Climate and Industry
(including Common Core Standards and NYC DOE Blueprints Standards)
This module looks at HADESTOWN through the lens of climate and industry. It is designed to familiarize learners with the ways that climate change affects the entire world and, more specifically, their own communities. It includes an overview of industry and its lasting effect on our climate, links to climate reports and resources on climate justice efforts.
The corresponding lesson plan asks learners to make connections between specific moments in HADESTOWN and the ways that climate change manifests in the world around them. Using creative tools, learners will have an opportunity to tackle the issues which most concern them.
Hadestown and Climate
A key element of the ancient Greek tale of Persephone and Hades that Anaïs Mitchell explores in Hadestown is the role of individuals and their impact on climate and weather. Persephone is the Greek goddess of agriculture and when Hades kidnaps her to be his wife in the underworld, Perspehone’s mother, Demeter, sends a drought over humanity to implore Persephone’s release.
WorldHistory.org says, “Hades and Persephone was perhaps symbolic of the changing seasons and the perennial change from life to death, to life once more, or in other words, the changes from the summer to winter months and the return of life in spring as seen in agriculture.”
Source: Mark Cartwright. “Hades and Persephone,” Worldhistory.org
NOTE: If you’re interested in learning more about the Greek Mythology that relates to Hadestown visit our page on Myth.
In “Livin’ it Up on Top” Persephone sings, “Who makes the summer sun shine bright? / That's right, Persephone / Who makes the food of the viking rise?” When Persphone emerges from the underworld she brings with her “the summer sun” and “makes the flowers bloom,” but we soon learn that Hades has been keeping her in the underworld longer and longer. We learn that this has had a disastrous effect on the mortal world, as winters are growing longer and summers hotter, while spring and fall are almost non-existent. Luckily, Orpheus is writing a song to bring spring back.
Mitchell draws our eye to the unfortunate reality of our shifting climate through the power of myth and storytelling. Perhaps if we understand the disastrous consequences reaped on Eurydice and Orpheus’ world, we might better understand our own.
For additional resources on the facts and figures of climate change click here or check out this report from the BBC
Sources: “Big Facts on Climate Change,” ccafs.cgiar.org / “What is Climate Change?” BBC.com
“The lady loved him and the kingdom they shared
But without her above, not one flower would grow
So King Hades agreed that for half of each year
She would stay with him there in his world down below
But the other half, she could walk in the sun
And the sun, in turn, burned twice as bright
Which is where the seasons come from
And with them, the cycle
Of the seed and the sickle
And the lives of the people
And the birds in their flight”
– Orpheus, “Epic I”
Watch the cast of Hadestown perform “Livin’ it Up on Top”
Hadestown and Industry
Hadestown Director Rachel Chavkin has described the staging of Hadestown as perhaps resembling a large oil drum. Hadestown also features a Worker’s Chorus, the people of Hadestown who live and work under the rule of Hades, king of the underworld and kind of industry.
Hadestown makes an important correlation between climate change and industry. When we refer to industry we are referring to the manufacturing of goods and services. The Environmental Protection Agency reported that in 2019, 23% of Greenhouse Gas emissions were attributed to industry. Several other studies and reports have noted the rise in ocean acidification and atmospheric CO2 level since the start of the Industrial Revolution.
Sources: Rebecca Lindsey. “Climate Change: Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide,” Climate.gov / EPA.gov
Climate Justice
While workers are at the heart of industry, they are also among the most affected by its repercussions. Hadestown draws our eyes to the power dynamics at play in the inherently human issues of climate change and labor rights. This brings us to the important topic of climate justice. Climate change and social justice are deeply intertwined. For this reason, it is important to consider how the narrative around climate change can be shifted to center vulnerable communities and individuals who are most affected. Daisy Simmons at Yale Climate Connections defines climate change as, “a term, and more than that a movement, that acknowledges climate change can have differing social, economic, public health, and other adverse impacts on underprivileged populations. Advocates for climate justice are striving to have these inequities addressed head-on through long-term mitigation and adaptation strategies.”
The issues of inequity, redlining, and imperialism are only amplified in the sphere of climate change. For example, did you know that, according to CorpWatch’s Climate Justice Fact Sheet, “122 corporations account for 80% of all carbon dioxide emissions,” but those who are disproportionately affected by climate change include groups like Indigenous peoples in the United States and elsewhere, coastal communities in “low-lying countries like Bangladesh,” and poor folks in urban and rural areas.
“The impacts of climate change will not be borne equally or fairly, between rich and poor, women and men, and older and younger generations. Consequently, there has been a growing focus on climate justice, which looks at the climate crisis through a human rights lens and on the belief that by working together we can create a better future for present and future generations”
from a report published on UN.org
Sources: Corpwatch.org / UN.org / Daisy Simmons. “What is ‘climate justice’?” Yaleclimateconnections.org /
“Environmental Justice in Your Community,” via the Environmental Protection Agency
Read about climate justice in your region
KEY TERMS
Greenhouse Gases - Chemical compounds that linger in earth’s atmosphere and can include carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide, among others. Greenhouse gases trap the sun’s heat in earth’s atmosphere creating what is known as a greenhouse effect.
Climate - While weather refers to atmospheric conditions (temperature, precipitation) in an immediate or short term sense, climate refers to weather patterns over a long period of time.
Fossil Fuels - Include coal, oil, and other non-renewable resources that develop from the fossils of dead organisms in the earth. These sources of energy that we burn create additional greenhouse gases, thus amplifying the greenhouse effect and causing global warming. Fossil Fuels are called non-renewable because their supply is not infinite and they do not replenish themselves over time.
Industrialization - This term refers to the transformation of a society into one that is economically dependent on and defined by mass manufacturing of goods. This process started in the United States sometime around the mid-19th century. Industrialization is dependent on technological innovation and divides labor to maximize profit and efficiency.
Ocean Acidification - The change in chemistry of earth’s ocean, mostly attributed to the burning of fossil fuels. Ocean acidification makes it harder for what are known as calcifying organisms such as sea urchins, clams, and oysters to create their shells. The speedy acidification of our oceans threatens certain organisms and therefore the food web as a whole might be at risk.
Sea Level - The sea levels of earth’s oceans are rising due to the heating of the globe. Global warming does not only cause the ocean to expand, but at the same time it also causes bodies of ice such as glaciers to melt, thus amplifying the effects of a rising ocean. Many coastal communities are threatened by rising sea levels.
Renewable Energy - These are sources of energy that are naturally replenishing such as sunlight and air. Many are advocating for humans to become more reliant on renewable energy sources as they do not create the greenhouse gases that are causing the increased warming of the globe.
Sources: Climaterealityproject.org / Oceanservice.noaa.gov
CLIMATE JUSTICE SPOTLIGHT
RESPOND
#HadestownClimateChallenge
For one week, dedicate each day to a different climate action. How does one fight climate change and fight for climate justice? Some examples of climate actions include raisin awareness about climate justice issues. protesting harmful infrastructure, walking/biking more, eating less animal products, and calling our representatives. You can check out this link for more ideas!
Record your week of climate action and share it to social media and tag #HadestownClimateChallenge!
Student Prompt
In the song ‘Chant’, Hades sings; ‘Lover, you were gone so long / Lover, I was lonesome / So I built a foundry / In the ground beneath you feet / Here, I fashioned things of steel / Oil drums and automobiles / Then i kept that furnace fed / With fossils of the dead / Lover, when you feel that fire / Think of it as my desire / Think of it as my desire for you!’
Later in the song, Persephone directly addresses Hades; ‘Every year, it’s getting worse / Hadestown, Hell on Earth / Did you think I’d be impressed / With this neon necropolis? / Lover, what have you become? Coal cars and oil drums / Warehouse walls and factory floors / I don’t know you anymore / And in the meantime up above / The harvest dies and people starve. / Oceans rise and overflow / It ain’t right and it ain’t natural.’
How are the characters of Hades and Persephone representative of our current industrial world and its climate related struggles? You can respond to this prompt through writing, video, visual art, music, or other mediums.
Submit your work here for the chance to be feature on our community page!