Abstract
The autobiographical writing by Emily Innes’s The Chersonese with the Gliding offer corded experiences and turbulence underwent by a White officer’s wife to Malaya with an underlying western perspectives and impression on the country during pre-Independence period and its people. By using narrative data, this article examines existing power relations, framed within interactions between the white lady (representing the Self) and her Malay male servants (as the Other). The use of Michel Foucault’s Technology of Power enables an analysis of power strategies that represent both binary opposites in order to also trace the existence of gender power. More specifically, it allows a proto- conceptualisation of types among Malay men that are identifiable during the pre-Independence period. Further understanding the Malay men, especially of their ego, is important in the growing interest over Postcolonial subject where it explores forms of resistance, portrayed by the Other in his daily power relation with the Self. Findings reveal that while power play exists within these interactions, it is a one-sided discourse which sanctions fair play as well as equality of power distribution. Keywords : Malaya, Foucault’s Technologies of Power, Masculinity, Malay Man’s Ego, Malayness
Highlights
Malaysia or once known as Malaya, was colonized by many modern superpowers but it is the English empire which occupied the nation the shortest, making it one of its commonwealth
Past criticisms on The Golden Chersonese associated it with colonial discourse theories where some in particular traced the relationship between the white Empirical Self and the Other
Doris Jedamski (1995), for instance, differentiated female Victorian travellers from those of the early twentieth century in term of purpose in writing, which Anderson (2008) saw the former’s act as a form of liberation. Jedamski explained that these Victorian female travellers’ writings are acts of self-proofing, where they validated their existence and capacity to travel beyond their safe haven, besides achieving a form of recovery from “physical and psychological unease”, where their homeland put a limit to, unlike the latter type of travel writing (p. 21)
Summary
Malaysia or once known as Malaya, was colonized by many modern superpowers but it is the English empire which occupied the nation the shortest, making it one of its commonwealth. Weber (1922) perceived power as permanently-owned while Foucault (1997) viewed it as an entity that situates its existence in a capillary network, needing a continuous effort of establishing itself as well as expecting resistance in its handling (Duineveld & Guus 2011) This constant need for power (re)negotiation is seen in The Chersonese where power is in flux, needing for questioning, re-examining and contesting over its relevance and possession. Inness’s attempt of silencing the Other works on strategy that pretending not to know the language is a politer manner of stopping the discourse This is exactly what highlighted in the need to continuously renew power since it is “dynamic” in nature (1980; 1982) where resistance is a part of the whole process of owning power. A Malay Man’s Ego distinguishes from the Indian’s or Chinese, even the White Man’s Ego in terms of his priority over cultural concerns
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callMore From: International Journal of Comparative Literature and Translation Studies
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
