Postcolonial Criticism : History, Theory and the Work of Fiction

Nicholas Harrison

ISBN 10: 0745621821 / ISBN 13: 9780745621821

Published by Polity Press Apr 2003, 2003

Neuware - In the field of postcolonial studies, the full richness and complexity of the connections between literature, history and ideology are often overlooked by critics hurrying to stake out their political positions. As a result, many arguments are built on unjustified assumptions about the sort of work that literature -- and criticism -- can and cannot do.In this important and timely book, Harrison sheds new light on what is actually at issue in postcolonial criticism. Focusing on a series of major works, from Conrad s Heart of Darkness to Djebar s autobiography, via Camus s The Outsider and Fanon s polemics, the book draws on and elucidates a wide range of theoretical and critical work. To students unfamiliar with postcolonial criticism it offers a way into the field via key issues and specific examples rather than abstract theoretical summary, while for those already working in the area it raises crucial questions about the very basis of postcolonial critical practice.Postcolonial Criticism is a major intervention in the field of postcolonial studies which re-examines critical suppositions about reading and representation, and which calls into question established notions about the relations between literature and colonialism. Seller Inventory # 9780745621821

Synopsis:

In the field of postcolonial studies, the full richness and complexity of the connections between literature, history and ideology are often overlooked by critics hurrying to stake out their political positions. As a result, many arguments are built on unjustified assumptions about the sort of work that literature ― and criticism ― can and cannot do.

In this important and timely book, Harrison sheds new light on what is actually at issue in postcolonial criticism. Focusing on a series of major works, from Conrad’s Heart of Darkness to Djebar’s autobiography, via Camus’s The Outsider and Fanon’s polemics, the book draws on and elucidates a wide range of theoretical and critical work. To students unfamiliar with postcolonial criticism it offers a way into the field via key issues and specific examples rather than abstract theoretical summary, while for those already working in the area it raises crucial questions about the very basis of postcolonial critical practice.

Postcolonial Criticism is a major intervention in the field of postcolonial studies which re-examines critical suppositions about reading and representation, and which calls into question established notions about the relations between literature and colonialism.

About the Author: Nicholas Harrison is Reader in French and Comparative Literature at King's College London.

Bibliographic Details

Title: Postcolonial Criticism : History, Theory and...
Publisher: Polity Press Apr 2003
Publication Date: 2003
Binding: Taschenbuch
Condition: Neu