Literature is a kind of the artwork which uses a language as a medium. If it said that
literature is a language in one side, learning literature is, at the same time, learning a
language in the other side. English literature is literature written in English language. In
this relation, learning English literature is, at the same time, learning English language. If
literature talks about human life, by using literary works we can learn and build our
social awareness, and at almost the same time we can contribute to nation character
building. Ecocriticism is the study of the relationship between literature and the physical
environment. Greg Garrard traces the development of the movement and explores the
concepts that have most occupied ecocritics, including: pollution, wilderness,
apocalypse, dwelling, animals, and earth. This paper will answer some questions : (1)
how nature is represented in literature? (2) what roles are presented by physical
environment in literature, (3) how local wisdom is represented in literature, (4) how
metaphors are explored in literature, and (5) what moral teaching is given by literature
representing ecological enviroments.
Key words: literature, nature, ecocriticism, and moral teaching
Staf Universitas Lambung Mangkurat
