Colonialism and Literature

Flashcards covering key concepts and figures discussed in the lecture notes.

Colonialism

A political-economic phenomenon where European nations explored, conquered, settled, and exploited large areas of the world.

Voyaging In (Migrancy)

Movement into a new region or country.

Voyaging Out (Exile)

Departure from one's native land, often involuntarily.

Primitivism

The idea present in Anthropology, Psychology and Art, as well as in Literature.

Myth

The idea present in Anthropology, Psychology, Literary theory, and Literature.

Postcolonialism

A field that encompasses Voyaging in (Postcolonialism and Migration), Literature, and Postcolonial Theory.

Rudyard Kipling

Indian-born writer who recognized the influence of Empire on British Culture and Literature.

Contact Zone

Area of cultural interaction resulting from colonial influence, leading to chronic paranoia but also opportunities.

"The English Flag"

Poem by Kipling advocating for imperial awareness in England.

"The White Man’s Burden"

Poem by Kipling about the responsibility of superior civilizations towards colonial subjects.

Olive Schreiner

South African writer who explored feelings of absurdity and terror at the project of dominating other peoples.

"The Story of an African Farm"

Novel by Schreiner showcasing the failure of Enlightenment ideas and the grand narrative of progress.

Leonard Woolf

Writer who believed the empire bankrupted liberalism.

James Joyce

Irish writer sought to supply his nation with cultural self-definition.

"Non serviam"

Motto used by Joyce, representing protest and resistance against various constraints.

Stephen Dedalus

Character in Joyce's 'A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man'.

Joseph Conrad

Proto-modernist writer who indicted colonial brutality.

"Heart of Darkness"

Work by Conrad that is on extreme foreignness and the recognizability of ‘primitive nature’.

"An Outpost of Progress"

Article by Conrad indicting colonial brutality.

Virginia Woolf

Author of Mrs. Dalloway (1925) and The Waves (1931) - rapid movements between streams-of-consciousness.