Stimulating Human Exceptionalism: Hybrid Identities in Karnad’s Yayati and The Fire and the Rain

Abstract

Girish Karnad’s mythic plays frequently shape the boundaries between human and non-human, demanding traditional notions of human exceptionalism. This article explores how Yayati and The Fire and the Rain show hybrid identities and relational trap, showing the limitations of human-centered ethics and cognition. Using an eco-critical lens, the study examines how Karnad employs ancient mythological motifs to reflect contemporary ecological concerns, highlighting humanity’s moral responsibility toward nature (Girennavar, P.R.2025). Exploring literary analysis grounded in post humanist and environmental perspectives, this study evaluates that Karnad’s plays explore ethical responsibility to broader ecological and social surroundings. Dialogues and narrative sequences are analyzed to expose the interplay of desire, power, and non-human influence in developing human decision-making. Using an eco critical lens, the study examines how Karnad employs ancient mythological motifs to reflect contemporary ecological concerns, highlighting humanity’s moral responsibility toward nature