Listening to the Swan Song

How literature and culture have responded to the sounds of more-than-human beings through the ages

The volume explores the manner in which literature and culture across various historical periods have responded to the sounds produced by more-than-human beings. The study examines both symbolic and literal representations of these voices, demonstrating how they shape human imagination and interspecies relations. The book is structured in three parts: the first analyses symbolic soundscapes; the second focuses on encounters and exchanges between species; and the third highlights ethical and technological efforts to protect endangered animals and to commemorate those already lost.

• Contributions by Catherine Rensmann
• Contributions by Nicola Renzi
• Contributions by Johann Anselm Steiger
• Contributions by Annie Morrad
• Contributions by Marta Czapińska-Bambara
• Contributions by Magdalena Koźluk
• Contributions by Rowan Bayliss Hawitt
• Contributions by Monika Schmitz-Emans
• Contributions by Marie Comuzzo
• Contributions by Sergio Santiago Rentería Aguil
• Edited by Piotr Kociumbas
• Edited by Joanna Godlewicz-Adamiec