Introduction to Literary Theories and Paragraph Structure

Learning Goal: To develop an understanding of postcolonial/cultural theory and effective paragraph structure.

Agenda:

1) Why do we need these things called “theories”?

2) The Basics of Postcolonial/Neo-Colonial Theory

3) Paragraph Structure: Point/Proof/Analysis Method

4) Introduction of Paragraph Assignment: “The Trouble with Tribe”

http://www.thephoblographer.com/2013/04/14/hankering-for-a-new-lens-weve-just-updated-five-of-our-lens-guides/

In every area of the humanities (e.g. literature, history, art history, and film) scholars have used different theoretical lenses to interpret a work of art. Some of these include: PSYCHOANALYSIS, MARXISM, FEMINISM, AND POSTCOLONIALISM.

Why are varied theoretical approaches important to the study of these disciplines?

Introduction to Postcolonial Theory

What is colonialism?• the policy or practice of acquiring full or partial

political control over another country, occupying it with settlers, and exploiting it economically (Oxford Dictionary)

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Colonization_1945.png

What is postcolonial/neo-colonial theory?

• an approach to literary analysis that focuses on literature written in countries/regions that were at one point under colonial rule (Australia, India, New Zealand, Africa, South America)

• postcolonial literature and critics examine what happens when two cultures collide, and more specifically, when one of those cultures dominates over and deems itself superior to the other culture

The Colonizer and Colonized• postcolonial literature and critics concentrate on the

relationship between the colonizer (the Western colonial power) and the colonized

• the colonizers assume the following about the colonized: -they are “savages” in need of Western civilization and education -they cannot manage their own resources properly, and thus need to be controlled by the colonizer -they follow a set of religious beliefs that are in direct opposition to Christianity -they pose a threat to the world and to themselves if left alone (Stratford-Upon-Avon-College)• “many Westerners subscribed to the colonialist ideology

that all races other than the white were inferior or subhuman. These subhumans or ‘savages’ quickly became the inferior and equally ‘evil’ Others” (Bressler 200).

Key Postcolonial Theorists• though postcolonial/cultural theory can be divided into

several subgroups, it is primarily concerned with examining the struggle that occurs when one culture exercises power over another

Edward Said: Orientalism (1978)• argues that Europeans justified their colonial conquests

through the concept of Orientalism: “the creation of non-European stereotypes that suggested so-called Orientals were indolent, thoughtless, sexually immoral, unreliable, and demented” (Bressler 203).

Homi K. Bhabha: The Empire Writes Back (1989)• focuses on point-of-view of the colonized: where does this

person belong? • colonized does not feel a sense of belonging in either

culture, leading to a state of unhomeliness or double consciousness

Applying Postcolonial/Neo-Colonial Theory to a Text

• What happens when two cultures clash, when one sees itself as superior to the other?

• Describe the two cultures exhibited in the text. What does each value? What does each reject?

• Describe the worldviews of each of the cultures exhibited in the text.

• Demonstrate how the superior or privileged culture’s hegemony (dominance) affects the colonized culture.

• How do the colonized people view themselves? Is there any change in this view by the end of the text?

• Describe the language of the two cultures. How are they alike? Different?

• Cite the various ways in which the colonized culture is silenced.

(Bressler 205)

Jean Léon Gérôme. The Snake Charmer. 1879.http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/jonathanjonesblog/2012/jul/03/jean-leon-gerome-orientalism-impressionists

Pears Soap, 1920s.http://neatdesigns.net/22-shockingly-racist-ads/

Works Cited

Bressler, Charles E. Literary Criticism: An Introduction to

Theory and Practice, Third Edition. Upper Saddle

River:

Prentice Hall, 2003. Print.

Stratford-Upon-Avon-College. “Post Colonialism Intro.”

Slideshare. 3 Mar. 2010. Web. 2 July 2013.