"Losing One's Self": Evolving Boundaries of Humanity in Pan's Garden by A. Blackwood

The thesis explores Algernon Blackwood's response to the anxiety provoked by mid-nineteenth century scientific revolutions and the subsequent unrest caused by the loss of the feeling of connection with Natural world. It examines how liberating one's self from the limits of the physical body, and overcoming the separation from what is "other" that individuality implies, are necessary steps towards the evolution of the human soul. Focusing on the 1912 short story collection Pan's Garden, the analysis investigates how spirituality and the pursue of a harmonious relationship with the natural world could, according to Blackwood, satisfy the desire for unity and belonging that humans crave when faced with the alienation and disorientation deriving from industrialization, rapid scientific advancements, and subsequent crises of faith.