Postcolonial Research Articles

Inverted Disillusionment in Postcolonial African Literature

This study introduces the concept of inverted disillusionment as a new conceptual framework for reading African literature of the postcolonial era. It is conceived to philosophically account for the collective complicity of the people in their predicament in postcolonial Africa. It thus re-examines the concept of post-independence disillusionment of postcolonial theory, which blames postcolonial-era realities of disillusionment on African leaders and, consequently, places disillusionment and indifference to development in a broader context of human features everywhere. Achille Mbembe’s version of postcolonial theory and Derrida’s deconstructive operation are adopted as a framework, while textual evidence is drawn from selected literature to authenticate the ideological standpoints conceived as indices of the study. Theoretically and philosophically conceived, inverted disillusionment is foregrounded as an alternative engagement paradigm in reading African literature of the postcolonial era. It sits at the crossroads of postcolonial African literature and criticism as it advocates the extension of the frontiers of disillusionment in African Literature.

The Paradox of Freedom and Fear in Athol Fugard’s My Children! My Africa!

The history of South Africa is characterised by fear that stems from violent colonisation by Europeans who had their own interests and neglected the needs of the original inhabitants of the land. The descendants of the colonisers made matters worse with the introduction of apartheid, which saw the implementation of discriminatory policies that included the forced removals of black people from their own land. This article traces and interrogates the fight for freedom by black South Africans against apartheid, a fight that can be described as brutal and accompanied by fear. This fight is nuancedly represented by Athol Fugard in one of his plays, My Children! My Africa! (1989), in which he links fear with the quest for freedom. Applying postcolonial theory to the play, this article argues that Fugard’s representation of apartheid’s oppression of black people complicates understandings of the concept of freedom by making freedom and fear inseparable.

PERKAWINAN LINTAS BUDAYA SEBAGAI BENTUK FENOMENA KESENJANGAN SOSIAL DALAM NOVEL SALAH ASUHAN: KAJIAN POSTKOLONIALISME

Cross-Cultural Marriage as a Form of Social Inequality Phenomenon in the Novel Wrong Upbringing: A Study of Postcolonialism. This study aims to identify and describe the concept and problems of mixed marriage as a result of the hegemony of the West as a dominating nation during the colonial period and its background as reflected in the novel Wrong Upbringing by Abdoel Moeis, using a postcolonialism theory approach. The method used is descriptive-qualitative, using note-taking and literature study in collecting the data and the interactive Miles and Huberman technique in analyzing the data. The results obtained were in the form of two mixed marriage concepts with negative images, namely experiencing failure and rejection caused by the hegemony of the West during the colonial period. This is the background for the excessive westernization of Hanafi's character.

Integrating postcolonial perspectives in the Community Cultural Wealth Model: a qualitative framework for educational research in South-South migration

Nowadays, it is commonly recognized that educational researchers are challenged to address the cumulatively interwoven pathways where critical theories must become complementary and responsive to developing complex research design (e.g., Critical Race Theory). Postcolonial theories, in this sense, have longed enriched a criticality committed to the deconstruction of Western ways of knowing by interrogating and dislocating mainstream notions of science, modernity, and identity. Still, it seems necessary to engage in a discussion about how it would be possible to carry out research with a post-colonial perspective on current identity formation scenarios strongly marked by new pathways of social mobility in the Global South. This paper focuses on two contributions to postcolonial thought: 1) multiplicity, 2) and concrete study analysis. In it, the authors seek to share their experience designing a complementary qualitative framework underpinned by these terms that serve to translate and contextualize the model of Community Cultural Wealth (Yosso, 2005) as applied to developing global education research about immigrant students and their emerging educational pathways in relatively new pathways of social mobility in South America. By drawing on lessons learned from the ongoing research built on the testimonios of Latin American students and their mothers in the northern region of Chile, the authors share analytical strategies that deploy post-colonial perspectives to complement the content and narrative analysis normally deployed in ethnographic educational methods. Finally, this paper contributes to the ongoing discussion about fractures, expansions, and openings within post-critical educational investigations regarding methodological aspects; postcolonial thought contributes to the reinvention of new ways of thinking about cultural diversity in education.

Postcolonial Differentials in Algorithmic Bias: Challenging Digital Neo-Colonialism in Africa

As digital technologies become the dominant driver of the global economy, Africa finds itself once again faced with the prospect of developmental stagnation. In an increasingly technological age, parallels to the colonial era can be made, particularly in reference to the detrimental impact on the African economy and the continent’s developmental trajectory. AI, which drives these technologies, is informed by algorithms. The biases inherent in these algorithms lead to digital discrimination. This discrimination has resulted in a new form of colonialism, referred to as digital neocolonialism, which denotes the exclusionary barrier that has been created by algorithms. This work challenges algorithmic bias through the application of postcolonial theory, which calls for a dismantling of colonial imposition by reimagining and reframing the concept of the ‘other’. The gaps in current AI systems, and the power imbalances created, are interrogated through an analysis of bias and its impact. Through a postcolonial lens, a call is made for more inclusive AI systems, and datasets that challenges the assumed neutrality of algorithms.

The worlds of Edward Said

Edward Said achieved international renown with his book Orientalism, destined to become a bible of postcolonial studies, and as an advocate of Palestinian rights. The scholar was dubbed a nationalist and supporter of Islam. His essays, however, reveal a cosmopolitan Said who abhors the ‘politics of identity,’ Islamism, and religious parties. He expressed his admiration for Jewish philologists and philosophers, felt compassion for the suffering of the Jewish people and championed a peaceful resolution of the Palestinian problem. He borrowed Goethe’s concept of Weltliteratur. In Said’s interpretation, it transcends the boundaries of national literatures without obliterating their individual character. Assassination of either of the culture’s ‘two souls,’ the national and the cosmopolitan, may lead to cultural devitalisation and stagnation. Humanism constituted a dominant concept in Said’s works. Although ridiculed by postmodernist literary criticism, humanism is hailed by Said as essential for understanding literature. The dilemma at the core of the scholar’s work remains just as relevant to this day: how to combine cosmopolitism with the love for one’s own nation and how to fight for the rights of your own people without spewing hatred at others.

The reaction to the war which came: an examination of a cold war shelter from the 1960s and the Swedish response to the war in Ukraine

ABSTRACT This paper presents an analysis of the relationship between civilians and politicians towards cold war air-raid shelters in Sweden, and how the encounter between Russia and Ukraine might affect how individuals perceive what was previously considered obsolete relics of the cold war. The study makes use of the air-raid shelter at Halvtumsgatan 3 in Gothenburg and interviews are conducted with its tenants, the landlord of the apartment building, as well as a local politician currently part of the municipality council. The text applies a theoretical framework based on post-colonial theories such as Homi Bhabha’s Encounter and Third-Space theories, and it is stressed that a change in the relationship between civilians, the shelter and Sweden’s national foreign policy is the result of the encounter between both Ukraine and Russia. This result is attained by focusing on the case study Halvtumsgatan 3, through interviews, and observing policy changes from the Swedish government.

Malaysia’s Neocolonial Struggle: Unraveling the Complexities of Postcolonial Dynamics

The article dissects the case of Malaysia in the context of postcolonial studies. After an introduction to the aspects of postcolonial studies that are instrumental in analyzing the case, the article begins by exploring the postcolonial landscape of Malaysia, including the existing discourses, values, and the public sentiments they embody. It then highlights significant milestones in the country’s foreign policy and provides a comparative perspective on different periods. Finally, it assesses the most recent developments related to the geopolitical power struggle between China and the US in Southeast Asia. The article’s main thesis argues that Malaysia has not fully undergone the process of decolonization. Initially, the ruling political elite preserved some colonial instruments to maintain their own dominance, and later, Malaysia became entangled in the rivalry between the US and China, with both establishing neocolonial dominance over the country in different ways. Malaysia’s history since independence has not led to the formation of a cohesive nation, which has exposed it to foreign influence that exploits gaps in national consciousness and modes of governance.

Suhaiymah Manzoor-Khan’s Postcolonial Banter and the paradoxes of spoken-word poetry

ABSTRACTThis article reads the work of Suhaiymah Manzoor-Khan, an activist and spoken-word poet who, as a British Muslim woman and postcolonial critic, is uniquely placed to articulate postcolonial concerns such as the mental colonization caused by colonial languages and the epistemic violence of colonial discourses. Further, an analysis of the author’s subject position demonstrates how Manzoor-Khan’s work vividly illustrates the predicament of the subaltern fighting to be heard. Her didactic metapoetry translates familiar postcolonial concerns into the 21st century by constituting a hybrid form between poetry and academic discourse, by introducing the vocabulary of postcolonial theory into the casual language of spoken-word poetry, and by employing rhetorical strategies that problematize the relationship between poet and audience as well as the rhetorical burden of producing “humanising” poetry. By analysing how she maintains a tense relationship with her audience, the article complicates what may be misunderstood as straightforward political poetry.

Racial Bigotry and Afrikaner Agonies: A Post Colonial Reading of John Maxwell Coetzee’s Novel, Disgrace (1999)

South Africa has an exceptionally rich literary environment, particularly when it comes to the experience of coping with a tragic past. Afrikaners in South Africa had the opportunity to benefit from a privileged family foundation and the best socioeconomic and political outcomes thanks to the apartheid racial segregation system. This change has exposed the whites’ illusion that they can exist outside the historical process. Apartheid having been embedded in the consciousness of both the whites and the blacks has made it difficult for the whites to accept the reversal of the status quo within the master-slave matrix. This transformed society is affecting the Afrikaners, so they are struggling to reclaim and sustain a connection with the socio-cultural, economic, and political past. There is a disconnect between the individual and the social-cultural context, which results in agonies experienced by the Afrikaners in the post-apartheid era. The paper employed a postcolonial theory as propagated by Edward Said (1978) and Homi Bhabha (1994). It was also buttressed by New Historicism that grounds socio-political and cultural interconnectedness with the prevailing historical discourses, which gives a deeper insight into human relations. The interplay between history and cultural identity, culture and hegemony, and the resultant interracial divisions that conceal covert misogyny illustrate the reality that history may be recreated from various angles. A qualitative approach based on the library was adopted. The research design used in the study was analytical. By purposive sampling, the text was selected deliberately: Disgrace (1999) by J. M Coetzee. The selected text bulks on agonies Afrikaners go through in the post-apartheid era. This study hopes to contribute to existing post-apartheid dialectics on interracial relations

Cultural Hybridity in The Kite Runner

The Kite Runner is a novel written by Khaled Hosseini. The novel is a mirror to see the Afghan history, culture, religions, politics and many other aspects of the nation. Specifically, the novel evolves round the Afghan immigrants in Fremont, California. This paper attempts to reveal the issues of cultural differences between the two cultures: Afghan/Muslim and the American/Christian where the Afghan immigrants face cultural difficulties in a new land. In the colonial, post-colonial and post-modern societies people from across the world travel, migrate, immigrate and even settle in a new cultural location where they have to assimilate, resist or interpret the new culture. In the midst of it, this article will examine the readjustment of the immigrants in a culturally different location. Readjustment is not easy but can be made possible by their choice off cultural hybridization. In this context Homi K Bhabha, a post-colonial theorist is considered for the application part in the present study. For Bhabha the cultural space means neither the one nor the other but something else besides, in between. Neither this nor that so the third space is created for the cultural practice. The Afghan immigrants find the third space where they can rest their cultural pain. Certainly, the assumption of 'in between-space' will help to come out to the cultural problems of immigrants in the new land.

Cultural Intermingling in Ahmad Ali’s “Twilight In Delhi”: A Post-Colonial Criticism

This study centers on post-colonial textual reading and interpretive analysis of the novel “Twilight in Delhi” by Ahmad Ali. The method used in this research is qualitative. Some quotations in the form of words and sentences are quoted from the novel to support the analysis. Having an inclusion of a mission in this book, which is non-fiction and genuine work that talks about Muslims’ life during the colonial era in the Sub-continent. Ahmad has written this book and presented every aspect of Muslims’ life in that era, their culture and daily life, their revolt and favoritism towards colonizers, and the unique and mixed-up traits of Muslim culture with other cultures. Post-Colonial theory is applied to the study and selected passages are textually analyzed in terms of Post-Colonial Criticism of Culture. The study emphasizes the presentation of Muslim culture in Ahmad Ali’s Novel Twilight in Delhi.

Imperialism and literature: An imperialism-oriented reading of modern Turkish literature

Postcolonial theory perceives the world as divided between the coloniser and the colonised, thus indirectly reproducing the centrality of the West. For this reason, in literary studies, postcolonial theory fails to cover the literatures of those nations which were not colonised in a typical sense but rather occupied by Western imperialism, as was the case with Ottoman Turkey. This necessitates a convergent theoretical framework that might help evaluate the fictionalisation of the intersecting dynamics of oppression, violence, exploitation, and resistance in relation to the hegemonic narratives of imperialism and shape a new perspective regarding the politico-cultural dimension of imperial discourse. This article, in this respect, will critically develop the theoretical foundations of imperialism-oriented literary theory and construct it as an interdisciplinary field that has a potential to contribute to contemporary postcolonial theory and to encompass the intersectional dimensions of imperialism and imperial discourse for the articulation of the fictionalisation of imperialism-related issues in the under-considered corpus of modern Turkish literature.

Lived experiences of coloniality in third space

Abstract This paper discusses the interactions of the so-called lusophone migrants in ‘third space’ (Bhabha, 1994) i.e., outside the Portuguese geographical colonial matrix. Part of a larger project interested in studying whether new solidarities or old hierarchies replay when all lusophones meet and struggle in a new context, the paper examines traces of what Mignolo (2005) has termed of ‘coloniality of being’ i.e., everyday remnants of colonial modes and hierarchies. It draws from postcolonial theory and sociolinguistic ethnography to examine how coloniality perdures in intersubjective relations among lusophones, by exploring the narrative of two Cape Verdean retirees who (re)migrated to Luxembourg in 1971 and 1981. The paper uses narrative analysis to examine how they report coloniality in lusophone interactions being challenged or perpetuated at workplaces and social encounters, via stereotyping jokes, naming, and language use. It fosters a critical understanding of lusophone subjects’ interactions, marked by language and their colonial history, beyond Portuguese-speaking states.

CONTEMPORARY APPROACHES TO (TEACHING) AMERICAN LITERATURE

The paper aims to present some of the most important critical approaches to American literature in recent period and their potential application in the classroom. The first part briefly discusses some of the most important and influential twentieth and twenty-first century theoretical frameworks in the study of American literature, including New Criticism, Postcolonial Theory, Race, Ethnic and Minority Studies, Feminist Criticism. The second part of the paper is dedicated to the specific genres and forms of American literature, e.g., short story, drama, poetry and their treatment in theoretical literature. In the case of the short story, attention is dedicated to recent scholarly approaches to the form that try to re-examine traditional essential definitions by inspecting the short story in its historical and cultural context. The paper also outlines the treatment of American short story writers and their contribution to the development of the genre in theoretical literature.

The impact of the Iraq War 2003 on the British Society: A postcolonial study of Simon Stephens’s Motortown (2006)

This study explores the postcolonial impact of the 2003 Iraq war on British society, focusing on Simon Stephens's Motortown. The study addresses the contested field of postcolonialism, rejecting war while examining the transformation of culture and society resulting from colonialism. It explores nationalism, space and place, and the fusion of colonial and indigenous cultures. Concepts like hybridity, ambivalence, and the frame of war are explored within the postcolonial framework. Drawing on Homi K. Bhabha's influential work, The Location of Culture, the study examines the position of colonizer nations and their identity. Bhabha's concepts of cultural hybridity and colonial ambivalence illuminate the interactions between colonized nations and imperial colonizers, shaping the identities and cultures of both. Judith Butler's Frames of War: When Is Life Grievable? is incorporated, exploring how certain lives receive grief and political protection, while others remain invisible within social and political structures. By applying Butler's and Bhabha's concepts, the study analyzes the impact of the Iraq war on British society as depicted in Stephens's Motortown. This research contributes to understanding the cultural and social effects of the Iraq war on British society within a postcolonial framework and reveals the dynamics of power, hybridity, and ambivalence in the post-war context.

The Portrayal of American Indian Identity in The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven

This study delved into the cultural identity of American Indians residing in the Spokane reservation area, with a focus on Sherman Alexie's collection of stories, "The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven." The stories portrayed various aspects of the divide between American Indians and white people, as well as the distinctions between reservation-based Indians, urban Indians, modern Indians, and traditional Indians. The main objective of the research was to explore how the identity of American Indians is depicted in Alexie's book using Homi K Bhabha's cultural identity theories of hybridity and mimicry. This study employed the literary criticism method, particularly postcolonial studies, to analyze the representation of hybridity and mimicry. The primary data source for this investigation was the collection of short stories, "The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven," by Sherman Alexie. The data was gathered from the text, identifying words or sentences that illustrate the representation of hybridity and mimicry in the stories. The data collection techniques include reading and note-taking strategies. This study revealed two main aspects of Indian cultural identity: Hybridity, characterized by a blend of Indian and white culture, evident in language, behavior, ways of thinking, and lifestyles. Then Mimicry, seen in Indian behavior, lifestyle, and ways of thinking that resemble those of white people. In conclusion, the research highlighted how Indian cultural identity in Sherman Alexie's work reflects both hybridity and mimicry, shedding light on the complexities of cultural assimilation and adaptation in American Indian communities.

ANALISIS POSTKOLONIAL DALAM NOVEL KEMBALI KE DESA KARYA TRI BUDHI SASTRIO

Postcolonial theory is used to examine the novel Back to the Village by Tri Budhi Sastrio. The novel Back to the Village is the story of an innocent village girl named Putu Larasati, a teenager who was snatched away by her youth, then stranded in the Dutch Company barracks and fell into the arms of a Company soldier named Captain Robert van Eyk. This village girl was lucky because the soldier, although at first was a soldier who was a jerk and a hooker, turned out to love her with all her heart and sincerity. The sincerity and loyalty of the soldier who had become her husband was well recorded in the mind of this innocent country girl. Everything becomes beautiful, calm, serene, and peaceful. The method used in this research is descriptive qualitative method using postcolonial theory. The data of this research are excerpts from the description of postcolonial theory in the novel "Back to the Village" by Tri Budhi Sastrio. The data source of this research is the novel "Back to the Village" by Tri Budhi Sastrio published by C.V Jejak Publisher publisher on Jln. Bojonggenteng Number 18, Kec. Bojonggenteng Kab. Sukabumi, West Java First printing December 2018, 188 pages, 14 x 20 cm. Data collection techniques used reading techniques and note-taking techniques. The data that has been obtained is then written on the data card. After the data that are in accordance with the research focus are collected, the data is then analyzed using the postcolonial theory of Edward Said's thinking: politics, culture, resistance. Analysis of postcolonial theory in the novel "Back to the Village" by Tri Budhi Sastrio is based on Edward Said's thoughts: politics, culture, resistance that the contents of the novel from a political point of view of the Dutch government colonizing Indonesia by utilizing Dutch stooges such as village heads and indigenous women including Putu Larasati figure became a shield for Dutch colonial politics. In the cultural field, indigenous people still maintain etiquette and manners in attitude and speech. This can be seen in the character Putu Larasati. In the field of Resistance, indigenous peoples continued to fight and defend their rights which had been colonized by the Dutch colonials. This is reflected in the character Putu Larasati who fights for her rights as a woman and maintains the dignity of her family.

CONFLICT OF IRISH CULTURAL IDENTITY IN BRIAN FRIEL’S TRANSLATION

Having been colonized by Britain, Ireland was in a very deprived condition for a very long period, especially for poor Catholic Irish. Britain had destroyed Irish civil rights by forcing them in a massive potato plantation merely to fulfill British people’s need for food, which caused the Irish in a great famine and poverty. Written by an Irish playwright in 1980, which is set in agricultural land, northern side of Ireland, Brian Friel’s Translations illustrates clearly the suffering of Irish villagers in 19th century. By applying Homi K. Bhabha’s post-colonialism theory, the dialogues from the play are analyzed to explain Irish cultural identity conflict. This play is analyzed by using a descriptive qualitative method. The result of analysis reflects the mimicry concept from Bhabha, in which it shows an ambition that Irish tradition must be vanished and replaced by British tradition. The dialogues in Brian Friel’s Translation describe that Irish language and tradition which tells a lot of Greek mythology must be replaced with the culture of Standard English language. The translations on Irish local place names into English language are forced for the sake of British imperialism importance in the Ordnance survey.

What Comes After Postcolonial Theory?

What Comes After Postcolonial Theory?