Abstract: Ecocriticism is a fairly new area of investigation that has rapidly and sometimes controversially expanded. Theorizing ecocriticism has at times been met with debate, and traditional areas of literary studies have not always been entirely receptive. Thus, the expansion of ecocritical theory into Shakespearean studies (now a thriving micro industry all its own) warrants serious discussion, both from contextual and theoretical positions.  This article will cover three main sections: 1] an introduction to the general field of ecocriticism; 2] the theory and the practice of ecocriticism (including the problems and the promises); and 3] Shakespeare and ecocriticism. The more that ecocriticism theorizes itself in confluence with other activist theories, the better off it will be. Using Shakespeare and his representations of a certain breed of anti-nature ethics (which I term "ecophobia") can produce the basis for such an ecocriticism that theorizes in confluence, and it is the goal of this article to do so. Ecophobia is certainly not the only ethical paradigm Shakespeare represents, and this article does not on any level want to imply that it is. Ecocriticism and the paradigm of ecophobia, similarly, do not and cannot give us all of the answers; but each can help us enormously in moving toward them.

Key words: ecocritical theory, green Shakespeare, ecophobia, activist theory