160217 SE Colonial and Postcolonial Literature in English (2011W)

In this course we will read two instances of colonial English literature and two instances of postcolonial literature in English, with the latter two being rewritings of the former. Such rewriting is an oft-used technique in postcolonial literature, and we will explore the how and why of this. This will require going into the historical conditions of the works in question, and relating them to social, political and economic issues relevant to their form and content. Although in our discussions we will concentrate on the four works in question, I will regularly also make reference to other works of colonial and postcolonial literature in English, from Shakespeare to contemporary Indian, African, and Caribbean literature, and occasionally also to works in other languages than English. However, as far as primary works are concerned I will expect students only to have read the four novels listed below. I will also expect them to read, and to be able to use in class discussion, the secondary materials I will make electronically available via the university website, and which will effectively make up a Reader for the course. At the end of the course students should have a good grasp of the interplay between colonial and postcolonial literature(s), and of how this reflects wider concerns having to do with issues also in the non-literary sphere.

13. 10 2011
Robinson Crusoe (Daniel Defoe)

17. 11. 2011
Jane Eyre (Charlotte Brontë)

15. 12. 2011
Wide Sargasso Sea (Jean Rhys)

12. 01. 2012
Foe (J.M. Coetzee)