The Empire Writes Back : Theory and Practice in Post-Colonial Literatures
Terence Hawkes
(editor),
London
:
Routledge
,
1989
Z132291
1989
single work
criticism
(taught in 7 units)
'The experience of colonization and the challenges of the post-colonial world have produced an explosion of new writing in English. This diverse and powerful body of literature has established a specific practice of colonial writing in cultures as diverse as India, Australia, the West Indies, Africa and Canada. This comprehensive study opens debates about the interrelationships of these literatures, investigates the powerful forces acting on language in the post-colonial text and shows how these texts constitute a radical critique of the assumptions underlying Eurocentric notions of literature and language.' (Publication summary)
Macquarie PEN Anthology of Aboriginal Literature
Anita Heiss
(editor),
Peter Minter
(editor),
Nicholas Jose
(editor),
Crows Nest
:
Allen and Unwin
,
2008
Z1483175
2008
anthology
poetry
drama
prose
correspondence
criticism
extract
(taught in 19 units)
'An authoritative survey of Australian Aboriginal writing over two centuries, across a wide range of fiction and non-fiction genres. Including some of the most distinctive writing produced in Australia, it offers rich insights into Aboriginal culture and experience...
'The anthology includes journalism, petitions and political letters from both the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, as well as major works that reflect the blossoming of Aboriginal poetry, prose and drama from the mid-twentieth century onwards. Literature has been used as a powerful political tool by Aboriginal people in a political system which renders them largely voiceless. These works chronicle the ongoing suffering of dispossession, but also the resilience of Aboriginal people across the country, and the hope and joy in their lives.' (Publisher's blurb)
LEARNING OUTCOMES
On completion of this unit, students should be able to:
1. demonstrate an awareness of the ambiguities and complexities of post-colonial discourse and the need to clarify their own speaking positions;
2. apply selected theoretical models and assumptions to texts drawn from diverse cultures, but written in or translated into English; and
3. identify and discuss issues related to post-colonial theory, including language, gender, appropriation, globalisation, nationalism, hybridity and diaspora.
UNIT CONTENT
1. Introduction to historical and social background relevant to the development of selected postcolonial literatures.
2. Study of selected works from different regions representative of particular cultural features, as well as reflective of thematic and technical development and variation.
3. Study of works from a single region, as well as between regions.
4. Application of appropriate theoretical models to selected texts and discussions of relevant issues in post-colonial literary theory.
40%
Group project and presentation
30%
Discussion papers
30%
Ashcroft, B., Griffiths, G., & Tiffin, H. (2002). The empire writes back: Theory and practice in post-colonial literature. [2nd edition]. London: Routledge.
Significant Referencesas:
Ashcroft, B. (2001). Post-colonial transformation. London: Routledge
Ashcroft, B., Griffiths, G., & Tiffin, H. (1998) Key concepts in post-colonial studies. London: Routledge.
Bhabha, H. (1990). Nation and narration. New York - London: Routledge.
Boehmer, E. (1995). Colonial and postcolonial literature. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Brewster, A. (1995). Literary formations: Post-colonialism, nationalism, globalism. Melbourne: Melbourne University Press.
Gandhi, L. (1998). Postcolonial theory: A critical introduction. Sydney: Allen & Unwin
Goldberg, D. & Quayson, A. (Eds.) (2002). Relocating postcolonialism Malden: Blackwell.
Hallward, P. (2001). Absolutely postcolonial: Writing between the singular and the specific. Manchester: Manchester University Press.
Huggan, G. (2001). The postcolonial exotic: Marketing the margins. London: Routledge.
Loomba, A. (1998). Colonialism/postcolonialism. London: Routledge.
McLeod, J. (2000). Beginning postcolonialism. Manchester: MUP.
Moreton-Robinson, A. (2000). Talkin' up to the white woman: Indigenous women and feminism. St Lucia: UQP.
Punter, D. (2000). Postcolonial imaginings: Fictions of a new world order. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University.
Said, E. (1979). Orientalism. New York: Vintage Books.
Talib, I. (2002). The language of postcolonial literatures: An introduction. London: Routledge.
Thieme, J. (2001). Postcolonial con-texts: Writing back to the canon. London: Continuum
Whisker, G. (2000). Post-colonial and African American women's writing: A critical introduction Houndmills: Macmillan.
JOURNALS
Meanjin
SPAN
Kunapipi
World literature written in English
Journal of Commonwealth literature
World literature today
African literature today
