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This blogpost is part of thinking activity, Articles on postcolonial studies given by Dilip Barad sir, Department of English, MKBU.
Articles on Postcolonial Studies
The article "Globalization and the Future of Postcolonial Studies" explores how globalization changes the identities of postcolonial societies by integrating them into the global economy. Global capitalism impacts these societies by prioritizing profit, leading to the erosion of traditional cultures and local economies. Cultural practices often become commodified, and the economic shift favors global markets over local sustainability.
In films like Slumdog Millionaire and novels like The White Tiger, we see how globalization affects characters’ identities. They struggle between adopting modern, global lifestyles and retaining their cultural roots. For instance, The White Tiger portrays the conflict between rural Indian traditions and the urban demands of a globalized economy. The protagonist, Balram, has to navigate these two worlds, embodying the complexities of postcolonial identity in a rapidly changing world.
Similarly, Slumdog Millionaire shows how characters adapt to global economic forces but face the erasure of traditional values in the process. Both works highlight the challenges of survival in a globalized system that often undermines cultural heritage, forcing individuals to redefine their identities in the context of new global realities.
The article "Globalization and Fiction: Exploring Postcolonial Critique and Literary Representations" examines how contemporary fiction critiques the effects of globalization from a postcolonial perspective. It discusses how writers from formerly colonized countries tackle issues like cultural identity, resistance to Western dominance, and the blending (or hybridity) of cultures in a globalized world.
Postcolonial authors often explore themes like resistance to cultural erasure, the struggles of maintaining identity in a globalized world, and the mixing of cultures (hybridity) due to colonial legacies. They portray how globalization can reinforce old patterns of exploitation but also create new spaces for cultural negotiation and identity transformation. For example, novels by authors like Arundhati Roy or Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie highlight these struggles.
In film, Slumdog Millionaire can be analyzed similarly. It portrays a hybrid India, caught between its rich cultural history and modern globalization, where characters navigate identity crises and the pressure of Western influences. The film can be seen as both celebrating cultural hybridity while also exposing the challenges globalization imposes on postcolonial societies.
The broader implication of this analysis is that postcolonial thought remains highly relevant in today’s globalized world. The continued dominance of Western cultures in global narratives often marginalizes postcolonial voices, but fiction and films offer a space for these voices to resist, adapt, and redefine their identities.
The article "Postcolonial Studies in the Anthropocene: Bridging Perspectives for a Sustainable Future" examines how postcolonial studies connect with environmental concerns in the Anthropocene, a period defined by human impact on Earth. It discusses how colonized nations are more vulnerable to climate change and environmental destruction due to historical exploitation and fewer resources for resilience.
Colonized peoples often live in areas hardest hit by climate change, like rising sea levels or deforestation, yet have the least ability to cope. Films like Beasts of the Southern Wild show how marginalized communities are left to face the harsh realities of ecological destruction. Set in a fictional southern U.S. bayou, the film parallels the struggles of formerly colonized nations, depicting the fight for survival as climate change threatens to erase their homes and culture.
These works highlight the connection between historical exploitation and present environmental crises, where the most affected are often the least responsible for the damage.
The article "Heroes or Hegemons: The Celluloid Empire of Rambo and Bond in America's Geopolitical Narrative" discusses how Hollywood films, specifically the Rambo and James Bond franchises, shape global perceptions of U.S. dominance. It examines how these films portray American heroes as saviors, often reinforcing a narrative of Western superiority and control over other nations. These films support the idea of the U.S. as a global leader and defender, often marginalizing other cultures and perspectives.
Hollywood movies, like Rambo and Bond, project American dominance through action-packed stories where the U.S. (or its allies) triumph over evil forces, usually from non-Western nations. This reinforces the idea of the U.S. as a moral authority. Postcolonial critiques argue that these narratives perpetuate the "us vs. them" mindset, where the West is "civilized" and the rest of the world is depicted as "savage" or needing rescue.
Other films and TV series that reinforce similar hegemonic ideals include Top Gun, 24, and American Sniper, which all showcase American military or intelligence prowess, while subtly supporting the idea of U.S. superiority on the global stage. These narratives often exclude or oversimplify the perspectives of other nations, contributing to a one-sided view of global power.
The article "Reimagining Resistance: The Appropriation of Tribal Heroes in Rajamouli's RRR" explores how the film RRR reimagines and portrays tribal resistance against British colonial rule. It examines how the film takes real historical figures from tribal communities and reshapes them into cinematic heroes, sometimes altering their struggles to fit a broader, more dramatic narrative.
In RRR, tribal resistance is reimagined as a larger-than-life battle against colonial forces. While this can inspire a sense of pride and defiance against oppression, it can also distort historical realities by simplifying or romanticizing the resistance. Such narratives can both contribute to postcolonial struggles by keeping the memory of resistance alive and empowering oppressed groups, but they can also undermine these struggles if they reduce complex histories into entertainment, overshadowing the true voices and experiences of indigenous or subaltern heroes.
Other films like Avatar or The Last of the Mohicans also portray resistance from indigenous or subaltern characters but often appropriate their struggles for broader commercial narratives, sometimes missing the nuance of their actual historical or cultural contexts.
References:-
Barad, Dilip. “GLOBALIZATION AND FICTION: EXPLORING POSTCOLONIAL CRITIQUE AND LITERARY REPRESENTATIONS.” 2022, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/376374570_GLOBALIZATION_AND_THE_FUTURE_OF_POSTCOLONIAL_STUDIES Accessed 23 September 2024.
Barad, Dilip. “GLOBALIZATION AND THE FUTURE OF POSTCOLONIAL STUDIES.” ResearchGate. ResearchGate, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/376371617_GLOBALIZATION_AND_FICTION_EXPLORING_POSTCOLONIAL_CRITIQUE_AND_LITERARY_REPRESENTATIONS Accessed 23 September 2024.
Barad, Dilip. “Heroes or Hegemons? The Celluloid Empire of Rambo and Bond in America's Geopolitical Narrative.” 2024, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/376374708_POSTCOLONIAL_STUDIES_IN_THE_ANTHROPOCENE_BRIDGING_PERSPECTIVES_FOR_A_SUSTAINABLE_FUTURE Accessed 23 September 2024.
Barad, Dilip. “POSTCOLONIAL STUDIES IN THE ANTHROPOCENE: BRIDGING PERSPECTIVES FOR A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE.” 2022, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/383415195_Heroes_or_Hegemons_The_Celluloid_Empire_of_Rambo_and_Bond_in_America's_Geopolitical_Narrative Accessed 23 September 2024.
Barad, Dilip. “Reimagining Resistance: The Appropriation of Tribal Heroes in Rajamouli's RRR.” 2024, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/383603395_Reimagining_Resistance_The_Appropriation_of_Tribal_Heroes_in_Rajamouli's_RRR Accessed 23 September 2024.
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