Introduction

This chapter presents an overview of the history of ecofeminism, from the beginning of ecofeminism in the 1970s through its subsequent reception by critical and appreciative perspectives and its ongoing development by contemporary scholars and activists. Dualistic hierarchies (e.g., men/women, humans/nature, and subject/object) are shown to be an enduring problem for the various proponents of ecofeminism. This historical overview outlines the context in which the present volume is situated. Yang concludes this chapter by introducing the specific contents of each of the chapters in this anthology.