Abstract
“Unland” is a book-length collection of poems that chronicle the travels of the Warden, a fictional man in a fantastical world. The Warden moves through a landscape that has been irreversibly altered by his species, but still remains vibrant and in many places wild. He removes detritus from the riverbanks, sings back to the birds in their own tongues, and muses on the beauty of nature even when it has been “tainted” by humanity. But the Warden is no passive observer: “Unland” is complicated by his love affair with Melusina, the “Cattail Woman.” “Sina,” as he refers to her, is a rusalka — a water spirit who will end the reign of humans by luring, then drowning one man at a time. “Unland” puts this fact of her existence at odds with her own growing emotions, using both characters to map out the dual nature of attraction and self-destruction. Finally, this thesis questions the tradition of feminizing the natural world; it is a rebuttal to those who believe nature is only beautiful when “unspoiled” by the boot print of civilization, and an interrogation of the attitudes behind that belief.