Postcolonialism: A Guide for the Perplexed

by Pramod K. Nayar

Overview

Postcolonialism as a critical approach and pedagogic practice has informed literary and cultural studies since the late 1980s. The term is heavily loaded and has come to mean a wide, and often bewildering, variety of approaches, methods, politics and ideas. Beginning with the historical origins of postcolonial thought in the writings of Gandhi, Cesaire and Fanon, this guide moves on to Edward Said's articulation into a critical approach and finally to postcolonialism's multiple forms in contemporary critical thinking, including theorists such as Bhabha, Spivak, Arif Dirlik and Aijaz Ahmed. Written in jargon-free language and illustrated with examples from literary and cultural texts, this book addresses the many concerns, forms and 'specializations' of postcolonialism, including gender and sexuality studies, the nations and nationalism, space and place, history and politics. It explains the key ideas, concepts and approaches in what is arguably the most influential and politically edged critical approach in literary and cultural theory today

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780826400468
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	12/23/2010
Series:	Guides for the Perplexed
Pages:	248
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Pramod K. Nayar is Assistant Professor in English at the University of Hyderabad, India. His most recent books include Packaging Life: Cultures of the Everyday (Sage 2009), Postcolonial Literature: An Introduction (Pearson, 2008), A Short History of English Literature (Cambridge, India, 2000) and English Writing and India, 1600-1920 (Routledge, 2008).

Table of Contents

Preface vi

Acknowledgements viii

Chapter 1 Introduction: Postcolonial Thought 1

Chapter 2 Colonial Cultures 35

Chapter 3 Nation and Nationalism 69

Chapter 4 Gender and Sexuality 101

Chapter 5 Space and Place 134

Chapter 6 Cosmopolitanisms 163

Chapter 7 New Concerns for the Postcolonial 191

Notes 212

Bibliography 214

Index 237

Editorial Reviews

Pramod Nayar's survey of postcolonialism covers substantial terrain with consummate ease. It moves from the theoretical and literary engagements with colonialism's cultures, the rise of postcolonial thought in anti-colonial struggles through the major literary themes of space, nationalism, sexuality and gender, to newer postcolonial formations in the cosmopolitan and globalized age we live in. Nayar's close attention to tropes, literary figurations, the politics of postcolonial theory and the continued relevance of postcolonial approaches to terrorism, cybercultures and globalization - all carefully illustrated and evidenced from texts from Africa, Asia, South American and other formerly colonized nations - makes this book at once an indispensable introduction to the field and a critical evaluation of the literary-political discipline of "Postcolonial Studies." The book will be of interest to students in History, Literary Studies, Cultural Studies and Theory across the world where questions about race, culture, colonialism and identity continue to productively 'trouble' pedagogy and reading practices.

From the Publisher