Postcolonialism

An accessible introduction to the complex new field of postcolonial theory

The collapse of empires has resulted in a greater appreciation for indigenous cultures in former colonies and a renaissance of creativity. More than 150 alphabetically arranged entries by expert contributors overview and assess the effects of globalization on literary and cultural studies in the 21st century. Attempting to counter what some have seen as the anglophone bias of postcolonial studies, the volume emphasizes the common heritage of resistance in francophone, hispanophone, and other literatures, including the literatures of nonEuropean postimperial states.

Much controversy has recently come to surround the status and value of postcolonial theory. In this comprehensive and accessible survey, the author examines the objections that have been raised against postcolonial theory.

At the heart of coloniality and postcoloniality is the idea of empire. This book examines various theories of empire, and how they create networks of discourse in contemporary postcolonial settings. In exploring the idea of empire, the contributors consider such constructions as nation and modernity, identity politics, the status and role of exiles, and border intellectuals. Postcolonial texts considered include literature and films.

The term "subalternity" refers to a condition of subordination brought about by colonisation or other forms of economic, social, racial, linguistic, and/or cultural dominance. Subaltern studies is, therefore, a study of power. Who has it and who does not. Who is gaining it and who is losing it. Power is intimately related to questions of representation-to which representations have cognitive authority and can secure hegemony and which do not and cannot. In this book John Beverley examines the relationship between subalternity and representation by analysing the ways in which that relationship has been played out in the domain of Latin American studies.Dismissed by some as simply another new fashion in the critique of culture and by others as a postmarxist heresy, subaltern studies began with the work of Ranajit Guha and the South Asian Subaltern Studies collective in the 1980s. Beverley's focus on Latin America, however, is evidence of the growing province of this field. In assessing subaltern studies' purposes and methods, the potential dangers it presents, and its interactions with deconstruction, poststructuralism, cultural studies, Marxism, and political theory, Beverley builds his discussion around a single, provocative question: How can academic knowledge seek to represent the subaltern when that knowledge is itself implicated in the practices that construct the subaltern as such? In his search for answers, he grapples with a number of issues, notably the 1998 debate between David Stoll and Rigoberta Mench over her award-winning testimonial narrative, I, Rigoberta Mench. Other topics explored include the concept of civil society, Florencia Mallon's influential Peasant and Nation, the relationship between the Latin American "lettered city" and the Apac Amaru rebellion of 1780-1783, the ideas of transculturation and hybridity in postcolonial studies and Latin American cultural studies, multiculturalism, and the relationship between populism, popular culture, and the "national-popular" in conditions of globalisation.This critique and defence of subaltern studies offers a compendium of insights into a new form of knowledge and knowledge production. It will interest those studying postcolonialism, political science, cultural studies, and Latin American culture, history, and literature.

Examines the interplay between language, literature, and culture in postcolonial countries of the world.

Christine van Boheemen examines the relationship between Joyce's postmodern textuality and the traumatic history of colonialism in Ireland. Joyce's influence on Lacanian psychoanalysis and Derrida's philosophy, Van Boheemen suggests, ought to be viewed from a postcolonial perspective. Joyce's writing bears witness to a history that remains unspeakable, functioning as a material location for the inner voice of Irish cultural memory. This book engages with a wide range of contemporary critical theory and brings Joyce's work into dialogue with thinkers such as Zizek, Adorno, Lyotard, as well as feminism and postcolonial theory.

The essays in this volume range from questions of cultural self-representation in China to more general problems of reconceptualizing global relationships in response to contemporary changes. Although the new era of global capitalism calls for the remapping of global relations, such remapping must be informed both by a grasp of contemporary structures of economic, political, & cultural power & by memories of earlier radical visions of society. Without these two conditions, Arif Dirlik argues, the current preoccupation with Eurocentrism, ethnic diversity, & multiculturalism distract from issues of power that dominate global relations & that find expression in murderous ethnic conflicts.

As a subject, post-colonial studies stands at the intersection of debates about race, colonialism, gender, politics and language. In the language of post-colonial studies, some words are new, whereas others are familiar and are charged with new significance.Explaining what post-colonialism actually is, where it is encountered and why it is crucial in forging new cultural identities, this clearly presented text provides essential information in understanding the issues that characterise the area.With over 100 entries, the book includes definitions of:* diaspora* Fanonism* hybridity* Manicheanism* miscegenation* negritude* orientalism* settler-colony* trans-culturation.With suggestions for further reading at the end of each entry, a comprehensive glossary with extensive cross-referencing, and a bibliography of essential writings in post-colonial studies in an easy-to-use A-Z format, Post-Colonial Studies: The Key Concepts is an invaluable resource for anyone studying or interested in post-colonialism.