GOVT 4265

Postcolonial Theory

Course Description

Course information provided by the Courses of Study 2017-2018.

This seminar presents an overview of postcolonial thought. We will start by situating the emergence of postcolonial theory in the context of anti-imperialism and decolonization struggles during the early and mid-twentieth century. We will then read scholars of subaltern studies and orientalism in order to understand their approach to questions of agency and representation within a broader "cultural turn" in the literature. Finally, we will turn to contemporary debates in postcolonial studies about race, class, and settler colonialisms, with attendant conversations about anti-imperialist internationalist imaginaries and political economy. Possible readings include C.L.R James, Aimé Césaire, Amilcar Cabral, Edward Said, Ranajit Guha, Dipesh Chakrabarty, Gayatri Spivak, Lila Abu-Lughod, Ella Shohat, Vivek Chibber, and Steven Salaita.

When Offered Spring.

Breadth Requirement (GB)
Distribution Category (CA-AS)
Course Subfield (PT)

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