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Key facts
| Type | Weekly Classes |
|---|---|
| Location | Beaconsfield |
| Address | United Reformed Church Hall 16 Aylesbury End Beaconsfield HP9 1LW |
| Dates | Wed 26 Sep 2012 to Wed 27 Mar 2013 Day: Wednesday Time of meeting: 10.00am-12.00pm Number of meetings: 20 |
| Subject area(s) | Literature |
| CATS points | 20 |
| Fees | From £265.00 |
| Application status | Course ended |
| Course code | E12P552LTW |
| Course contact | If you have any questions about this course, please email ppweekly@conted.ox.ac.uk. |
Overview
Stereotypes of coloniser and colonised promoted Europe’s ‘civilising mission’. This course explores fiction reinforcing these racial myths and fiction which challenges them.Description
From Kipling’s well-beloved tale Kim, to forgotten classics from the days of Empire, the first half of this course explores the good, the controversial, and the ugly in fifty years of Colonial fiction, spanning 1884-1934. We shall start by exploring the of the myths, assumptions, and fears which justified the so-called “civilising mission” in Africa, Asia and the Indian sub-continent in authors ranging from G.A. Henty to Maud Diver. We then examine the well-intended yet flawed attempts by Conrad, Woolf, Forster and Orwell to expose the brutality and hypocrisy behind these romanticised pictures of Empire. During the second term we shall look at literary responses to Imperialism by the formerly colonised, including the works of such seminal authors as Chinua Achebe, N’gugi wa Thiong’o, Jean Rhys, V.A. Naipaul and Kiran Desai.Programme details
Week 1: Colonial Stereotypes, an IntroductionWeek 2: Henty, With Clive in India (1884)
Week 3: Maud Diver, Captain Desmond V.C. (1907)
Week 4: Rudyard Kipling, Kim (1901)
Week 5: Conrad, Heart of Darkness (1899/1903)
Week 6: Conrad, Heart of Darkness
Week 7: Leonard Woolf, The Village in the Jungle (1913)
Week 8: E.M Forster, A Passage to India (1924)
Week 9: George Orwell, Burmese Days (1934)
Week 10: Conclusions for Colonial Literature
Week 11: Introduction to Postcolonial literature
Week 12: Chinua Achebe, Things Fall Apart (1958)
Week 13: Chinua Achebe, Things Fall Apart
Week 14: N’gugi wa Thiong’o, The Devil on the Cross (1982)
Week 15: Jean Rhys, Wide Sargasso Sea (1966)
Week 16: V.S. Naipaul, A Bend in the River (1979)
Week 17: Naipaul, A Bend in the River
Week 18: Kiran Desai, The Inheritance of Loss (2006)
Week 19: Kiran Desai, The Inheritance of Loss
Week 20: Conclusions for Postcolonial Literature
Background Reading:
G.A. Henty, With Clive in India
Maud Diver, Captain Desmond V.C. (preferably: Forgotten Books, 2010)
Rudyard Kipling, Kim (Norton Critical Edition, 2002)
Joseph Conrad, Heart of Darkness (Norton Critical Edition, Fourth Edition, 2006)
Leonard Woolf, The Village in the Jungle (Eland, 2005/6)
E.M. Forster, A Passage to India, introduction by Pankaj Mishra (Penguin, 2005)
George Orwell, Burmese Days (Penguin Modern Classics, 2009)
Chinua Achebe, Things Fall Apart, introduction by Biyi Bandele (Penguin Modern Classics, 2001)
N’gugi wa Thiong’o, The Devil on the Cross (Pearson Education, Oxford Heinemann, 1987)
Jean Rhys, Wide Sargasso Sea (Penguin Modern Classics, 2000)
V.S. Naipaul, The Bend in the River (Pan Macmillan Picador, 2011)
Kiran Desai, The Inheritance of Loss (Penguin)
Staff
Dr Carol Peaker
Role: Tutor
Dr Carol Peaker, formerly an arts correspondent, teaches English at Oxford. She has written on Orwell, fin de siècle revolutionaries, and WWII...more
Course aims
Course Aims:To enlarge students’ knowledge and critical understanding of colonial literature, circa 1884-1934 and post colonial literature since the late 1950s.
Course Objectives:
1. To read a range of colonial and postcolonial fiction with reference to its historical context and its contemporary reception.
2. To discuss the stereotypes encoded in colonial fiction and the efficacy of literary techniques employed by authors who desired to challenge these stereotypes.
3. To discuss the methods used by postcolonial authors to convey the legacy of Imperialism.
Assessment methods
Each term, assessment will take the form of either one essay of approximately 1000 words or three short pieces of 330 words each. Students will be provided with suggestions for essays, but are welcome to choose topics of their own in consultation with the tutor. Students may also make a class presentation or participate in a debate in lieu of one of their essays as long as written notes are also submitted.Teaching methods
The course will open with a slide presentation by the tutor. Classes will comprise guided class discussions, smaller group discussions, debates and presentations by the students. Supporting material (often for discussion) will be distributed in the class and made available on the internet.Teaching outcomes
By the end of the course, students should:1. Understand some of the controversies surrounding major colonial and postcolonial writers
2. Be able to identify the stereotypes and justifications for imperialism found in colonial fiction
3. Be able to cite four literary methods used by postcolonial authors to challenge colonial assumptions
Apply for this course
Sorry, this course is not currently accepting applications. If you have any questions about this course, please use the course enquiry form.