Creatures of the Ice: A Cultural Analysis of Human-Animal Relations in Antarctica

ARC Discovery 2009 - 2011

Personnel: Dr Elizabeth Leane (Lead CI), Prof. Helen Tiffin (CI), Dr Steve Nicol (PI)

From the albatross of Coleridge's ancient mariner to the blockbuster Happy Feet, Antarctic animals have played an important symbolic role in Western culture. Through analysis of written and visual texts, this project examines the meanings and values we attach to animals - native and introduced - in the world's largest and most remote wilderness. Drawing on scientific and cultural perspectives, it investigates ways in which human-animal interaction reflects and informs attitudes towards the Antarctic environment. The outcome will be an original and important contribution to two burgeoning fields - human-animal studies and Antarctic studies - and to broader environmental debates.