Postcolonial Literature (selected chapters) - ON2301004

• Title: Postkoloniální literatura
• Guaranteed by: Katedra anglického jazyka a literatury (41-KAJL)
• Faculty: Faculty of Education
• Actual: from 2019
• Semester: summer
• E-Credits: 2
• Examination process: summer s.:
• Hours per week, examination: summer s.:0/2, Ex [HT]
• Capacity: unknown / unknown (unknown)
• Min. number of students: unlimited
• 4EU+: no
• Virtual mobility / capacity: no
• State of the course: not taught
• Language: English
• Teaching methods: full-time
• Teaching methods: full-time
• Note: course can be enrolled in outside the study plan; enabled for web enrollment; priority enrollment if the course is part of the study plan
• Guarantor: doc. PhDr. Petr Chalupský, Ph.D.
• Pre-requisite : ON2301003
• Is pre-requisite for: OSOZ3AA, OSOZ3BB, OSOZ3B, OSOZ3A

Annotation

English

Last update: PhDr. Tereza Topolovská, Ph.D. (21.02.2017)

I. Content of the course: The seminars will focus on new Anglophone literatures, which have been recently referred to as postcolonial literatures. The theoretical assumptions of postcolonial criticism (Edward Said, B. Ashcroft, Homi Bhabha) and a great amount of postcolonial literature are informed by postmodern and poststructuralist strategies, namely Jacques Derrida’s understanding of western metaphysics as "white mythology" and Michael Foucault’s theory of discourse and his rehabilitation of the Other as a lost dimension of Eurocentric culture. Students will be familiarised with the postcolonial discourse by means of brief extracts but the major focus of the seminars will be an interpretation of primary sources selected from a wide geographical spectrum of contemporary Anglophone literatures. II. Objectives of the course: • to introduce students to the major issues of a wide range of new literatures • to enable students to identify dominant (and distinct) themes in individual literatures • to enable students to relate the selected texts to their (i.e., the countries’) cultural backgrounds

Czech

Last update: PhDr. Tereza Topolovská, Ph.D. (12.05.2019)

Kurz se zaměřuje na celou řadu anglofonních literatur, pro které se vžil název postkoloniální literatury (novozélandskou, indickou, nigerijskou, jihoafrickou, karibskou, australskou). Jak seminaáře tak i přednášky svým obsahem studenty seznamují s klíčovými literárními texty těchto literatur jako i teoretickými východisky postkoloniální kritiky - zejména postmoderní a poststrukturalistickými strategiemi. Hlavním cílem výuky je seznámit s díly současné anglofonní literatury z hlediska jejich využití coby možných výukových materiálů.

Literature

Last update: PhDr. Tereza Topolovská, Ph.D. (21.02.2017)

V. Texts:

The novels to be discussed:

·         Chinua Achebe: Things Fall Apart (Nigerian literature)

·         David Malouf: Remembering Babylon (Australian literature)

·         J.M. Coetzee: Disgrace (South African literature in English)

·         Jean Rhys: Wide Sargasso Sea (Anglophone Caribbean literature)

Short stories + excerpts:

·         Catherine Mansfield: "The Wind Blows"(New Zealand Literature)

·          Witi Ihimaera: "The Whale"(New Zealand Literature)

·         Roma Potiki: "Stolen Dreams" – extract (New Zealand Literature)

·         Anita Desai: "Studies in the Park"(Indian Literature in English)

·         Chitra  Banerjee Divakaruni: "Clothes" (Indian Literature in English)

·         Arundhati Roy: The God of Small Things – extract (Indian Literature in English) - optional

·         Hari Kunzru : The Impressionist – extract (Indian Literature in English) - optional

·         Bruce Chatwin: The Songlines – extract (Australian literature)

·         Banjo Paterson: "The Man from Snowy River" (Australian literature)

·         Henry Lawson: "The Drover's wife" (Australian literature)

·         Samuel Dickinson Selvon: "The Cricket Match"  (Anglophone Caribbean literature)

·         V.S. Naipaul: "The Night Watchman's Occurrence Book"(Anglophone Caribbean literature)

·         Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: "The Headstrong Historian" (Nigerian literature)

·         Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: "A Private Experience" (Nigerian literature)

·         Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: Half of a Yellow Sun – excerpt (Nigerian literature) - optional

·         Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: Americanah – excerpt (Nigerian literature) - optional

·         Jekwu Anyaegbuna: "The Swimming Pool" (Nigerian literature)

·         Hilda Bernstein: "Room 226" (South African literature in English)

Selective secondary sources for students who will write their diploma theses on postcolonial literature topics:

Ashcroft, B. ed. The Empire Writes Back: Theory and Practice on Post- Colonial Literature (New Accents). London: Routledge, 1994, 2002.

Bhabha. H.K. The Location of Culture. London: Routledge, 1994, 1997.

Cunningham, V. Reading After Theory. Oxford: Blackwell, 2002.

Feder, L. Naipaul’s Truth: The Making of a Writer. New York: Rowman and Littlefield Publishers, 2001.

Khai, T. Babu Fictions: Alienation in Contemporary Indian English Novels. Oxford University Press, 2001.

Kušnír, J. Australian Literature in Contexts. Prešov: Prešovská univerzita, 2003.

McLeod, J. Beginning Postcolonialism. Manchester University Press, 2000.

Said, E. Orientalism: Western Conceptions of the Orient. London: Penguin, 1978, 1995.

Said, E. Culture and Imperialism. London: Vintage, 1993, 1994.

Young, R.J.C. Postcolonialism. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003.

 

Requirements to the exam

Last update: PhDr. Tereza Topolovská, Ph.D. (21.02.2017)

Course requirements:

Preparation for and participation in weekly seminars (max. 2 absences), successful completion of the oral examination.

Examination: oral

1^st question (literary-historical): major themes of a selected literature

2^nd question (literary critical): an interpretation of a poem, a short story or a novel

 

Postcolonial Literature Exam Topics

A. Theoretical part

1. Characteristic features of Australian literature. Exemplify.

2. Characteristic features of New Zealand literature. Exemplify.

3. Characteristic features of English written Caribbean literature. Exemplify

4. Characteristic features of English written Indian literature. Exemplify.

5. Characteristic features of English written South African literature. Exemplify

6. Characteristic features of English written African literature (with a special emphasis put on Nigerian literature). Exemplify.

7. Discuss the major issues of postcolonial theory and the role of English.

B. Practical part

An interpretation. Discuss:

Novels:

Chinua Achebe: Things Fall Apart (Nigerian literature)

David Malouf: Remembering Babylon (Australian literature)

J.M. Coetzee: Disgrace (South African literature in English)

Jean Rhys: Wide Sargasso Sea (Anglophone Caribbean literature)

Short stories + excerpts:

·         Excerpts concerning postcolonial theory (Edward Said, John McLeod, Bill Ashcroft)

·         Catherine Mansfield: The Wind Blows (New Zealand Literature)

·          Witi Ihimaera: The Whale (New Zealand Literature)

·         Anita Desai: Studies in the Park (Indian Literature in English)

·         Chitra  Banerjee Divakaruni: Clothes (Indian Literature in English)

·         Bruce Chatwin: The Songlines – extract (Australian literature)

·         Samuel Dickinson Selvon: The Cricket Match (Anglophone Caribbean literature)

·         V.S. Naipaul: The Night Watchman's Occurrence Book (Anglophone Caribbean literature)

·         Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: The Headstrong Historian (Nigerian literature)

·         Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: A Private Experience (Nigerian literature)

·         Jekwu Anyaegbuna: The Swimming Pool (Nigerian literature)

·         Hilda Bernstein: Room 226 (South African literature in English)

 

Poems: Roma Potiki: "Stolen Dreams" – extract (New Zealand Literature), Derek Walcott: “Ma Kilman” – excerpt (Anglophone Caribbean literature)

Syllabus

Last update: PhDr. Tereza Topolovská, Ph.D. (05.05.2019)

 Postcolonial Literature – Introduction , Major issues of postcolonial theory and the role of English

 

 New Zealand Literature (Catherine Mansfield: "The Wind Blows", Witi Ihimaera: " The Whale", Roma Potiki: "Stolen Dreams" – extract)

 

Indian Literature in English (Anita Desai: "Studies in the Park", Chitra  Banerjee Divakaruni: "Clothes")

 

Teaching Practice – reading assignment, no classes

 

 Nigerian Literature (Chinua Achebe: Things Fall Apart)

           

Nigerian Literature (Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: "The Headstrong Historian", "A Private Experience", Jekwu Anyaegbuna: "The Swimming Pool")

 

South African Literature in English (J.M. Coetzee: Disgrace; Hilda Bernstein: "Room 226")

 

Australian Literature (David Malouf: Remembering Babylon, Bruce Chatwin: The Songlines ex., Banjo Paterson: "The man from Snowy River", Henry Lawson: "The Drover's wife" )

 

Anglophone Caribbean Literature (Jean Rhys: Wide Sargasso Sea, Samuel Dickinson Selvon: "The Cricket Match" , V.S. Naipaul: "The Night Watchman's Occurrence Book")