| Instructor: Dr Chitra Sankaran |
Pedagogic Objectives
This module will focus on teaching students to:
1. Understand the broader goals of both postcolonial studies and feminist studies
2. Respond to literary texts through specific modes of discourse used in feminist and post-colonial studies
3. Discuss the manner in which prose fiction represents the notion of self, through aspects of texts such as narration and character
4. Discuss the manner in which drama explores and constructs notions of the self through its creation and use of a system of signs peculiar to itself
5. Cognise texts (both creative and critical) in the light of their understanding of goals 1, 2 & 3
6. Comprehend different definitions of the self, as and when relevant, that Western philosophical and some Eastern traditions have constructed
7. Get conversant with literary terminologies
Introduction and Description
In its simplest form, the term 'post colonial' is taken to refer to the period after colonialism. As such, people who come across the term 'post-colonial studies' assume that this field examines the historical facts of the colonial impact and the resultant legacies in terms of the formation and formulation of new postcolonial nations. They are certainly right up to a point. But what they cannot experience is the excitement and the fervour that marks the field of postcolonial studies as a whole. More importantly, most people do not perceive the direct relevance that the colonial encounter has had on every one of us even if we were born well after the colonial period.
Postcolonialism is a new and dynamic field that is creating waves throughout the world. It studies the lingering impact of colonialism on erstwhile colonies and imperial nations; It examines how neo-colonial legacies were formed as a result of the colonial encounter. But most significantly, postcolonial studies raises questions about how notions of 'self' and 'identity' have undergone deep and permanent changes because of the complex impact of imperial cultures on native civilizations. All of us we come to realize, have been affected by this historical process. This module will establish a forum to discuss these crucial issues.
Within postcolonialism, one of the most complex locations is that occupied by women. Women in colonised cultures have been termed 'the twice colonised'- colonised by the male social order and by the imperial order. Does this statement still hold true when it comes to societies such as Singapore? Is it true of neo-colonial regimes in South Asia? This module attempts to examine the truth-value of statements such as the above. It will also attempt to explore the place of women in erstwhile colonies, including Singapore, through a study of its literatures, specifically literary texts by women.
Feminists point out an interesting parallel between women and 'the colonised'. Both are positioned as 'the other' - women to the male order, 'the colonised' to the imperial order. As such, both women and 'the colonised' are seen as sharing an experience of oppression and subjugation that has constructed their very beings. Feminism however also has a problematic relationship with postcolonialism. For instance, postcolonial nationalists protesting against the atrocities of imperialism see feminist efforts at liberating the females from their respective patriarchal set-ups as a kind of betrayal of nationalist and patriotic agendas. This certainly raises interesting questions for those of us living in countries such as Singapore. Is the global social order 'male'? Are we still 'the colonised' in significant ways?
Our final question would be of fundamental relevance to this course 'Why study literary texts to understand all these issues?' Within postcolonial studies, literary texts are perceived as absolutely crucial because they are acknowledged to be not mere recordings of the writers' views about the colonial process but are recognised as active agents of change in their capacity to raise questions, challenge mindsets, and even transform destinies of nations and people in significant ways. As such, literary texts are identified as dynamic and vibrant cultural artefacts.
This module will focus on training students to understand the impact of a major historical process through a close reading of a few relevant literary texts. Students will develop their own skills as readers of literature. No previous study of literature is required. Performance will be assessed on the basis of two written assignments, one long term paper and some oral tasks.
Course Outline
Unit One: Introductory Issues: (Duration - 4 weeks)
In this unit we will begin by looking at preliminary issues such as the term 'postcolonial'. We will discuss how this term no longer simply marks a linear historical period but incorporates more complex notions of political resistances both psychological and revolutionary.
Selected Readings that explore some concepts of the postcolonial will be given out and some interesting and relevant issues will be raised and discussed under topics such as:
Nation: Is the concept of a nation an imaginary construct? What issues determine the Nation's impact on Women?
History: Why should a historical narrative ( also 'constructed' by an individual or individuals, through the compilation of 'selected' facts) be considered more 'truthful' than a literary narrative?
Other topics such as: Universalism, Hybridity, Representation, Resistances, etc. will also be discussed in this unit.
The firstreading for the course will be a selection from Herland, Charlotte Perkins Gilman's novel about a feminist utopia.
The second text for the unit will be Nayantara Sahgal's Rich Like Us. The novel is set in India in the 1970s when the nation's Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi, declared a state of political 'emergency'. Many political pundits viewed this as an era where authoritarianism ruled supreme and democracy was mangled. Therefore, questions regarding postcolonialism and neo-colonialism will be raised.
The Unit will take up the following questions and work at them through a close reading of the text and with the help of some theoretical essays:
1. In what ways does "Herland" question the current social attitudes to gender?
2. How legitimate are these issues in today's world?
3. Have attitudes towards gender issues changed substantially from Gilman's times? If so to what extent?
4. What light does the text RLU throw on postcolonial India and on the concept of postcolonial nationhood in general?
5. Is postcolonial India in the text 'neo-colonial'? What general concerns about neo-colonialism do the issues here raise?
6. What is the status of the women in the text -Rich Like Us?
7. What are the implications of these statuses for postcolonial women in general?
8. Can you identify some differences between the concerns of western and eastern feminists based on your reading this text?
Secondary Readings for Unit 1: (All secondary readings will be provided for students)
Fanon,Franz (1967) "On National Culture" from The Wretched of the Earth, trans. Constance Farrington, Penguin: Harmondsworth. Extracted from P.Williams & L.Chrisman (eds.) Colonial Discourse, Post-Colonial Theory, A Reader, pp.36-52.
Chatterji, Partha,(1995), "Nationalism as a problem", From Bill Ashcroft et al.(eds.) The Post-Colonial Studies Reader, pp.164-167.
Unit Two: The Female Self : Identity and Feminism (Duration 5 weeks)
"Identity requires difference in order to be, and it conveys difference into otherness in order to secure its own self certainty"(Connolly, 1991, p.64)
Identity/Difference: Democratic Negotiations of Political Paradox, Itaca, Cornell University Press.
This Unit will attempt to fit the questions that were raised in unit one into a philosophical framework
It will look briefly at the Western Cartesian view of the Self as an autonomous unified individual and also look at how challenges to these points of view have been levelled by postmodernists (Lacan, Derrida) and feminists (Irigaray, Cixous).
This unit will also focus on how 'identity' emerges as a complex term that is necessarily defined by two opposites: sameness and difference. To say that someone (or something) has a particular identity is simultaneously to imply two things: firstly that this person (or thing) is similar to or the same as other entities that possess that identity and also to assert that this particular person (or thing) possesses unique qualities, i.e, an identity.
The problems associated with defining the female self will be raised here both theoretically and by a close analysis of a postcolonial creative text - Emily of Emerald Hill by the Singaporean playwright, Stella Kon. A short story 'Bandong' by the Singaporean novelist Christine Suchen Lim will also be analysed. Most of the theoretical questions will be dealt with through a close analysis of the above texts.
Questions such as:
1. What is the Western Cartesian View of the Self?
2. How has this come to be challenged by Feminists (through Lacan, Derrida)
3. What are some of the concepts of Self constructed by some Eastern Traditions? Are these of relevance to our texts?
4. What are the general problems associated with defining a 'female self'?
5. What are the specific problems in relation to our short stories and monodrama?
6. What is the place of the other woman - 'Bandong'; Emily of Emerald Hill;
Secondary Readings for Unit Two: (All secondary readings will be given out)
Spivak, Gayatri Chakravorty, "Can the Subaltern Speak?" from Colonial Discourse andPostcolonial Theory - A Reader. London, New York: Harvester/Wheatsheaf, 1993.
Gedalof, Irene: "Power, Identity and Impure Spaces" in Against Purity: Rethinking Identity with Indian and Western Feminisms, London and New York: Routledge.
Unit Three: The Space of the Post-Colonial Female: Problems and Issues: (Duration 4 weeks)
This unit looks at some deep-rooted problems associated with the location of the woman in various spheres and the way she is interpreted. The ways in which feminism's universalist stance disguises its white, middle-class solipsism are addressed. The text that will be used to take a closer look at these theoretical pre-occupations will be the Asian-American writer Maxine Hong Kingston's novel The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood amongst Ghosts.
The other pertinent question in relation to postcolonial feminism which the text engages with will also be raised. What is the location of the post-colonial female? This is a question that has occupied post-colonial feminists to a great extent. This unit will move from the specific to the general. It will attempt to explore the space of the post-colonial female subject and attempt to discuss the various positions that have been taken by Western and Eastern theorists with regard to this issue.
This unit will explore issues such as
What is meant by the 'twice-colonised' postcolonial woman?
1. Do all postcolonial women occupy the same ideological location?
2. If not, how are their differences constructed?
3. What is the difference between Western and Third World feminisms?
4. Are all Western women in first world locations?
5. Are all third world women in third world locations?
Secondary Readings for Unit 3: (All secondary Readings will be given to students)
Mohanty, Chandra Talpady, "Under Western Eyes: Feminist Scholarship and Colonial Discourses" Feminist Review, 30, Autumn 1988, pp.61-88.
A few readings on various aspects of feminism.
Breakdown of Weekly Readings
Unit One
Week One: Selected extract from "Herland"
Week Two: I Reading from Unit 1: Franz Fanon "On National Culture"
Week Three: Rich Like Us - A Novel by Nayantara Sahgal
Week Four: Partha Chatterji "Nationalism as a problem" ; Fanon,Franz "On National Culture" from The Wretched of the Earth, trans. Constance Farrington, Penguin.
Unit Two
Week Five: Emily of Emerald Hill - A Monodrama (Primary Text for Unit 2)
Week Six: I Reading from Unit 2: Laura E Donaldson "Race, Gender & Empire-Building"
Week Seven: "Bandong" - A Short Story
Week Eight: II Reading from Unit 2: Irene Gedalof "Power Identity and Impure Spaces"
Week Nine: Spivak: Can the Subaltern Speak?
Unit Three
Week Ten: The Woman Warriors: Memoirs of a Girlhood amongst Ghosts - A Novel (Primary Text for Unit 3)
Week Eleven: I Reading from Unit 3: Chandra Talpady Mohanty "Under Western Eyes: Feminist Scholarship and Colonial Discourses"
Week Twelve: A few 'feminist' readings
Week Thirteen: Wrap up Course.
Modes of Assessment
Unit One
Essay: 10%
At the end of unit one, students will be asked to write an essay that takes up any one postcolonial theoretical issue and attempt to work it through a close analysis of the text.
Individual Class Presentation: 10%
Also, one-half of the students will be asked to make 7-10 minute presentations based on an issue/ character/ incident discussed in 'Herland' or RLU that raises some general theoretical concerns vis- a- vis feminist &/or postcolonial issues.
Unit Two
Group report: 20%
Students will be divided into small groups and assigned one secondary reading for which they are responsible. The group will present the material to the class and generate discussion questions.
Individual Class Presentation (contd).
The remaining students who have not presented on Unit 1 will be given topics on which they will be asked to prepare 7-10min.presentations. Every Student will do one presentation through the course of the semester. They will be graded on their presentations.
Unit Three
Informal writing: 20%
Two short writing assignments will be given, either in class or as home assignments. Students are expected to work on these and turn them in as part of their assessment. Each of these will carry 10 marks.
A Term paper: 30%
The students will be asked to generate a term paper which will deal with any substantive text - either a play, a short story or novel by any postcolonial writer and attempt a postcolonial feminist analysis of it.
Class Participation: 10%
There will be a component which grades students on their participation in class discussions not just on a quantitative base but also qualitatively. This will take into account students' regularity and punctuality in attending class and handing in assignments.
Essay - 10
Class Presentation - 10
Group Report - 20
Informal Writing - 20
Term Paper - 30
Class Participation - 10
Total Continual Assessment -100
Primary Texts
Unit 1:
Gilman, Charlotte Perkins, Selections from Herland.
Sahgal, Nayantara, Rich Like Us, London: Sceptre Books, 1987
Unit 2:
Lim, Christine Suchen, "Bandong" from Leong Liew Geok (ed.) More Than Half the Sky : Creative Writings by Thirty Singaporean Women, Singapore : Times Editions, 1998.
Kon, Stella, The Emily of Emerald Hill, Singapore: S. Kon, 1983.
Unit 3:
Hong, Maxine Kingston, The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a girlhood amongst ghosts, Knopf: New York, distributed by Random House, 1976
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