Remembering the Indian Mutiny: Colonial nostalgia in Zadie Smith’s White Teeth

Abstract

ABSTRACT Discussions of Zadie Smith’s 2000 novel White Teeth have often focused on the novel as an example of optimistic multiculturalism, seeing both the eclectic style and characters as representative of a modern, diverse London. This article moves away from this reading of the text and instead takes a historical approach that draws on concepts of nostalgia and memory. Specifically, it examines how the novel’s discussion of Mangal Pande, supposed instigator of the 1857 Indian Rebellion, allows the South Asian characters to reckon with their complex relationship with British colonial violence. By exploring a figure of colonial resistance alongside a narrative of modern-day Britain, Smith shows that memories of the British Empire are still embedded in the everyday lives of British South Asians, and consequently act as both a help and a hindrance to anti-racism activism and the possibilities of successful multiculturalism.