The Slaughter of the Innocent: An Ecofeminist Reading of Jane Smiley's (A Thousand Acres)

Jane Smiley's avowed purpose in writing A Thousand Acres was to condemn "the patriarchal appropriation of women and the exploitation of the land" (Leslie 38).  Smiley's ecofeminist efforts are devoted to subverting the patriarchal, male-centered culture that used to cast "oppressed groups as part of a separate lower order whose domination is natural, part of the order of nature" (Plumwood 73-74). The link between the oppression of women and nature is explored by Smiley through an interconnecting pattern of domestic violence against not only the land, but also against the force of family itself. As the sterile relationship of man to land grew, so too did the development of dysfunctional relationship between Larry Cook and his daughters, eventually giving rise to a life of emotional and sexual abuse. Only after Ginny is able to dismantle or deconstruct these dualistic structures does she achieve victory and create a female space for herself.