How Queer Is Green?

Ecofeminism has sought to unravel the interarticulation of gender oppression with the domination of nature, while queer theory has pursued a cultural project of subversion of sexual heteronormativity. Queer ecology brings together and extends both discourses, at once drawing upon contemporary biology and subjecting its taxonomies to skeptical critique. This essay argues that queer theory needs ecocriticism to rescue it from its biophobic assumptions, but it is not yet clear what ecocriticism stands to gain from queer theory. Moreover, it is argued that queer ecology risks the appearance of partial, opportunistic, and conspicuously biased engagement with biology. [PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]