Hellooo
Has anyone here studied (or is studying) post colonial literary theory for literature? I am having trouble understanding all the concepts such as ‘worlding’ ‘double colonisation’ ‘essentialism’ ‘catalysis’ and plenty more. It feels as though our teacher has dumped a whole bunch of new words that we have to use in the essay and we have to learn what they mean, and how to apply them to the text aNd make connections and form a sophisticated essay. It’s a little overwhelming
If anyone has any tips, advice or general information that they want to share it’d be very greatly appreciated as our sac is next week 
By the way we are studying Foreign Soil by Maxine Beneba Clarke
Thanks!
Hi there!
I hope that this reply is still helpful for you - hopefully your SAC went well, or goes well later this week!
We briefly studied post colonial theory last year when I did Literature. This is because we looked into Heart of Darkness for one of our set texts. My advice for both your post colonial lens, as well as with any other lens that your teacher raises in class, is that you
don't have to know absolutely everything about that lens. There are multiple levels to every Lit Theory, and we only need to know up to a high school, year 12 level, so even if you just familiarise yourself with three or four of the key terms, then you should be fine! The focus is predominantly still on your thinking and your own ideas, in regards to that lens. I would recommend googling these terms, looking at trustworthy websites such as the Encyclopaedia Britannica, or sites that look tailored towards Literature Students (e.g. University or College research). Even Wikipedia would do the trick!
I also found the Lit Perspectives task overwhelming, and frankly, really confusing. My advice would be to put yourself in the shoes of the characters in Foreign Soil, and ask yourself questions such as how would you feel to be in a predominantly white society? Or at least, in a society where caucasian people are endowed with all the social status and power? How would you feel to not hear your own language spoken anywhere? Or to feel homesick constantly? Asking questions is always a good place to start. Further, Beneba Clarke deals with themes of the disenfranchised, outsiders, outcasts, and her protagonists are usually very strong-willed and know what they're about. Why do you think that Beneba Clarke wants us to view her main characters as strong and determined?
Once you have your ideas set out clearly in your head, then all you have to do is replace words that you are used to implementing with more technical terms that will show that you are using a post colonial lens! I'm sure you'll absolutely SMASH your SAC!
I hope that this helps you feel more confident in what you already know from studying Lit in Unit 3! Good luck
Home
Help
Search
Login
