Week 1 Post colonialism and Literature An Introduction

6/12/17

Post colonialism and Literature by Lois Tyson

Common topics in which postcolonial critics interpret postcolonial literature
o The native peoples initial encounter with the colonizers/disruption of
indigenous culture
o Journey of the European outsider through an unfamiliar wilderness
w/a native guide
o Othering and colonial oppression
o Mimicry the attempt of the colonized to be accepted by imitating the
dress, behavior, speech, and lifestyle of the colonizers
o Exile experience of being an outsider in ones own land or a
foreign wanderer in Britain
o Post-independence exuberance followed by disillusionment
o Struggle for individual and collective cultural identity and the related
theme of alienation, unhomeliness, double consciousness, and
hybridity
o The need for continuity with a pre-colonial past and self-definition of
the political future

The Danger of the Single Story by Chimamanda Adiche

Speaks of the danger of stereotypes as they create a single story
When she came to America her roommate was surprised at how good her
English was and assumed she didnt know how to use a stove
Her writing professor told her that her story wasnt authentically African
enough
She grew up reading stories filled with blonde hair and blue eyes and her
stories mirrored this
She had a single story view of Mexico and assumed it would be very poor and
awful

Week 2 African Literature

6/19/17

Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe

Motifs occupation, corruption of power
Symbols drums; apart from their community
Education, cultural values, feminized
o How fables play into education
o Missionaries and oracles
o Functions to colonize their mind in certain aspects
 A character who doesnt fit in his own society
His views on how he sees the rest of the world
Gender becomes a theme or issue the view of family and the roles expected
within
Masculine vs. feminine

Decolonizing the Mind by Thiong

Imperialist tradition in Africa is today maintained by the international
bourgeoisie using the multinational and flag-waving native ruling classes
Resistance tradition is carried out by the working people and is reflected in
their patriotic defense of the peasant/worker roots of natural cultures
Effect of a cultural bomb is to annihilate a peoples belief in their names, in
their languages, in their environment, in their heritage of struggle, in their
unity, in their capacities and ultimately in themselves

Racism, a History Part 1: BBC

Colonialism creates racism
Europeans use slaves for profit, they in turn become racist towards the
slaves to justify it
Africans were dehumanized, seen as items to trade
Spanish conquerors were very violent, created a sort of genocide to the
native populations they encountered
White Imperialism created the idea that some people are better than others
white became the top tier and everything else was judged as less than and
different

Week 3 Caribbean Literature

6/26/17

A Far Cry From Africa by Derek Walcott

As natural law, a righteous man seeks his divinity by inflicting pain those
who are violent towards slaves still see themselves as righteous men just
doing what they need to do
How to choose between this Africa and English tongue I love? issues with
identity, how to decide which to lean to
Is there a way to speak the English language but still be able to keep your
culture is it necessary to pick one or the other
How can I turn from Africa and live? it isnt possible to be himself to turn
from Africa and deny its impact on his identity
He cant discard his ties to Africa if he does he will lost a part of himself, a
part of himself will die
A Small Place by Jamaica Kincaid
1st section Kincaid narration of the readers experience and thoughts
2nd section memories of old Antigua
3rd section Antiguas present
4th section conclusion to the piece
Theme of corruption
o Japanese cars
o Money-making schemes
o Not for common good
Unreal beauty
o Imbalance of perspective
o Separate/prison
Library -
o Sign is important
o Gesture of education but its not educating anyone
o Ineffective/oppression
o Repairs are pending

Week 4 no readings
7/3/17

Week 5 Indian Literature

7/10/17

When Mr. Pirzada Came to Dine by Lahari Jhumpa

She struggles with being American but identifying with Indian culture
At home she is Indian, at school she is American and only learns about
American history
Her teacher doesnt see the importance in learning history personal to her
Mr. Pirzada comes to visit to watch the news and it is like its a different
world than outside her home
She worries for his family and prays for them
She saw Mr. Pirzada as Indian and was surprised when she found out he
wasnt she starts looking for differences in him that would indicate a
different ethnicity
She previously had a one view she grouped together different people as all
Indian because she didnt know enough about the history
Week 6 Middle Eastern Literature
7/17/17

If I forget Jerusalem by Yehuda Amichai

Seems like he is saying if he forgets about Jerusalem and its impact on his
identity, it is a bad thing
When he says let my right be forgotten he could mean his right to claiming
Jerusalem as his own be forgotten
When he says my left remember it seems like if he forgets about Jerusalem
then only his leaving will be remembered
If his right forgets his left shall forgive if he forgets about Jerusalem the
part of him that left and started anew will forgive him because his left is
whats current
If he forgets Jerusalem he will be forgetting his mother, the importance of her
and her identity tied to Jerusalem
If he discards his Jerusalem identity then his blood will be forgotten the
blood that runs through his veins has just as much importance to him as
Jerusalem, it is a part of him.

Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi

Graphic novel and autobiographic
1979 Islamic Revolution
1980 veils mandatory, bilingual schools shut down
Symbols of capitalism: called cultural revolution
Shame due to difference in social classes
Savak secret police of the Shahs regime
Wants to be a prophet when she is older, has interesting relationship with
God
Her parents are very supportive and want her to form her own opinions
Gets in trouble with schools often for speaking out against what is being
taught
Likes being involved with Western pop culture
Is sent to Austria to get an education where she is not in danger of speaking
freely
It seems like her parents never join her but hints that she did see them at
some point in the future.

The Failure of the Post-Colonial State in the Middle East

Austria, Germany, Czar Russia, Ottoman all ended empires
Both currents wanted to embrace Western culture but maintain Muslim Arab
character
A push during Cold War the logic became that radical nationalism is equal
to anti Western
 There was an attempt at social justice which was a reaction to colonialism
with the idea that to be just, one had to be socialist
Logic of economic development is that it results in oppression
In 1967 modernity was brought to a half by the Arab-Israeli War
Regimes become military dictatorships which turn into family dictatorships
The people in power benefit and all that is left is Islam
1982 there was a revolt a reaction not to the injustice of colonialism but
injustices of the postcolonial state
Little people in the movement want that same thing but not through
modernism, through Islam
Failure of post colonial states is a failure of modernization
Modernity = consumerist society; a poor modernization
Modernity in Western Europe is a slow development of the rule of law
o Separation of state and religion, rule by law not by personality
Wearing the hijab allows women to be seen as an equal human being.

Week 7 South & South East Asian Literature

7/24/17

The General Retires by Chu Tien

Starts of by saying the emotion hes referring to is the need to protect his
fathers name
His grandfather was a Confucian scholar and he had two wives
His father ran away at the age of 12 and joined the army.
Even though his letters were short, they still conveyed a lot of love and
concern
37, an engineer, has two daughters and a senile mother
Raising German Shepherds became a profitable business it was most of
their income
Co 60 years old, lives in a house behind theirs with his daughter Lai. He
helps with the animals and Lai helped with the housework
His father wanted to help Co with housework but Chus wife said he cant
because he is a general and should act as such
His wife works in the maternity ward doing abortions
Loyalty to the dead is the ultimate loyalty
Do you recognize me? Then who am I? A human being very depression
depiction of being senile
Interesting ritual of burial and dealing with death
His father did a lot of preparations before his trip these were apparently
signs that he was not coming back
His father died on the battlefield
Critical thinking essay by Kenzaburo Oe
In order to counteract absolute evil it is necessary to have an absolute good
in order to recover a human balance in the world
The atomic bomb exploding in Hiroshima is the symbol of all human evil
After the bomb there was a lot of good humans helping to recover and
restore.
A result of the survivors recovering was the burden on the conscience of the
people who dropped the bomb lessened.
By salvaging their own lives they also salvaged the souls of the people who
brought the atomic bomb

For the New Citizen of These United States by Li-Young Lee

Difficult to tell who the narrator is talking to could be themselves at a
different point in time or someone they know, possibly younger
Has a resentful tone like they dont agree with the choice to forget their past
It shows two different ways one can immigrate you can come to America
and fully remember your past and how you got here, or you can come to
America and start brand new and not attribute much to your past
It seems like the person is choosing not to remember but maybe they cant
remember and dont wish to learn about that part of their culture and past
Interesting look at assimilation while keeping ones culture

With Ruins by Li-Young Lee

About memory but like a place to escape to if you need to remember
Narrator asks to think of a house that seems like its falling apart but it is a
house where no one will see you, there are no neighbors, there is no one to
tell you what you do or do not see
In this house that is collapsing you can remember your own house, with your
own family, and this metaphorical house can be your safe place
It is a place to go to when maybe you no longer want to participate in your
new American life and want to remember your past because it made you who
you are

Southeast Asia Post colonialism

The Europeans came to South Asia primarily for trade to gain wealth from
things such as spices
They hadnt intended on colonization but later when the Industrial
Revolution began they decided colonizing would be a good way to gain
resources
Northern Vietnam was taken over by the idea of communism and those in
Southern Vietnam wanted the US to help them keep communism out
The Vietnam War was an attempt to keep communism out we lost the war
and Vietnam became communist as a whole
British originally colonized Australia as a place to send criminals
 Treated the aboriginals horribly and did not see them as people
When they were granted citizenship they were given a land that they could
own, much like America giving Native Americans reservations to go to
Aboriginals see land as a shared thing, not specific to each tribe, so this
wasnt really a great thing and they were kind of banned from most
civilization
The natives of New Zealand were treated much better by the British and they
adapted much more of their culture
There is something called the secret/lost generation where children of
aboriginals were taken from their parents and given to British families
This was done to help assimilate the aboriginals, to make them more British

Week 8 Latin America

7/31/17

The White Mans Burden by Pablo Neruda

Something far off it seemed deep and secret to me something he doesnt
understand or is able to relate to
The roots I had left behind his past, his ethnicity, left behind?
The land I had lost with my childhood land taken away from him maybe,
uprooting his childhood
The scent wounds him brings back a painful memory of what was lost

1971 Nobel Speech by Pablo Neruda

Rode on horseback to cross the Andes
Something in the wilderness betrayed human activity they left a tribute at
every mound; a grave to the unknown travellers
They left coins in the eye sockets of the skull of an ox it is a sacrifice for
stray travellers
During his journey he found the tools to make a poem
Poetry is an action
A poet must learn through other people there is no insurmountable
solitude
All paths lead to the same goal to convey to others what we are
No such thing as a lone struggle or lone hope