Alistair Mackay's It Doesn't Have to Be This Way as a cli- fi novel

The aim of this study is to examine the climate fiction novel It Doesn't Have to Be This Way (2022) by South African author Alistair Mackay from an ecocritical perspective, in order to draw attention—through literature—to climate issues such as global warming, one of the most pressing problems of our time, for which insufficient efforts are being made to secure the future of the planet. In the face of the climate crisis, which was brought about by antropocene/capitalocene age, the theme of technology is commonly addressed in both science fiction and climate fiction. While some narratives advocate for the potential of technology and activism to combat the climate crisis, others present dystopian scenarios where it is already too late to reverse environmental collapse. These narratives serve as warnings to the reader. Mackay's novel portrays a future Cape Town, pushed into climate crisis within fifteen years due to capitalist ambitions. It reveals the growing social class disparities, highlighting how the wealthy escape the effects of the climate crisis by relocating to high-tech protected zones like the Citadel and other temperate regions, while residents of Khayelitsha Island—those unable to migrate—are left to face the crisis on their own. Therefore, the novel draws attention to environmental justice. The novel also criticizes the media and the government for their indifference to the climate crisis, driven by anthropogenic and capitalogenic interests. It depicts the reciprocal interaction between humans and nature, arguing that nature should not be seen as a passive entity merely serving human needs. Rather, nature—including the nonhuman—possesses its own agency. Ultimately, the novel emphasizes the importance of love and solidarity in the face of major threats such as the climate crisis and capitalism.