue aspect of my thesis.

Research Question: How does Oryx and Crake rework the Gothic novel, Frankenstein, to reflect a more modern crisis of scientific ethics and ecological responsibility?

From my simple bibliography, I ended up changing two of my sources as they were more related to science than literature. I was influenced by some of my classmates’ bibliographies as they pertained to my argument. 

• Gibert, Teresa. ‘The Monster in the Mirror: Margaret Atwood’s Retelling of the Frankenstein Myth.’ Frankenstein Revisited: The Legacy of Mary Shelley’s Masterpiece. Ed. Miriam Borham. Salamanca: Ediciones Universidad de Salamanca, 2018. 

This piece speaks on Mary Shelley’s influence in Atwood’s writing. Gibert mentions some of Atwood’s novels from the MaddAddam trilogy mentioning the children of crake being dubbed “Frankenpeople”, which directly links “Frankenstein” to “Oryx and Crake”. She continues to cite Shelley’s influence by reiterating ideas from Atwood’s book “In Other Worlds” where Atwood explores her relationship with science fiction and attributing a certain recurring theme in the genre to Mary Shelley’s literature. She continues to mention the differences in the two novels such as Victor Frankenstein’s “reanimation of dead flesh” occurring only once “whereas Crake has resorted to complete genetic engineering”. 

• Massuno, Tatiana. “The Wish to Stop Time: Margaret Atwood’s Oryx and Crake.” Journal of Big History, vol. 4, no. 1, Mar. 2020, pp. 13–20, https://doi.org/10.22339/jbh.v4i1.4170.

This text speaks on the modernity that takes place in Oryx and Crake. She mentions Krishan Kumar and his ideas on modernity as a whole. “For progress and growth, mankind had to pay a price, that is, moral and spiritual decadence”. She also quotes Atwood, “The tide of human desire, the desire for more and better, would overwhelm them. It would take control and drive events, as it had in every large change throughout history”(Oryx and Crake). This article would help in strengthening my argument for Oryx and Crake having a focus on a more modern crisis of scientific ethics and ecological responsibility. 

• Banerjee, Suparna. Science, Gender and History : The Fantastic in Mary Shelley and Margaret Atwood [1 Ed.] 9781443873932, 9781443862202 – DOKUMEN.PUB, 2014

This article is going to aid in my main argument, differentiating the two novels yet comparing their similarities. To quote directly from the article, “ In Atwood, moreover, the limit between neo-imperial commerce and technoscience has been detected and dramatized- a nexus which was not yet apparent in Shelley’s time when science was purer in its motives”. The modernization brought into Oryx and Crake is the re-worked aspect. The difference in Oryx and Crake is its capitalistic nature of wanting to engineer a completely new “perfect” species. The motivation for the creation of a monster has changed. 

• Schmeink, Lars. “The Anthropocene, the Posthuman, and the Animal.” Biopunk Dystopias: Genetic Engineering, Society and Science Fiction, Liverpool University Press, 2016, pp. 71-118. JSTOR, https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt1ps33cv.6.

Lars speaks on hypercapitalism and the acceleration of global change within the Anthropocene. He states, “Consumption becomes the only and all-encompassing urge that drives society”. His argument is that hypercapitalism has brought a commodification of any and all life on earth. When comparing Victor and Crake, it can be said that Victor is simply driven by selfish desire. He acts on his personal rapacity, heavily influenced by society and wanting to be seen as successful, with no further thought or purpose for the creation itself, which is why he ultimately rejects the monster. In contrast, Crake embraces his creations and looks forward to their contribution, or what he thinks are contributions, to society, looking at them through a lens of modernization and aiding in the progression of the human race, influenced by a culture of hypercapitalism.

• Steendam, Tom Van.‘Paratextuality and Parody in a Post-cataclysmic Wasteland: Margaret Atwood‘s Oryx and Crake.’ Exlibrisgroup, Ghent University Library, 2010.

Another piece that I feel supports my argument. Steendam believes that Atwood transgresses Shelley’s material and “puts it in a completely new context, drawing on Hutcheon’s notion of ironic inversion. This is in reference to Linda Hutcheon’s concept of ironic inversion in which the irony is not used as “mockery” but rather as acknowledging the target text’s ongoing cultural validity. Steendam observes the appreciation of Shelley’s work in Oryx and Crake but also further analyzes the differences. “No longer is the mad scientist an overreacher… who is cast out of society, but socially accepted…”. I will use these ideas and further expand on them in my argument 

KELLER, LYNN. “Beyond Imagining, Imagining Beyond.” PMLA, vol. 127, no. 3, 2012, pp. 579–85. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/41616849. Accessed 3 Dec. 2025.

Keller’s article shows how literature helps readers imagine ecological futures during the Anthropocene. She explains that these stories can help readers get a grip on fear, responsibility, and uncertainty. This article helps show the environmental context that shapes Oryx and Crake. It will be useful because it can explain how the characters might feel lost and scared in the collapsing world. Keller’s ideas help support my argument about how the Anthropocene affects love and identity.

Gladwin, Derek. “Ecological and Social Awareness in Place-Based Stories.” The Canadian Journal of Irish Studies, vol. 42, 2019, pp. 138–57. JSTOR, https://www.jstor.org/stable/26693095. Accessed 3 Dec. 2025.

Gladwin discusses how authors, including Atwood, can have emotional and social effects of environmental collapse. He explains that characters in Oryx and Crake struggle with fear, trauma, and confusion in a world that’s in chaos. His points help elucidate why Jimmy is emotionally lost, why Crake denies feelings, and why Oryx lives her life in her own way. This article reinforces your comments on the themes of ecology and trauma in the novel for relationships.

Buck, Holly Jean. “On the Possibilities of a Charming Anthropocene.” Annals of the Association of American Geographers, vol. 105, no. 2, 2015, pp. 369–77. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/24537851. Accessed 3 Dec. 2025.

Buck discusses how climate change narratives tend to be dark and hopeless, but she makes a case that other types of emotional futures are possible. This allows you to show how Oryx and Crake creates a tense, fearful emotional world. Her thoughts contribute to telling us why the characters struggle with love and desire under environmental pressure. This source helps to illustrate the emotional side of living in the Anthropocene.

Curtis, Claire P., and Carrie Hintz. “Utopian Studies: An Interdisciplinary Pursuit.” Utopian Studies, vol. 31, no. 2, 2020, pp. 334–37. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.5325/utopianstudies.31.2.0334. Accessed 4 Dec. 2025.

Curtis and Hintz write directly about Oryx and Crake, including the love triangle between Jimmy, Oryx, and Crake. They mention Oryx’s trauma, Jimmy’s emotional pain, and Crake’s coldness. They suggest that the love triangle is central to understanding the novel. This source is especially helpful because it supports your exact topic and shows why studying their relationship is important.

May-Ron, Rona. “Returning the Gaze: ‘Cinderella’ as Intertext in Margaret Atwood’s Oryx and Crake.” Marvels & Tales, vol. 33, no. 2, 2019, pp. 259–82. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.13110/marvelstales.33.2.0259. Accessed 4 Dec. 2025.

May-Ron says that Oryx is treated like a fantasy figure by both Jimmy and Crake, similar to Cinderella. This illustrates how the men project their desires onto her instead of seeing her real past and trauma. This article enables you to understand desire, power, and identity in the love triangle. It also demonstrates how Oryx retains her own agency even when objectified. I find this to support your point that trauma and desire affect her relationships.