A Comparative Semiotic Analysis of Kim Stanley Robinson’s "The Ministry for the Future" and Ghassaān Shibārū’s "2022"

This study performs a semiotic-comparative literary analysis of contemporary climate fiction, utilizing ecosemiotics and cultural theory as frameworks. The research investigates the encoding of crisis indicators and planetary narratives across several semiospheres, concentrating on Kim Stanley Robinson’s The Ministry for the Future and Ghassān Shibārū 2022. The analysis employs Lotman’s semiosphere theory and Maran’s ecosemiotic typology to elucidate how symbolic, iconic, and indexical signs establish ecological significance, ethical responsibility, and cultural opposition. Robinson’s technocratic optimism converts nature into instruments for policy and systemic improvement, whereas Shibārū’s urban approach highlights grassroots involvement and deep melancholy. Prominent themes, including temporal disruption, stillness, and ecofeminist embodiment, act as ecosemiotic markers of both decline and resistance. Research demonstrates that climate fiction mirrors environmental disasters while concurrently reshaping cultural frameworks of compassion, recollection, and ecological responsibility in both global and local settings. Additionally, climate fiction conveys ecological themes through culturally particular semiotic frameworks. Robinson used symbolic and technical indicators (e.g., “carbon money”) to demonstrate systemic reform, while Shibārū utilizes indexical and iconic markers (e.g., polluted rivers) to inspire visceral pain and resistance.