THEORETI

CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 100

Re ali
ty( 1974)de ve lopsac ompar ablenot ionofpl ayast hee xc ha ngeofr ealor
imag inar yobj ec t
s.The set ra nsitionalobj ects(whe therdol lsort ext s)ope ratea sa
kindof‘ pot enti
a lspa ce’inwhi c hhope sandf earsma ybes afe l
yr ealiseda ndr el
ease d.
Suc hpr oc essesclear l
yhav esome thinginc ommonwi thAr istotl
e’snot ionofc at
ha rsis
ast he‘pur ging ’ofe mot ionbyt hewi t
ne ssingofadr a mat i
cs pecta cle(s eecome dyand
tragedy) .The yalsopar t
lyov e r
lapwi thr ea der-
respons eappr oac he s,e speci
al l
yt hos e
de vel
ope dbyDav idBl e
ich( 1978)i nhi smode lof‘ subjectivec riti
c is
m’asaki ndof
individua la ndgr oupt he rapy( seewr i
tingandr eading ).
Anove rtl
ys oc io-ps y
c hol ogi cala ppr oa chtol earningi nge ne ralandl anguage -
learningi npa rt
icula rwasde v elope dbyLe vVyg ot s
ky( 1934) .ForVygot s
kyl ang uag e
isaf orm ofc onsc iousne sswhi c hde ve l
opst hroug hac ont i
nui ngdi aloguebe twe en
the‘ i
nne rvoi ces’oft hes pe ake r’sunc ons ciousse l
fa ndt he‘out ervoi ces’ofsignific ant
othe r
sint hes urroundi ngwor ld( s
eea uto/ biography) .Le arningandde velopme ntar e
thusr ecogni sedt obei nterpe rsonala swe llasintrape rsonalpr oc esse s:artic
ul at
e don
an‘ I/
we –y ou’axi sa swe lla san‘ I–me ’axis .Indeed,t heonei sar e fractionoft heot he r
.
ForBakht in,too,wor dsar eal way sc aughti nthepr ocessesofe xcha ngeandc hang e
tha tbindpe opl etooneanot he rs ocially.Ev eryt r
a nsaction( lingui stic,educ ational
andps ychol og i
cal)t herefor ee nt ail
sat r
a nsformat ion.Pe opl ear ehuma nbe comi ng s
nots impl yhumanbe i
ngs .De leuz e(1987)pr es
s esas i
mi l
arpoi nt .

Ps
ych
o-p
oli
ti
cs:t
hep
ers
ona
lisp
oli
ti
cal

Thepr ogr essives oc ia lisingandhi storicisingofps yc holog yar eaf eatur eofmos t
conte mpor a ryappr oac he s .S oi sar e cogni t
iont ha t‘pe rsonalpol i
tic
s’c utsbot hwa ys.
Justa sthepe rsona li sal wayspol i
tical,s ot hepol iti
calal wa yshasaps ychol ogi cal
dime nsiont oi t.Mi che lFouc aul t(1986:121f f
.),f ori nstanc e,insist
st hatweunde r-
stand‘ sanity’and‘ ins ani ty ’
,‘ nor mal ity’a nd‘ a bnor mal ity’
,‘ sense’and‘ nons ense ’
,
dialecticallyandhi st or ical l
y .The set ermsa rebr ac edagai ns toneanot he rwi thi n
shift
ingme dica l,le galandot he rdi scour ses .The yme a nsubt lyorma rke dlydi fferent
thingsatdi ffere ntt ime s.Thus‘ madne ss ’isnott hes ame ,nort reatedt hes a me ,
among stme die va lmys tics ,ine ighte enth-c entur yFr enc has yl
ums ,inSt alinistRus sia
andi nt we nty -fir st-c ent ur yMa nhat tan.Di a gnos isandt reatme nta l
sov aryac cor ding
tos exands oc ials t atus .S exua lity
,t oo,Fouc aultar gue s,isins cri
be dande xpr esse d
differentlyi ndi ffe re ntc ul tur es.Thel i
bido,l iket hebodyi nge neral,i ssubj ec tt o
various‘ economi es ’ (dis tribut ions ,va l
ue s)a ndi spe rha psnott heuni ve rsalins t
inc t
ual
driveof teni mpl iedbyFr e ud.
Othe rs,me anwhi le ,asa lre adyme ntione d,poi ntt ot hene edt oreadps ychol ogi cal
repre s
sioni nr elationt opol iticaloppr essionofpowe rlessg roupsa ndt hes y stemat ic
suppr essionofpot e nt iallyava ilableme ansofc ommuni cationande xpr ession.( I n
shor t,allt hes e‘ —pr es sions ’ar ei nterde pe nde nt .)Wr iterss ucha sFanon,Fr eire,
Mac herey,Wi l l
iamsandJ a me sons eee ffor t
st oac hi evec ons ciousne ssass truggl es
whi char epe r sonal -pol itica lnots i
mpl ype rsonal .MARXI STSi ne f
fe ctins istona
pluralisi
nga ndc ol le ctivis ingofFr e ud’sps ycho- dr amaoft he‘ I’
,‘abov e-I
’and‘ it’
.
The yar guef ort her e cogni tionofa‘ the m’a nd‘ us ’di me nsi
onof‘ inne r’aswe llas
‘outer’struggl e .FEMI NI STSt ooi ns i
stons e xua l
lyc ompl i
cat e
dve rsi
onsoft heps yche ,
evenbe foret hege nde r eddi f f
e renc ese ntai l
edbyt hee ntryi ntol anguag ea ndt he
symbol icor de r.Thewhol edr amaof‘ s/he’(i.e.theps y chologica lsubjecta s‘she ’and/ or
‘he’)mus tt he re for ebeadde dt ot hatofanot he rwi sene ut ere
dorpat riarchal ly
Ps
ychol
ogi
calappr
oac
hes 101

pri
vil
eged‘I’
.Somus tthedramas(andtraumas )ofas e
lf-
consci
ously‘quee
r ’psyc
he
i
ns ofa rast heseexposeande xceedthel i
mitati
onsofame r
elybinaryvi e
w of
het
erosexual
ity.‘Colour’
,too,whateve
rt hepr eci
secoloursoftheactualfacesand
per
ceived‘mas ks
’ofour s
elve
sandothers,inevit
ablyimpingesuponthedevelopme nt
ofeachande veryoneofusaspe rs
onal -poli
ti
calsubjectsli
vingthroughPOST-
COLONI ALIM.
S Studyofc ul
tur
alidenti
ficationandc ross-
cult
uraldiff
erencesisa
si
gnificantfe
a tureofcontempora
rypsychol ogy.

Th
een
d(s
)ofp
syc
hol
ogy
Fina lly,i nt he var ious de bat esi nf ormi ng POSTSTRUCTURALI M a
S nd POST-
MODERNI SM, itisther adi calinsta bil
itynotonl yoft heps y chologi calsubj ectaspe rson
butal soofps ychologya sadi s ci
pl ineand pr ac tic
ewhi chi sati ssue.Thati s,
psyc hologyt oo,al ongwi t
hi tsas s
oc ia tedpr acti
ce sofps ychoanal ysisa ndps ycho-
the r
apy ,mayi tselfbei de nti
fieda sj us toneofar angeofs oc iallya ndhi storicall
y
situateddi sc our s
es.Ats omepoi ntt he sewi llbet ransfor me di ntoors upe r
se dedby
othe rs.Af teral l,mode rnps yc hoa na lys i
sandps yc hothe rapyl a rgelyt ookove rthe
‘
c urat i
ve’a nd‘ pur gativ e
’f unc ti
onspr evious lyas signedt or el
ig i
ona ndmag ic(e.g
.
conf ession,s piri
tualgui danc e,c ons c ience ,e xorcism) .Theque s t
ion,t he n,par a-
doxi cally,isWhati sitt hatmode r nps yc hol ogyi ts
e lf‘r
e presses’?Whatot hermode s
ofe xpre ssi
ondoe sps ychologyi ns omewayde nyordi stor t?Whatal ternat i
ve
discipline sandpr a cticesa r
ec ur re
nt lyde velopingi ns ide,al ongs i
deandout si
de
psyc hology ?Doe st henot ionoft hes pe c i
fic allyhuman‘ psyche ’a sme ntal,emot i
ona l
ands pir
itua lentityhav eaf uturea tall?I sit,fori nst
a nce, ahumani storpos t
-huma nis
t
cons truct,anddoe sits urvivec ont empor ar
yge ne t
icsandbi o-techni cs?Ordowene ed
tot hink,f ee l
,andg ene rallyimag inei nwaysa sye tundr eamtof–a tl eastinma i
n-
stream We ste rntra diti
ons ?Theme t
hodwhi chf ollowst r i
est ot akea ccountoft hese
pos sibil
itiestoo.

Ho
wtopr
act
isep
syc
hol
ogi
cala
ppr
oac
hes
Be
ginbyc
ons
ide
ringt
het
exti
nthr
eedi
mens
ions
:

♦ whati ts ugge stsaboutt hewr iter’

se motional ,me nt aland s pir
itualstatesa nd
proce s
se s,aswe llast hos eofhe rorhi sti
me ;
♦ how youa samode rnr eade rrelateto–a ndpe rhapsi dent i
fywi t
horpr oj
ectonto–
theeve nts,c hara ctersands i
tuationsre pr
esented;
♦ whatt hel anguageoft het extsug gest
sa boutthenat ur eofe xpr e
ssi
ona ndr epress
ion
ing ene ral,andt her e l
a tionofbot ht oourunde rstandingoft ensionsbe tween
consciousandunc ons ciouss t
ates.
Inallt hes ear e
a st rytot akei ntoa ccountthei nt e
rplayofar angeofps ychological
subjects( wr it
er,rea der,te xt,languag e)inar angeofs oc i
ala ndhist
or i
calmome nts.
Don’ tima ginethe reisjus toneps ychologica
lreadi ng.Fur therresear
chandr eflect
ion
areclear l
yne cessary,s og oont oc ons i
der:
♦ auto/biogr a phy:whati sknownaboutt hewr i
ter’
sl i
fe,bot hfrom herorhi ms elfand
from ot her s?Wha ts eemst ober evealedorc once ale
di nt hewor kinha nd?Wha ta r
e
we( not )be ingt old,a ndwhy?
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 102

♦ choi
ceofpsyc
hol
ogi
calmodel
:whi
choft
hefol
lowi
ngemphas
esseemst
obes
tans
wer
boththede
mandsofthepar
ti
cul
armate
ria
landyourownpart
icul
arai
ms:
– ma nif
estandl ate
ntc ontent,observingandpe rhapsa tt
empt i
ngto‘decode’t
he
te
xt ’
sstrate
giesofconde ns
ation,displac
eme ntandsymbol is
m?
– Freudiannot i
onsofat ensi
onbe twe entheunconsciousa ndconsci
ousness
;and
psycho-dramassuchast heOe dipuscompl e
xa ndhyst
e r
ia;orthere
lat
ionsbet
ween
ego,supe r
-egoandid?
♦ transact
ionalana l
ysisoft
ea c
her–le
arnerandle
ar ner
–lear
neraswellaswr i
ter
–reader
relati
ons,whe rethet e
xtfuncti
onsasa‘ tr
ansi
tional’obj
ectandit
e m ofexchangeat
va ri
ousmome nts?
♦ pos t
-orant i
-Fr e
udianmode lsof‘thegoodmot her’
;lackandde s
ire;sel
fandother;
theI maginar
y ;thesubjec
t’sentr
yintolanguageandt hesymboli
cor der?
♦ soc i
al-
psychologicaldiff
erencesrelat
ingtosexualityandge nder
,r ankandc las
s,
ethnici
ty,rel
igionandMULTI CULTURALISMing eneral
.

Final
ly,conside
rt hos
easpec
tsofthetextandyourr es
ponsetoitt
hatareunde r
-
repre
sented,mis
repres
ent
edorcomple
tel
yunrepre
sente
dbythiski
ndofpsychol
ogi
cal
approach.Wha tother
,pot
enti
alappr
oacheshasi
t,intur
n,re
press
edorsuppres
sed?

Exa
mpl
e
JohnClare’
s‘Ia m –yetwhatIa m’(5.
3.4a).Readthisi
nc onj
unc
tionwi t
ht he
accompanyingnotesand,i
fpos s
ible
,abr i
efacc
ountofClare’
sli
fe(
e.g.inOus by
1992).Sket
chaps y
c hol
ogi
calanalys
isus
ingtheabove‘How t
opract
is
e ’g
uidel
ines
befor
ereadingon.
Apsychologic
a lapproac
ht othispoem mightbegi
nwi ththewr i
ter
–textrel
ati
on
(howthepoemr elatest
oCl ar
e’sl
ife)t
henmov etotherea
de r–textrel
ati
on( e
.g.how
youandIr e
latetot hepoem).Bot hmightle
adt ol
argerinferencesaboutlanguage,
theun/
conscious,ande xpr
essi
onandr e
press
ioningeneral,a swe l
lastor e
flecti
on
uponthes i
mi l
ariti
esanddi f
ferencesbetweenearl
y-ni
ne t
ee nth-andt wenty-f
irs
t-
cent
urynoti
onsofs ani
tyandinsanity
,normali
tyandabnor mal it
y.
‘I’
de nti
tyc ri
ses.Thepr ofounds enseofs elf-a l
ienationande strange me ntfr
om ot hers
thatpe rvadest hefir sttwos tanzasmi ghtbet racedbac kt oCl are’sadol es
cence .For
itwast he nthatCl ar
e ’
sl if
e longl oveforMar yJ oyce,aloc alf arme r’
sdaught e
r,was
thwar tedbyt hei ntervent ionofhe rfathe r.Cl arewasoff ar m-labour ers t
ockand
appa rentlynotc onside r
e das uitablemat c h.I twast hen,too,i nt hee ar l
y1800s ,t hat
landar oundCl are’snat ivevi ll
ag eofHe lps tonewas‘ enclose d’(i.e.takenove rbya
local l
andowne rforpr ivatepar klandandc onve rsi
ont oshee p-farmi ng).Thisr e
sul ted
inthedi slocati
on, bothphys ic
a landme nta l,ofma nyfarm-la boure rs,incl
udingCl are
andhi sf a
mi l
y.Ag a i
nstall thisc ouldbes ett hei dylli
cv i
si
onpr ojectedint helaststa nza
ofe arlyc hil
dhooda sat imeofs ecuri
tya ndbe long i
ng.Suc hobs ervat i
onsmi ghtbe
backe dupbya ppealtoCl ar e’
ss catt
eredaut obiogr aphica
lwr iti
ng s(1821–41)a swe l
l
astohi sot herpoe ms. Ma nya r
emar kedbyt hes enseofapr e viouslypa s
toral,al
mos t
para disal
,c hildhoods tate( realori ma ginar y)t hatwa ss ubs eque ntlysubjec tt o
persona ll
yt r
aumat i
cands oc i
allydrama ticc hange.Wemi ghtt he r
e f
orev enturetos ay
thatCl arehadt r
oubl ema int ainingav iabl es enseofs el
fwhe ncha ll
eng edbyot he rs
:
his‘supe r/e
go’f r
ag me ntedunde rthepr ess ur eofani nternalore xte r
nal‘ i
d’.
Ps
ychol
ogi
calappr
oac
hes 103

Butwha tevert
hec auseore xpl
anation,iti
smat t
erofrecordtha tClarewasfir s
t
admitt
edt oanasylum atEppingin1837. Hee scapedin1841andt rie
dt owalkbac k
toNorthampt on,bel
ie
v i
nghewasmar ri
edtohisc hi
ldhoodswee t
he art
.Hewast hen
committedtoNorthampt onGe ner
alLuna ti
cAsylum.The reheli
vedf ortheremaining
twenty
-threeyear
sofhi slif
eandwr otemanypoe ms,incl
udingthisone( c.
1844).All
thi
sinformationmayhe l
puse xplore–e venthoughi tcanonlyc rudelyexplai
n–a
numberoft hepoe m’
sr ecurr
entconcerns:

♦ thes
e ns
eofas elfdivide dagai
nstits
elf(‘Iam –y etwhatIam ...thes elf
-consumer
ofmywoe s’)
;
♦ theabsenc
eofc omf ortingothers(‘
fri
endsf or
sakemel ikeame moryl ost’
);
♦ alos
sofc l
eardisti
nc t
ionbe tweenconsciousnessandunc ons
ciousne
s s(‘
theliv
ingse
a
ofwakingdreams...’ );al
lthatremainsisapre s
entsenseofl
ongingc ontr
a s
tedwit
h
apastsenseofbe l
ong ing:anove r
powe ri
ngde sir
et ofillanir
reparablelack.

Thust hewhol elasts

tanza(perhapsre-
readitnow)ma ybeva ri
ous lyint
erpr
eted
as:(i
)ye arni
ngforakindofpr i
mor di
ali
nfant
il
eobli
vion;(i
i)avisionofahe av
enly
paradiseorut opia;(i
ii
)at hr
owba cktos omes exual
ly undif
fe r
enti
atedstate
;
(i
v)ade si
reforre
inte
grat
ionwi thnatur
e,the‘i
d’andallthatis‘not-I
’–a‘ deat
h-
wish’,even.

The‘ formi ng’ofde sirePs yc hol og i

c alre adingsmi ghtmov einot he rdi rectionsand
dimens ionst oo.For ma ll
y,the ymi ghtpoi nttothee xpre ssivelyi rreg ularr hythms ,the
movingc a esura( rightf rom t hefir stline)andt he‘das hi ng ’punc tua ti
on.Att hes ame
ti
met he ywoul dnot et hecont rolling,ifnotc almi ng,i nflue nc eoft hehi g hlyr egul a
r
vers
ific ationandme tre:thre es tanz ase a chwi ths ixt en- syllablel ines ,thefir stwi t
h
alt
ernat i
ngr hyme st hroughout ,thel a stt woc onc ludingwi thc oupl ets.Suc hahi gh
degreeofpa tterningmi ghtbes eenne gat i
ve l
yasas ymbol i
cat temptt or epresst he
semioticf luxbe neat h–aki ndofv erba ls t
rait
- j
a cke t.Buti tmi ghtal sobes een
posit
ive lyasas avingve st
igeofc ivi
lisation,t ur
ni ngwhatwoul dot he rwisebea n
anguishe d ani ma lc ryi ntoar e cognis ablyhumanhar mony .A r athe rdi f
fer ent,
contextua lr eadingmi ghtr elat et hepoe m’ ssubsta nceands truc turet ot hes ens eof
‘c
onfine me nt ’expe r
ie nc edinma nye a
r l
yni ne t
eenth- cent ury( andl ater)as ylums .Thi s
mighte venbee xt ende dt onot ionsof‘ enc l
osure ’:thepr ivatisat i
onoff ieldsa nd
proper tyr esultingi nt hepr ivat ionofbodi esandmi nds .Int hiswayt hepe r
s onal
wouldber ealisedaspol it
ic al,andv iceve rs
a.Theps yc hol ogyi nvoke dwoul dbe
grounde dins ocietya ndhi s tor y,nots impl yint henot ionoft heuni ve rsalhuman
psyche .The remi ghtal sobes omer e cogni ti
ont hatt hispoe m waswr ittenove ra
decadebe foret hebi r thofFr e uda ndhal fac entur ybe for et hef orma linstitutionof
psychoanal ys i
s.Pe r ha ps,t he n,t hemos tappr opr i
atec ont empor ar yi nte l
lectua l
fr
ame wor kf ort hepoe ma tt hatt i
mewasr eli
giousa nds piritual( asi ni tslas tve rse)
andnotps ychol ogicala tall(a sint hea boveana lysis).

A persona l–poli
ti
calresponse.Al
lt hi
sleavesus,asmode r
nr eaders
,wi t
hac r
uc i
al
res
pons ibilit
y.Andthisc annotbede t
achedfrom thewaysi nwhi chwe ,coll
ecti
vely
andi ndividually
,respondt othetext(i
.e.our‘re
sponse-abil
ity’
).Whats ensedowe
makeoft hepoe m?Mor epoi nt
edl
y ,
whats ens
edoesitma keofus ?Pers
onal re
sponses
willvaryofc ourse
.Buti fwer egardpsychologi
caltra
ns ac
tiona swhatt akesplace
betwe e
nr e aderandr ea
de raswellasbetwe e
nr e
ader,textandwr it
er,thenweha ve
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 104

anobligat
iontotrytoteaseoutatle
astsomeofourre
spons
es.Ine
vit
abl
y,someof
thesewil
lturnouttobei di
osyncr
ati
c;ot
hersmaybecommon;a ndal
larei
ns ome
senseshareabl
e.(Imustl eaveyoutode ci
dewhicharewhich,foryou,inthe
foll
owing.
)He re‘
I’go:
Itoo,l ikeCl areint hel astve r
s e
,a ssoc i
atechil
dhoodwi that i
mewhe nI‘ swe etly
slept’.Now Iof tendon’ ts l
eept oowe l
l.AsIge tolderIal sor ecogni se,pe rhaps
wi t
hCl are(ll
.11–12) ,thatfriendsa ndf amilyca nbe come‘ st
r ang e’,eitherthr oug h
dea th(theul t
ima tee str
a ngeme nt)ort hroughc hang ingr el
ations hips.( Whe nIfir st
dra ftedthispie c
einOc tober1996Ir eme mbere dmymot herwhoha ddi eday ea r
pre viouslyandagoodf riendwhohaddi edrecent l
y.The seeve ntswe rev erymuc h
pa rtofmyi mme diater esponset hen.)Mor egene ra
lly,thereist het ri
c kymat terof
fearsf orone ’
sownowns anity,a swe llasgeneralunc e
rtaintyaboutwha t‘sani ty’
and‘ norma li
ty’ac tuallyme annowada ys.Afte rall,Ia m ame mbe rofas pe ci
e s
whi chi sgradua l
lyte ari
ngi tsel
fa ndther estofthepl anettopi eces, notwi t
hs t
andi ng
claimst os ci
ent i
ficr ationa li
tyandpr oge ss
.(‘
Enc losure’too, Ire call,
wa shai leda s
amar kofpr ogressandc ivil
isation–t houghbyt hee nc l
os ersr athe rtha nt he
enc losed.)Inot herwor ds,youdon’ thavet ohavebe eni name ntalas ylum or
forma l
lyc er
tifiedasi nsanet oha veanxi eti
esa boutyourowna ndot herpe ople’s
sanity.Att hes amet ime ,asIr ereadCl a r
e’sl
astve rs
e, Itakecomf or tf
r om itsv is
ion
ofa tleastpote nti
al harmonya nd( r
e-)union.Thoughwhe t
hert hisi ssavingi l
lusion
orc r azyde l
usionIc annots a y
.
Therele
vanceoft
hisbr
iefaut
obiogr
aphic
alexc
urs
ust
oyourownr
espons
etoCl
are
’s
poem Imustle
aveyoutode c
ideforyour
sel
f.

Ac
tiv
iti
es
(
a) Dr aw onthea bove‘How topr ac
tis
e...’g uideli
nestohe l
pframeaps yc
hologi
cal
analysi
sofat e
xtand/orauthorthatint
erestsyou.(Suggeste
dfocusesinPartFi
veare:
Shelle
y,Frankenste
in(5.
2.6a )
;Emi l
yDi ckinson,‘Ifel
taFune ral
’(5.4.
6c )
;Becket
t,
NotI( 5.
3.3d) ;Queen,‘
Bohe mianRha psody ’(5.
1.6c )
.)What everandwhoe ver
youc hoose,findoutasmuc ha syour easonabl ycana boutthelive
soft hepeople
involved.

(
b) ‘I’
dent
iti
e s
:sel
vesandot hersRe adRi
ch’s‘Dialogue’(
5.3.4b)orHol li
nghurst
’sThe
Swimmi ng-PoolLi
br ary(5.3.
4c )wei
ghi
ngpr ec i
sel
ywhe re‘
you’standinr e
lat
ionto
therel
ationshi
pspresented.How dothei denti
ties–es
pe c
ial
lythesexualident
iti
es–
ofthevariousfigur
e sinvolvedpromptyout oreviewyourowni dentit
y?Wi thwhom
orwha tdoy ouidentif
yas‘ sel
f’
?Whom orwhatdoyoui dent
if
ya s‘othe
r’?

Di
scu
ssi
on

(
i) ourac t
ualenj
oymentofanimag i
nativ
eworkpr oc
eedsfr
om al iberat
ionof
te
nsioninourmin
ds[...]the
nc e
forwardtoe
njoyourowndaydreamswi th
out
sel
f-
r e
proachors
hame.
Si
gmundFreud,Creat
iveWri
tersandDay-dr
eami ng(1908)
inLodge(1972:41–2)
Ps
ychol
ogi
calappr
oac
hes 105

(
ii
)‘Psychoanalyt
iccr
it
icis
m[...]a ddr
essesthegene
sisoft
heselfasre
veal
edin
l
it
era
t ur
ea ndthearts[...]inallo
fwh ic
ht he
reistheatt
emptt oi
nse
rtthe
s
ubje
c ti
ntot h
esocia
l.
Eliz
a be
thWr i
ght,‘
Psy
choanal
yti
cCriti
cis
m’ i
nCo y
leetal.(
1990:774)

(
ii
i)l
it
erat
urereve
alsac e
r t
ainknowled
ge ,andsomet
imesthetr
uthi
tse
lf
,aboutan
ot
herwis
erepres
sed,noctur
nal,s
ecretandun c
onsc
iousuni
ver
se.
Jul
iaKri
steva,
‘Wome n’sTi
me ’(1981)inBel
seyandMoo r
e(1997:212)

Als
osee:FEMI
NIM;
S POSTSTRUCTURALI
SM;POS
TCOLONI
ALI
SM;above‘
Keyt
erms
’,
p.97.

READI NG: I
nt r
oduct
ory:
Belse
y1980:56–84;Wrig
htinJe
ffer
sonandRo b
ey1986: 145–65;
WrightinCo yleetal
.1990:764–76;Makaryk1993:163–70,320–4;Seldenetal.1997:
136–44; Gre
e nandLebi
han1996:139–81;Eagl
eto
n1996:131–68.Full
erstudi
es:
Vy got
sky
1934;Wi nni
c ot
t1974;Wr i
ght1997;Kris
tev
a1984;Parkin-Goun
elas2001.Anthologi
es:
Freud
,J ung,Tri
ll
ingandHoll
andinLodge1972:36–43,175–89;Ho l
land1990;La canin
Lodgean dWo od2000:61–87;Ell
man1994.

2.
6 MARXISM,CUL
TURALMATERI
ALI
SM ANDNEW
HI
STORICI
SM

Ov
erv
iew
Allthesea pproac hesarec oncernedwi t
hunde r
standi
ngt extsinsoc i
alandhi s
tor i
cal
context.LANGUAGEi sgraspedf unc ti
onall
yf orwhati tdoes,rathert hanesse
nt i
a l
ly
forwha titi s.LI TERATURE i st reatedasapr oble
mat ic,evens uspectcategory,
especi
a l
lyins of ara sitoffersas‘ univers
al’and‘ nat
ur al
’wr it
ingwhi c
ha ppearst o
unde r
pinpr ivil
ege d,oft
ene l
it
ist
,v i
e wsofsociety.Accordi
ng ly
,thee mpha si
soft hese
approac hest endst obebr oadlyc ult
uraland s pecif
icall
ypol iti
c al
.CULTURE i s
recogniseda sa na renaofc onflictaswe l
lasc onsensus,a‘space’whe r
ediffer
e nces
ofinterestdivergea swe l
lasc onv erge.Accessorde ni
alofac cesstoc ert
ainmode sof
COMMUNI CATI ON i salsor ec
ogni seda scruc i
al.Me anwhi l
e,t hepr imaryfor ces
ofhistoricalchangea r
erec konedt obet hoseofs oci
alclas
saswe llaslatt
erl
y,gende r
andr ace.

Marxi
stapproac
hestolanguage,li
ter
atureandcult
uretendtobede ve
lope
df r
om the
model
sofe c
onomi candpoliti
calchangethatMa rx,Engel
sa ndt heothe
rfounders
ofMarxis
m devise
d,rathe
rt hanfrom therela
tiv
elyfewa ndi nci
dentalt
hingsthey
sai
daboutli
ter
atureandarta ssuc
h.The reist
husmuc hattentionto:
♦ mode sofpr oduct ion–t hete chnologie
sands ocialr e
lati
onswhe r
e bygoodsar e
produced(i
nc l
udingt hemode sofpr oducti
on,publ i
cationandtransmissionofpoems,
novels
,plays,news pa pers
,fil ms,TVpr ogramme s,etc.);
♦ rel
ati
onsbetwe ent hee c
onomi cba s
ea ndtheideologicalsuper
struct
ure–howc ert
ain
economicorganisat i
onsofl abourandmat eri
alsaffectandareaffecte
dbyi nsti
tuti
ons
suchasthel
aw,r eligion,education,theMEDI Aa ndthes ta
te(e.
g.therelati
onsbetween
povert
yandi lli
terac y,c
ont r
oloft heme diaanda ccesstopolit
icalpowe r)
;
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 106

♦ power
,powerl
essne
s sandempowerment–howfarpowe ri
smaint
ainedbycoerci
on,
compl
ici
tyorconsent;andhow f
arthos
ewhoar esubje
cttodominantworld-
views
havet
hecapac
itytoas se
rtt
hemsel
vesasage
ntsi
nthe i
rowne mancipa
tion.

Cult ura lMa teri

a l
ismi saf orm ofMar xistana lys
isc hieflyi de ntifie dwi thRa ymond
Wi l
lia ms ,Al anSi nf i
eld,Cat he r
ineBe ls
eyandot he r
si nBr itain.I tismar kedbya
commi tt
e ds ociali
stc r
itiqueofl it
e raryandc ultura la rte
fa ctsandoft hei nstituti
ons
thatmai ntaint hem.Ne wHi storic
ismi sar elated,soc i
allys ensitivebutl esspol iti
cal l
y
commi tt
e dfor m ofanal ysisidentifie dwi ths uchfigur esa sSt ephe nGr eenblatt,Loui s
Mont r
os ea ndot hersint heUS A.Theai m ofNe w Hi storicistsi stor ecogni set he
powe rr elati
onsi npl aybot hinat ext’smome ntofpr oduc t
ionandi nitssubs eque nt
mome ntsofr e
-produc tion( e.g.
,byac ademi csinuni versities).Typi cally,whe reas
(British)Cul turalMat eriali
ststendt oe mpha s
iser esistant,s ubv ersivea nds ome t
ime s
revol utionar yr e
adi ngsoft exts,the ir(Ame rican)Ne w Hi stor i
cistc ount e
rpar tste nd
toe mphas i
set hewa ysinwhi cht ext sandt heirr eade rsfina lly‘ contain’s ubve rsion
andpr omot ec onfor mity.
The rear ev e
ryf ew pur e–s omewoul ds ayvul gar–Mar xi stsinac ade mi cc i
rc l
es
nowa days .Butt herea rema nybr oadl y‘Ma rxian’c ri
ticsandt he oris
tswhowoul d
ident if
ywi thpar tsoft heaboveage ndas .Mos tdos owi t
ha nawar ene s
sofot her
social l
ys ensiti
veandpol i
ticall
ymot iva t
edappr oac hes,e spe c i
allyFEMI NI STa nd
POS TCOLONI ALo ne s
.Ma rxist
sa l
s oha vev e
xe dbutof tenhi ghl ypr oduc ti
ver elati
ons
withPSYCHOANALYTI C,P OS TSTRUCTURALI S Ta ndPOSTMODERNI STa ppr oac he s
.
Ar g
ume ntsint hisareaof tenrevolvear ounddi fferi
ngnot i
onsoft hes ubject(conc ei
ve d
aspe r son,s ubjectmat tera ndac ade mi cdi sc
ipline).I tallde pe ndshow f arit( andwe )
areunde rstood t o bei ndividualands oc i
al,pr ivatea ndpubl ic,r epresse da nd
oppr e ssed,c oherentanddi spersed,l oc alandg l
obal ,inandoutofhi story.
Keyter
ms:a bsenceandpresence,gapsands i
le
nces,centresandma rgins
;foreground
andbackground;c l
ass;te
xti nc ont
ext;CULTURE;di scourse;HITORY (
S see1.5.7)
;
nar
rati
ve...hi /s
tory;i
deology;popular;power;r
e a
lisma ndr e
presenta
tion;subjec
t
andagent
;re -
valuat
ion.

So
memaj
orfig
ure
san
dmo
veme
nts
Broa
dlyspea
king,
ther
earethr
eedis
tinctye
tint
err
ela
tedappr
oachestote
xtspr
act
is
ed
bycri
ti
csintheMarxis
ttradi
ti
on,eachofwhichwes hal
ltr
eatinturn:

♦ ‘
s oci
ali
streal
ism
(1885–1971);
♦ ‘
s oci
ali
stPOST/MODERNI SM’,primaril
yassoci
atedwi
ththetheoryandpr act
iceof
Be r
tol
tBrecht(1898–1956);
♦ ‘
de mocrati
cMULTICULTURALI SM’,spa
nningconte
mporar
yCulturalMater
iali
sm and
Ne wHi st
ori
cis
m,a nddist
inguis
he dbyit
satt
enti
ontoc
ultur
aldi
ffer
ence
sa ndpowe r
.

So
cia
lis
tre
ali
sm

andt
hewa
ysi
nwhi
chs
uch‘
epi
c’and‘
enc
ycl
opae
dic
’nove
li
st
sasDi
cke
ns,Bal
zac
Mar
xis
m,Cul
tur
alMat
eri
ali
sm andNe
w Hi
stor
ici
sm 107

andTol
st
oycouldpre
sentov
erarc
hingvie
wsofthesociet
iesi
nwhic
htheyl
ive
d.The
she
erbreadt
h ofthesewri
ters
’s oc
ialand hi
stor
icalvisi
onsof
fer
edimaginar
y

thevar
iouscl
a s
s e
sa ndse
cti
onsofsoci
etyindynamict e
nsion:c
aug htintheveryebb
andflowofs ocialconfli
ctandhis
tori
calchange.Charact
erswerethussigni
ficantnot
onlyasindi
vidualsbutforthei
r‘ty
pical
ity’
,theirc
apacitytoexpr e
ssthepressure
s

economicconditi
onsa ndc l
assconflict
stheyrepr
esented.Hisatt
achme ntt
oreali
sm
(orrat
her‘c
rit
icalreal
ism’)asamodeandt heninete
enth-cent
urynovelasahis
tori
cal
genrewasbas edupont hea s
sumptionthatthebe s
tar tbothrefl
ect
sandr efr
acts
hist
ory‘asawhole’:itholdsupalargemirrortosoci
alc ha
ngesandatthesamet i
me
reveal
ing
lyti
ltsit
.

So
cia
lis
tpo
st/
mod
ern
ism

Thisisav erydiff
ere ntki ndofpol i
ti
cala nda estheticvisi
on.Thoughs t
illdi sc
e r
nibl y
Mar xist
,itwaspr a
c ti
s edbyBr echt
.Het ooai me df orwha thet e
rme dan‘e pictheatr e’
;
butinhi sc aseheha di nmi ndamor efor mal, Aristoteli
annot i
onofe picasdr ama tic
exchang esf ramedbynar r
ative.Mor epar t icularly
,Br echtpr act
ise
dapol i
tically
mot i
va t
edve rsi
onoft heki ndsof*de fami li
ar i
sationt echni
quet heor isedbyt he
Rus s
ianFORMALI S TS .Hi s‘maki ng-s
trange- device’( Verf
remdungs ef
fekt )aime dt o
preventaudi enceside ntifyi
ngt ooreadilywitht hec ha ract
ersands i
tuat
ionspr ese
nt ed.
Inst
ead,s pectat
orswe ref orcedt ost
andba c
kf rom t hea ct
ionanda ppraiseitc r
iti
cal ly
,
from adi stance.Br e cht’smi xtureofnar rativeanddr ama t
icmode s,s ome ti
me s
punc t
uate dbys ong,ha dt hes amea i
m:t omakev i
ewe rspauseforreflection,notj ust
empat hi
see moti
onal ly.The rei spart
icularattentiont oc l
ashesbe t
weendi scour sess o
ast opr oduc e,notas ingl
eanduni fi
edi llusionofwhol eness,butapl uraland

fra
gme ntat
ion.I
nt hisrespectBrechtpractis
e dwha tAdorno( atheor
eti
cianofthe
contemporaryFrankfurtSchool)preached:apoliti
cal
lychargedMode r
nism.Indeed,
inhisuseoft het hen-mode rnme dia(back- pr
oject
ionofs l
ides,burs
tsofaudi o-
recor
ding)andinhi sat
tempt stobepopul ar
lyaccessi
ble
,Brechtcanproperl
ybes e
e n
asPOSTMODERNI S T.Ce r
tainlyhedidnoti ndulgeinthekindsof‘li
ter
ary’dif
ficulty
andobs c
uritypr
ac t
isedbys uch‘hi
gh’mode rnis
tsasJoyce
,Ka fkaandT.S.Eli
ot.All

ofbour
geoi
sde
cade
nce
.

Sh
ock
ingc
han
ge

Wa l
terBe njami
n,Br echt’
sfriendandc omme ntator,we ntont ode velopthet he
or e
tical
ramificationsofsuchapol iti
cise
dpos t/mode rnistaesthet
ics.Keye le mentsinthisare
theconc e
ptofs hocka ndt hepr ac
ticeofbrus hinghistorya gainsttheg rain.Benjamin
maintainedthatintime sofr e
volutionarycha ngeat raditi
ona l
,ne o-clas
sicalaest
hetic
s
of‘harmony ’,‘
balance’,‘organicunity’and‘r econcil
iati
on’ (t
heba sicNEW CRI TI
CAL
posit
ion,infact
)wa sina dequa t
eandl i
ke l
ytopr ovepol iti
call
yr e
a cti
ona ry.Heinsis
ted
thatgenui ne
lyrevolutionarya rtne e
de dtoe ffectar adicalruptur ewi ththepas t.I
t
neededt os hockre adersandvi ewe r
si nt
oar ecogniti
onoft heoppr es s
ionwhi ch
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 108

unde rpi nse venthemos tappar ent l

yc ivil
iseds ociety( seeDi scussion( iii
),p.114) .The
jobofr adi calwr i
ter sandr eaderswast hereforet obr us hof fic i
al,domi nantve rsions
ofhi stor yag ainstt hegr ain:t oe xpos et hemanyal ter nativehi stor i
es( espe ciallyof
wor king -classme na ndwome n)t ha thadbe enmut edors uppr essed.Be nj ami nal so
articulat edac rucialPOSTMODERNI STv iew oft her elat ionsbe t
we enar tandmode rn
technol ogyi nhise ssa y‘ TheWor kofAr tina nAgeofMe chani calRe pr oduc tion’
(c.
1935) .The r
ehepoi ntedoutt hatt hec apac it
yofmode r
nt echnol og ytor epr oduc e
imag esc he aplyandac curate l
yine ffe ctdispe rsesthe‘ aur a’sur roundi ngs uppos edly
uniquewor ksofar t.Wha twaspr evious lyexc lusivema ybemadewi delya vailabl e.
Whatbe longe dt oe litec ultur ema yc ir
c ulat
ei npopul a rc ult
ur e.Mor eov er,t he‘ a r
t
obje ct
’i smor eclear lyr ecog nisedf orwhati ta lway swa s–ac ommodi ty
.
Thes ubs equentpr og res
sofMar xi stc ri
ticismc anbes eeni nt ermsofat ens ion
betwe e nt hes ocialistr e
a l
istands oci al
istpos t/mode rnistpos i
tionsout l
ine da bove .
Shoul dhi storybevi ewe dasat otal ityoras eriesoff ragme nts:onegr andand
cont i
nuousna rrativef eaturingt heg radua lema nc i
pa tionoft hewor kingc lasse s,for
instanc e ;ormanys mal landdi sc ont inuousnar rativesi nvolvingma nyi nte rmi ttent
kindsofs truggle?Howf ardoe sthec ont rolofc onte mpor ar ytechnol og i
esinc r e
as ing l
y
turnal lc ulturalpr oduc tsint ocommodi ti
esc irculatinga c
c ordingt o( late)c api talis
t
mode sofpr oduc t
ion,r eproduc tiona nddi st
ribut i
on?Whatar et hepos siblev ant age
point sandpoi ntsofl e verageout s i
deorwi t
hint hats yste m?I nde ed,i sitstil
lpos s i
ble
to‘ see’c apitali
sm atal lasadi sti
nc ta ndpot entiallyt ransientphas eofs oc iala nd
economi cor ganis
at ion?Ori sital readys oa ll-encompas s
ingast os eem‘ uni v ersal’,
‘natur al’and‘ i
nev itabl e’?Al lthe seque st
ionsar eans we r
edi nvar iouswaysbyt he
wr i
terswenow r evie w.

I
deo
log
icals
ubj
ect
sanda
gen
ts
Forar ere adingofMar xismt hroughac ombi nat ionofPOSTSTRUCTURALI STa nd
PS YCHOANAL YTI Cl enses ,wemus tt urntot hewor kofLoui sAl thus s
e r(1918–90) ,a
pol it
i calthe oristwhopr oduc e
danumbe rofi nflue nt i
a lmodi fic ationsofc entral tenets.
Mos tf undame ntal l
y,hedi st
ingui shedt he‘ Ide ologi calSt ateAppar a tuses’ofl aw,
rel i
gion, pol i
ticsa nde duc ati
onf rom t he‘ Re pr essiveSt ateAppar a tuse s’oft hepol ic
e
andt hemi li
tary,as si
gningt oe achs phe r
ea‘ r elativea ut onomy ’bot hf r
om oneanot he r
andf rom t hee conomi cba se.Thi sope nedt hewa yf oraki ndofc ultur alismi nwhi ch
di scour sest endt obede tac hedf rom mode sofpr oduc tion.Cul tur a ldiffe r
enc esma y
the nbeunde rstoodwi thoutdi r e
ctappe al t
odi ffer enc esinma terialc ondi ti
ons .Att he
samet ime ,Al thus serins istedt hatt hehuma nistnot ionoft heuni fie da ndi nt egrated
‘indi vidual ’( i
.e.,‘theonewhoc a nnotbedi vide d’ )ber adicallyr eformul ated.I ni ts
pl aceheof f
ere dav iew ofe achpe r sonasav ar iega tedands hiftingc onfigur ationof
ide ologi cals ubje cts(plur al)
.Eac hme mbe rofs oc ietyi sine ffecta ss i
gne dava rietyof
rol esde pe ndingont hec ont extsi nwhi chs heorheope r
ates.I nAl thus s
er’st erms ,
eac hofusi s‘addr e s
sed’( i.e
.g r e
e tedandna me d)byva riousins ti
t utionsandt he reby
‘inter pe l
lat ed’inavar iet yof‘ s
ubj ectpos itions ’.Cr uc ial
ly,manyoft he ser olesor
subj e ctpos i
tionsa renoti niti
al l
yofourownc hoos ing.The ya ret hr ustuponusand
wemus tt hende cidet oc ompl ya ndc onsent ,orr esista ndr efuse,pe rhapsi nsistingon
anot he rrol ea nds ubjectpos itione ntirel
y.Ac ur re nte xampl eint heUKwoul dbet he
tende nc yamonge ducational mana ge rstos pe akofs tude ntsas‘c ust ome rs ’or‘c l
ients’,
andl ec t
ur ers/teac hersas‘ pr ovide rs’who‘ de liverc our se-pac kage s’
.Me anwhi le,
Mar
xis
m,Cul
tur
alMat
eri
ali
sm andNe
w Hi
stor
ici
sm 109

alloft hem/
us ,incl
udinge mployer
sandt her estoft hepubl i
c,area ddres
seda s
‘s
takeholder
s’.Inthiswa yaconspicuouslyc omme rc
ialmode lofhumanr e
lat
ionsis
beingsuperi
mpos edonat radi
tional
lyeduc ationalprocess.Thoseinvolvedmayt he
n
decidetocompl y
, r
esi
st,orass
ertapr e
ferablea l
ternati
ve.Pro-acti
ve,asdist
inc
tfrom
me rel
yr e
act
ive,subjec
tsa r
esome t
imec all
e dag ents(se
esubje c
t).

Ga
psa
nds
il
enc
es–t
he‘
not
-sa
id’
PierreMa che r
ey’sA The or yofLi teraryPr oduc tion( 1966)s ignal sane ve nmor e
mar ke dc onv e rg
e nceofMar xistandPOSTSTRUCTURALI STmo dels.ForMac hereyt he
primar yf ocusoft extuals tudyi swhatt het extdoe snot–orc annot–s ay( t
henon-
dit
).Eve ryt extc ant hereforebec hara cte
r i
s ednotonl ybywhati tdoe st alka bout, i
ts
expre sseds ubjectmat te
r( itspr esences)buta l
sobywhati tr epre ss
esors uppr esses
(i
tsa bse nc e
s )
. The‘ unsaid’or‘ unsaya ble’thusc onsti
tut esaki ndofunc ons ciousupon
whic ht het extdr awsbutwhi ch,byde finition, itcannotwhol lybr ingt oc onsc i
ousne ss
.
Ther oleoft hec ri
ticalreade r
,t herefore,i stos earchf ort he‘ gapsands il
e nces’
:t he
figur esande ventst hathav ebe enqui cklygl oss edove r
,ma rg i
nal isedori gnor ed.What
others tor iesandhi s
torieshav ebe e ndi s
pl acedorr eplac edbyt hev eryac toft e l
ling
thi
shi /
s toryi nt hiswayandnotanot her?Cl earl
y,the n,t houghMac he rey’sme thod
isdial ectical,hi storicalandps ychologic al,iti snote xclus ivelyMar xist.Thi sc an
bes a i
dofmuc hoft hel aterwor ki nt hisar ea.Fr e dricJ ame son’sThePol i
tical
Unc ons c i
ous :Nar rativeasaS ociallyS ymbol icAc t( 1981)i sac aseinpoi nt.Li ke
Ma che re y,J ame sons tressestheps ycho- pol i
ticalforceoft ext s
.Nar ratives tr
uc t
ur e
canbec ons true da sadoubl e-e
dg eda ctofr e pressi
on/ oppr es s
iona swe llase xpression.

Do
min
ant
,re
sid
ualan
deme
rge
nti
deo
log
ies

Simi l
artensionsc anbef ound,va riouslyart
iculat
ed,throughoutBriti
shandAme rican
wr i
tingsinabr oadl yMar xiant ra di
tion.Ra ymondWi ll
iams,forinstance,wor ked
throughf rom as oc i
al de
moc r
aticc ommi tmenttoCULTUREa s‘t
hewhol ewayofl i
ving
ofape ople’(Cul tureandSoc i
e ty1780–1950,1958:83)t o‘a
na rgume nt[...]s et
i
ntoane wa ndc onsc i
ousre l
ationwi t
hMar xism’ (
Marxism andLiterature,1977: 6).
Int helatterwor ki npar t
icular,Wi l
liamsde vel
ope dadynami cmode lofideology
whi chmanys tude ntsofl iter
at ur eandc ulturehavef oundve ryus eful.Willi
ams
sugg es
tsthatwes eee ver
yt ext( orot hercultura
lpr ac
tice)asthesit
ei nwhi chthr e
e
phas esofi deol
og ic
a ldevelopme ntca nbet raced.The s
ephas eshec allsdominant ,
residualande me rgent(1977:121– 8):

♦ Thedomi nantref
erstothoseaspectsofthetextwhic hexpre
ssthes oci
all
ypr i
vil
eged
andc e
nt r
alway sofseeingands ayingofi t
sage:t hedomi nantdiscourse
sint he
pres
ent.
♦ Theresidualref
erstothoseway sofs ayingandseeingwhi chwe reoncec e
ntralbut
havenow be ensupersededandar eonlye vi
dentasv esti
ges:thesewe reoftenthe
dominantdiscours
esoft hepast
.
♦ Theeme rge
ntrefer
stothoseembry onicgrowthpointswhichexistonlyashalf
-f
orme d
pote
ntialbutwhichma ybepe r
ceiveda sprec
ursor
sofne wwa ysofs ayi
ngands eei
ng:
the
sema ybe c
omet hedomi nantdi s
coursesofthefuture.
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 110

Ins hort,everyt extc a

nbegr a spedasas it
ewhe rethedi scoursesofpast,presentand
futureme etandc onte
nd.Wemi ghts e
eHa mlet
,fori nst
anc e,
asapl aywhe reresidual
feudalmode lsofs ociet
ya rec hall
e ngedbye merge ntformsofi ndividuali
sm,wi t
h
boths etagainstt hedomi nantc ontempor arymode l ofthenation–stat
e.Thee mphas is
isthusnotont e xtssimplyrefle cti
ngorr eprese
ntingas i
ng l
efixe dideology,buton
textsr efr
actingi deologie
s( plural)aspar tofac ontinuingpr ocessofs truggle.
Mor eover
,followi ngBa khti
na ndVol oshinov,Will
ia mspoi nt
soutt hatsuchstruggles
takepl aceina ndove rwor dsofal lkinds.Thec ontestofdomi nant,res
idua land
eme rgentideol og ie
se nsur
est hate venas i
nglewor d,everyut te
ranceoft hatwor d
(e.
g .‘woman’ ,‘ black’,‘
God’ ,‘freedom’ )isane wlyc onfigur edsiteforthec oll
isi
on
andc oal e
scenc eoft hepa s
ta ndt hef utureinthepr e s
ent.

Cu
ltu
ralMat
eri
ali
stsan
dNe
wHi
sto
ric
ist
s

Al lpr actit
ione rsofthe sea ppr oac he swor kwi t
hc onc eptionsofi de ologyasadyna mi c
pr oce ss
:t ext sandl ang uagea resitesofi de ologi cals trugg l
e.Thec hi efdi ffe
r ence s
amongt hema rei nt heki ndsandde gr ee
sofpol iticalc ommi tme nte achbr i
ngst o
thet ask;al soi nthes pe cificac ade mi ci nstitutionsa ndna t
ionalc ulture swi thin
whi c he achope rates.Iti si nitiall
yt empt ing,andt os omee xt entus eful,toof fert he
br oade qua tions:Cul tur almat er
ialism =Br iti
s hs ocialisttradi tion=mor epos iti
v e
commi t
me ntt oc onflic t
ualpol it
ics;andNe w Hi s t
or i
c i
sm =Ame ri
c ande moc r
at ic
tradition=mor epos i
tivec ommi tme nttoc ons ens ual politics.Howe ver,itshoul dal so
bes t
r es
s edt hatc ontempor arypr actit
ione rsofal lthe sepos iti
onsa r
ei ns omes ens e
eclec ti
cande l
astic
.Te rryEagl et
on( UK)andFr edricJ ame son( US)ma ye xchang e
comr ade lybl owsont he i
rr espe ctiveanal ysesofPOSTMODERNI SM a ndi t
sr elations
to‘ latec api tal
ism’.Butt he ydos owi e l
dingas imi l
a rl
ywi dear rayofmode lsand
me t
hodsdr awnf rom POSTSTRUCTURALI SMa ndPSYCHOANALYSI S.Mor eove r
,many
oft hemos tforcefulandr esour cef
ul propone nt sofMar xistana lysisnowope ratewi th
anac uteawar ene s
soft hene e dtome ldi twi thFEMI NI STa ndPOSTCOLONI ALI ST
criti
c aldisc oursestoo.Ca the rineBe l
seyandGa ya triSpivaka renot a
bl eint hisrespe ct.
Al anS infie lda ndJ onat hanDol l
imor e
,i npar ti
c ular,hav ef urthe rde ve l
ope dc ultur al
mat e ri
alistag e
nda sint ermsofc hang ingmode sandmode lsofs exual ityi nhi ghl y
char g e
ds oc i
alandpol iticalc ont exts.Theov e
ral lresulti smul tiplyde termi ned–not
crude l
yr educ tive–r ea ding s.Butwhat evert hel abe l
swea pply,onet hi ngi sc l
ea r:all
the sewr i
ter sshareac onc e rnnots i
mpl ywi thwhi cht extsa res tudi edandhow,but
alsowhoi sdoi ngt hes tudy inga ndwhy.Thebr oadl yins ti
tutionalandc ulturalas
we lla sthenar rowlyt ext ua ldi mens ionsofs tudyar ethe ref
or ee qual l
ye mphas isedi n
theme t
hodwhi chf ollows .

Howtopr
act
iseMarxis
tana
lys
es,
asd
eve
lope
dbyCu
ltur
alMat
eri
ali
sts
andNewHis
tori
ci
sts

Inge ne
ral,consi
de rt
hepowe rr
elati
onsinplaywithinandaroundt hetext(i
)inits
init
ialmome ntofpr oduc t
ion(‘
thereandt hen’
);(i
i)init
ssubsequentmome ntsof
reproduct
ion( e.
g.‘hereandnow’ )
.
Inparti
c ul
ar,concentrat
eonsuchfact
or sascl
ass
,rank,occ
upationande ducati
on,
graduall
ybr oadeningy ouranal
ysistotakeinsuchc ompli
cati
ngf act
orsasge nder
,
Mar
xis
m,Cul
tur
alMat
eri
ali
sm andNe
w Hi
stor
ici
sm 111

rac
e,nationali
tyandage.
Dot hi
ssys
tematic
allywi
thattent
iontoeverymaj
oraspe
ct
ofthetextinc onte
xta
nde ve
rymome ntofproduc
tionandr e
cept
ion.Thef
oll
owing
checkl
is
twi llhelp.

St
artwi
th‘
thet
exti
nha
nd’(
ont
hes
cre
en,i
nyourmi
nd)

♦ How di ditgetther
e?Whoma deitasanobj ectandtr a
dedinitasacommodi t
y?
♦ Wha tlabourandma t
eri
alshavegoneintoitsmaki ng
?
♦ Whatt ec
hnologies,soc
ialorganis
ati
onsandge neralmode sofproduc
tionand
exc
ha nge(incl
udingpubli
cati
onanddis t
ributi
on)we reinvol
ved?Atwhateconomic
andec ol
ogicalcost
s?

Movet
othei
mme
diat
econt
extandpar
ti
ci
pant
s

♦ Whe rea ndwhe nar eyour eceiving( andt her

ebyreproduc ing)thistext ?
♦ Whoar e‘you’,t
he‘ I
-who- r
e ads’,intermsofc las
s,sta
t us,occupa ti
onande ducati
on;
aswe l
la sgender,race,nationalitya ndag e?
♦ Whoa reyoudoi ngt hiswith?Wha tar ethekindsofr el
ationi nvolved:reader–text,
lear
ner–learnerandl earner
–te acher?Andwhatki ndsofaut horityandhi erarc
hya r
e
inplay?
♦ How woul dy oude scr
ibet hes ocialandpol i
ti
calfunc t
ionsoft hepr ogrammea nd
inst
it
utionyouar estudyingin?How f ardot hes
ea ccordwi thyourowna i
ms?
♦ Insum,wha tconstructi
onsoft hes ubject(i
.e
.topicandc our seaswe llasyour se
lfas
subjec
t)c urre
ntl
ya pply?

Nowc
ons
ide
rev
erymaj
ordi
mens
ionoft
he‘
texta
spr
oduc
tsa
ndpr
oce
sse
s’(
seeFi
gur
e2,
p.77)
:

♦ aut
hor
–re
ade
r(pr
oduc
er–r
ece
ive
r)r
elat
ions
:
♦ Whatdoyouknow,orc
any
oui
nfe
r,a
boutt
heaut
hor
’ss
oci
alr
elat
ionst
ohe
ror
hi
srea
ders(
audience,vi
ewers,e
tc,
)?(Pl
ur a
lise‘s/
he’to‘t
hey’,whereappr
opri
a t
e.)
Wass/
heinsomewayde pe
ndentorindepe ndent?
♦ Dids/
hemakeal iv
ingfrom thi
s,orwasi tapr ivat
ea ct
ivi
ty?Dids /
herequi
reor
hi
reothe
rst
opr oduc eanddist
ri
buteit
?
♦ Whatdoweknowabouthi sorherideas,taste
s,valuesandbe l
ief
s?Anddot hes
e
makeanydif
fer
encet ohow weunde rs
tandt histext?

♦ t
extaspr
oduc
tsate
arl
ie
rmome
ntsofr
epr
oduc
tion:
♦ Whatwe
ret
hege
ner
almode
sofe
conomi
cpr
oduc
tionands
oci
alor
gani
sat
ionat
t
het
ime(
e.g.wa
sthes
oci
etyc
hie
fly‘
sl
ave
’,‘
feuda
l’,‘
bour
geoi
s’
,‘c
api
tal
is
t’
)?
♦ Whatwe
ret
hes
pec
ific
all
y‘l
it
era
ry’or‘
art
ist
ic’mode
sofpr
oduc
tiona
nddi
st
ri-
buti
oni
nwhicht hi
ste
xtwasi
mpli
cat
ed:(
e.g.or
al,t
heat
ri
cal,manus
cri
pt,pr
int
,
filmi
c;l
ibr
ari
es,books
hops
,st
udi
os)
?Whoowne dorcontr
olle
dthem?

♦ r
elat
ionst
other
estoft
hewor
ld–t
henandnow:
♦ Whats
ect
ionsofs
oci
etya
rer
epr
ese
nte
dasc
ent
ral–orar
guabl
ymi
s-orunde
r-
orun-
repr
ese
nte
d?Ar
ethe
remar
kedga
psands
il
enc
es?
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 112

♦ I
sthes
oci
etyr
epr
ese
nte
dcont
empor
arywi
tht
hatoft
heaut
hor
,orbe
for
eoraf
ter
,
orsomeot herimag inedtimeandpl acee nti
rel
y?Doe sthismakeforamor eor
les
scrit
icalper
s pect
iveont heaut hor’
spr es
ent?
♦ Whi choftheide ol
ogiesinplaywoul dy ouc haract
eri
seasdominant,r
esi
dualor
eme r
gent?Anddoe sthewr i
tere xpres
sori mplyapr ef
erence
?
♦ Whatr ele
vancet oyourownt ime sands oci
etydoesthewor ksee
mt ohave?For
inst
ance,doesithe l
py ouseeyourr elat
ionstoot he
rpeopleandtotheres
tofthe
wor l
dmor eclearlyordiffe
rently?

EXAMPLE

Dr awing on the a bove ques

tionsand s uggesti
ons,s ketc
h an ana
lysi
soft he
representat
ionofCha ucer’
sKnightinTheGe neralPrologue(5.
1.1c)
.(Besureto
draw ont heaccompany i
ngnotesaswell
,ifpos s
iblesupplemente
dbythenotesi
na
scholarlyedit
ions uchasTheOxf ordRive rs
ideChauc e r
,ed.L.D.Benson1988:
800–1.Not ic
et hate venwhenyoul ac
kf ur
theri nfor
ma ti
onyouc ans t
il
lpose
que s
tionsaboutc ontextandhi
story.Dothisbe f
orer e
adingon.)

The‘ value ’ofChauc er

.AMar xistana lysismi ghts tartbydr awi ngat tenti
ont ot he
specifics ocialandpol iti
calc ontexti nwhi chy ouar estudyi ng ,andt hefac tthatyou
arere adingCha ucerinamode r
npr i
nt e
dt extbook.Thi shasane duc ati
onalf unc t
ion
andapr ice:itisitsel
fbot hame dium ofi nstruc t
iona ndac ommodi ty.Thes ocial
rel
ations, me diaandt ec
hnol ogiesinvol v
e darethe reforeve rydi fferentf r
omCha ucer’s
ini
tialmome ntsandmode sofpr oduc t
ion.Cha ucerpr oba blyfir s treadt his*or ally
toothe rme mbe rsofthec our tci
rc l
eofwhi chhewasar elativelyj uniorme mbe r(he
wa sthes onofawi neme rchant )
.The re
af t
erthet extc irculat edinma nuscriptcopie s
amongs tme mbe rsofthear i
stocrac y,richerme rchantsa nds eniorc l
ergy.S t
ra i
ght
away ,the n,wear einvolvedi nac ompl exs oci
o- histori
c aldi alogue .Wemaybel eft
askinghow f arthe‘ Chauc er’(oranyot heraut hor )wear es tudyi ngi samode rn
educat i
onals ubjectandc api t
ali
stc ommodi t
yaswe l
las ,s ay,af eudals ubjectand
courte nte rt
ainer.Wha tar eandwe r
et hes ocialre l
ations ?Whatar eandwe ret he
‘val
ue s’inpl ay?

An( un) idealkni ght.AMar xistmi ghtt henobs erv ethatt heKni ghtisgivenpr ideof
plac east hefir stpil
grimt obei ntroduc ed, t
husc onfir minghi ss t
at usasthemos tsenior
pilgrim.Thi si sa l
so,a tle asta tfir stglanc e
,ani dea li
sedandpe rhapsflat teri
ngi mag e
ofkni ght hood:‘ Hewasav e r
ray,par fitge ntilkny ght’( l
.72) .Al lthisisconv entional
andpe rhapss oc i
allyc onf or mist.Howe ve r
,onf ur therinve stigation,theimageoft he
kni ghtpe rhapst urnsoutt obenots os i
mpl eands table.Andhe rewemaybr i
ngpar t
s
oft hehi storicalba ckgr oundi ntot hef or e
ground.Foronet hing,byt histimei nt he
latef our teenthc ent ury,c rusadi ngkni ghtswe rer el
ative lyout mode da swe l
las
economi call
ya ndmi litarilyi r
relevant .The ywe rebe i
ngdi spl acedbyye ome nar chers
andf oot soldiersinfig hting ,andbyme mbe rsoft hemone yedme rchantclassesint he
economy .Chi valr
ywa st husl arge l
yar esidualsoc ialform.I tbe l
ongedt ot heol der
feuda l orde r
, eventhoughi tstil
le xertedapowe rfuls ymbol i
cf or ce.Foranot herthing,
readi ng‘ be t
we enthel ine s’oft het ext,wec ani de nti
fys i
gni fic antgapsands il
enc es
.
Wear et oldt hekni ghtwas‘ AtAl i
saundr e...whani twa swonne ’(
l.
51) .Wha twe
arenott oldi st hat‘Al e xandr ia,i nEgypt ,wasc onque redbyPe terI(Lus ignan)of
Mar
xis
m,Cul
tur
alMat
eri
ali
sm andNe
w Hi
stor
ici
sm 113

Cypr
uson10Oc t
ober1365anda bandonedawe eklat
er,aft
ergr
eatpl underi
ngand
amassacreofitsi
nhabitant
s’(River
sideChaucer1988:801,n.51) .Me rel
ytonot e
t
hisi
stobr ushChaucer’
shis
toryagainstt
hegrai
n.Itr
a i
sesthepos
sibli
tyofane gat
ive
re
adi
ngoft heKnightasame rc
ena r
y,andma yal
somakeuswonde rwhe therChaucer
wasbeingironi
cinhisview of‘manyanobl earmee’(l
.60).

Chr i
sti
a nsv.he athens :fr
om theCr usade stot heGul fWa r.The r
ea lsoremainst he
ideologicall
yve xe dmat t
erofChauc e
r ’
ss pe cif
ical
lyWe ste
rnEur ope anve rs
ionof
me dievalChristianity.Didhewhol lyappr oveoft hosewho‘ foughtenforour efei
th’
againstthe‘he[a]then’( l
l.
49,66) ?Asa not herhi st
oric
alnotetell
sus ,‘
onlyca mpaigns
againstMos lems ,sc his
mat i
cs( Rus s
ianOr thodox),andpag ansar eenume r
ated’
(RiversideCha uc er1988:801,n.47) .Pe rha ps,then,wea rejusti
fiedi ndiscer
ninga
routinely‘anti-oriental’sl
antt oChauc e r’
swor l
d-histor
icalreal
ity?Obvi ouslyno
amountofs crutinisi
ngoft hesefe wwor dsont hepageandt hee xt
ractoutofc ontext
willgiveusa nswe rs
.Butar eadingi ncont extwi llbeginto.Ar eadingoft hewhol e
of‘TheGe neralPr ologue’woul dclearlyhe lpt oo.Fortherewes eeChauc erformally
andc ritic
all
ydi stanc i
nghi mselffrom a llthe seobservati
onsbypl acingthemi nt he

Wemi ghtthenpr oceedt oc ompar elat

eme dievalandmode r
nwor ld-views .One
thingthismi ghtindicateisjusthowpe r
vasiveandde e
p- s
e ate
dwe re( andar e)c er
tain
Chr ist
ianandWe st
ernant ipathiestoMus l
imsa ndOr ientals
.Wemi ghte vendr aw
tentativeanalogiesbe twe enme die
valc r
usade sandt he1992Gul fWar .Ev ent he
archa i
ca ndeuphe misti
cna me sfortheWe ste
rnf orcesma rshall
eda g
ains tI
raq( ‘
De ser
t
Shie l
d’)s mackedofal atter-dayc rusa
de,a ndt hisimag e r
ywaswi delyr einforced
in manyoft hea c
count si nt heWe st
ern popul arme dia.Suc h an appe alt oa
me dieval/modernanal ogywoul dbeac haracteris
ticmovef orCul t
ur alMa teri
alist
s
andNe w Hist
orici
stsalike.Itwoul dbea llthemor eacutei nthewakeoft heat tack
byI slami cextr
emi s
tsont heWor ldTradeCe ntreinNe w Yor kin2001.( I
twoul d
probabl ybeputa ndr eceiveddi ff
erentl
yinBr i
taina ndt heUSA,t oo.)Ei therwa y
,
suchat ranshis
toric
a lgesturewoul dc omple t
et heinterpr e
tiv
ec ycl
ebyr eadingt he
pas tbothi nandt hrought hepr ese
nt.Thec riti
cal–polit
icalandt extual– contextual
projectwoul dthusbei ntegratedbuts t
il
lope nandongoi ng .

Ac
tiv
iti
es

(
a) Drawi ngont heabove‘Howt opracti
se....’f
rame wor k,s
ke t
chaMar xi
st(Cult
ural
Mat eri
alis
torNe w Hist
oric
ist)ana
lysisofatextt hatyouar ecurrentl
ys t
udying.
Alternati
vely
,focusononei nPartFive.Eit
herway ,youwi llneedtofindoutabout
thea uthor’
slif
eandt i
mesandt hetext’smome ntsandmode sofproductionand
rec
e pti
on.Goont owe i
ghthestre
ngthsandwe aknessesofthisapproa
c h.(S
uggeste
d
f
oc usesinPartFive:Hands,‘
APoe m,...byaSe r
vantMai d’(5.1.3c)
;Mc Ewana nd
Roy( 5.2.7d,e);Ke l
man(5.3.3f)
;Lang l
and(5.1.
1d) .)

(
b) Rewri
tepartofat e
xtwhi chyouf i
ndpoliti
cal
lyfasci
nati
ngandye tfrust
rati
ng.
Att
empttobrushit‘agai
nstthegr ai
n’andexploresomeofi t
s‘gapsandsil
ences’
.
(
Thismightt
aketheform ofadaptati
on,c
hangeinpointofvi
ew,alte
redendi
ng,etc.
;
se
e4.4.
)Addac omme ntaryony ourproces
sesofres
earch,r
eflect
ionandr e
wr i
ti
ng.
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 114

Di
scu
ssi
on
(
i) Tr
adit
ionall
iter
arycri
ti
cshaveonyi
l nt
erpret
edtheworldi
nv ari
o usways;t
he
po
int
,ho wev
er,i
stochangeit
.
Adaptedfrom Ka
rlMar x
,Thes
esonFe uer
bach(1845);
‘tr
a di
tionall
it
era
ry
cr
it
ics
’subst
it
ute
df or‘phil
osop
hers’

(
ii
)thehis
torie
swerec
onstr
uctar
ethetex
tual
const
ructo
fcri
ti
cswhoar
e,o
urse
lves
,
h
ist
oric
alsubj
ect
s.
LouisMont
rose,
‘ThePoet
icsandPol
iti
csofCult
ure
’inVe
ese
r(1989:23)

(
ii
i) Thereisnodocume
ntofc
ivi
li
sat
ionwhi
chi
sno tatt
hesameti
meado cument
ofbarbari
sm.
Walt
erBenj
ami
n,‘
Theseso
nthePhi
loso
phyofHis
tor
y’VI(c.1939)
i
nWalder(1990:363)
Al
sos
ee:1.
5.11–
12;1.
8.3;FEMI
NIM;
S POSTCOLONI
ALI
SM;‘
Keyt
erms
’,p.106.
READING:Intr
oduct
ory:Hasle
ttandBrannig
aninWolf
reys2001:67–83;169–99;Sel
den
etal
.1997:88–108;Greenbl
atti
nLe nt
ric
chiaandMcLau gh
lin1995:225–32;Frowand
WayneinCoyleetal.1990:708–21,791–808;Eagl
eton,1996.Primary:Bre
cht1964;

Advanc
ed:Wil
li
ams1977;J ameson1981;Vee
ser1989;Cohenan
dMo ntr
oseinGreenb
lat
t
andGunn1992:320–48,392–418;CoxandReyn
olds1993;Br
anni
gan1998;Has
let
t2000;
Butl
eretal
.2000.Anthol
ogie
s:Eagle
tonandMilne1995;Rya
n1996.

2.
7 FEMI
NISM,
GENDERANDSEXUALI
TY

Ov
erv
iew

Femi nismi sapol i

tic all
ymot ivat edmove me ntde dicatedt ope r sonalands ocial
change .Fe minis tsc hal l
enget het raditionalpowe rofme n( pat ria
r chy)a ndr eva l
ue
andc elebratether ole sofwome n.Fe mi ni
smi sinfor me dbyc riti
c al
–pol i
tic
ala gendas
whi chc utac ros ss ubj ectar easanda renotl imitedt oe duc ation.LANGUAGE a nd
LITERATUREa re ,ultima t
e ly,nott reateds epar ate
lybutr ecognise daspa r
tofal arg er
andde epl ycont ent i
ousCULTURALpr oject.Int heser espe ct
sFe mi nism bot hi nfluenc es
andi si nfluenc edbyMARXI STa ndPOSTCOLONI AL a ppr oache s.ManyFe mi nist
wr i
tersa l
soha veas trongi nte re
stinPSYCHOLOGI CALmo de l
sa ndme thods,especiall
y
thosewhi chwr e stt hehumans ubj ectfrom ana r rowl ypa tr
iar cha l,substantially
Freudianf r
ame .Whe thera spos t-Freudiansora nti-Freudi ans,t heys eektode velop
mor epos iti
velywoma n- c
e ntreda ndg ende r-sensit
ivec riticalandt he rape uti
cpr act
ices.
A de cadeagoi twasc ommont odi stingui s
hps ychoanal y t
icallyi nc li
ned( French)
Femi nistsfrom mor es oc iallyandhi storicall
yi ncline d( Angl o-Ame rican)Fe minists.
Now,howe ver,t houg ht he see mphas e spar tl
ype rsist,thei nternat ional i
si
ngoft he
wome n’smove me nthasl edt oamuc hmor efle xibleande cl
ectica ppr oachamong st
Femi nistcrit
ics. Not wi ths tanding ,itcans til
lbeus eful tofur t
he rdist i
ngui s
havar iety
ofFe mini sms( plur al).Cur rentpr ac t
iti
one rsc anof te nbede scribedi ns ofara sthe y
adoptoneoft hef ollowi ngpos iti
onsorac ombi nat i
onoft hem:
Fe
mini
sm,Gende
randSe
xual
ity 115

♦ soci
ali
stFeminist–express
lyconfig uredwithMar xi
smandCULTURALMATERI ALI
SM;
♦ blac
kFe ministandwome nofc olour–of t
endrawingonandcont
ributi
ngtoexpre
ssl
y
Postc
olonialorMULTI CULTURALa gendas;
♦ radi
calseparati
stFeminist–oftene xpres
slyali
gnedwitht
heles
bianmov ement;
♦ bourgeoi
sorl i
beral
Femi nis
t–c oncernedwithsel
ect
ed‘i
mages
’ofrela
tiv
elypr
ivi
leg
ed
wome n,butnotwi t
ht herepres
e nt
a t
ion(ineve
rys e
nse
)ofworki
ng-clas
swome nand
wome nofc olourorwi t
hl es
bianandg aypoli
ti
csassuch.

Ge nderands exual ityar er ela t

edbutpar t
lydi sti
nc ta rea s.S t
udyi ngt heme ntail
s
investi
ga t
ingnotonl yc ulturalc onstructionsofwome na ndme n,buta ls
othes hift
ing
relati
onsandc ha ngi nge valua tionsofhe terosexualitya ndhomos e xual i
tying eneral.
Somef eministsc ompl aint hatGe nde rSt udiesr epresentsadi lutionanddi f
fusion–
eve nane utralis
ing–ofs exualpol i
tics.Ot he rsma intaint ha titismor eope n,plur al
andl essdog mat i
c ,andt hati tal soma kesmor espacef orle sbiana ndg ayperspe c
tives.
Itmake smor es pac eforme nt oo.Ei therway ,theseappr oa che shavemuc hc ommon
aswe l
la ss omedi sput e
dgr ound.Bot hwe reinitiall
yc onc ernedwi t
h‘ i
mage sof
wome n’,extendi ngl atterlyto‘ ima gesofme n’and‘ gay s’.Soon,howe ver
,c r
itic
sa nd
scholarss etaboutr ecove ri
ngandr e -valuingpr evious l
ymar ginalisedt radit
ionsor
suppr esse
dwor ksbywome n,gaysand/ orl e s
bianst he ms elves( foranot eont he
changingpol i
ticsof‘ gay’ ,‘lesbian’a nd‘ que er’asna me s,se ebe l
ow,p. 118).La tt
erly,
thereha sbe enane mphas isons eei
ngpat ternsofs exua li
tyi nc ompl exlyplural r
ather
tha nsimplypol arisedway s.Cont e mpor ar y‘que er’appr oac he s
,inpar tic
ular,insist
ont hepot entialf oranac ti
veas se
rtionandpe r
formanc eofki ndsofhomos exualit
y
bey ond–notj us tbe twe en–c ur re
nthe terosexualmode l
s .

Keyterms:aut
o/ bi
ography,sel
vesandothers;ca
non( al
ter
na t
ive,new ort
hodox);
dif
fer
ence...(
re-)v
aluati
on;gender
;power;r
eproduc
tion(bi
ologicala
nde c
onomi c)
;
romance;s
ex;sexuali
ty;wri
tingandreadi
ng,res
ponseandr ewrit
ing(re
sis
tant
ly,as
awo/man).

So
memaj
orfig
ure
san
dmo
vemen
ts

Cruci
alto any wor
kint
hisar
eai
san i
nit
ialdi
sti
nct
ion be
twe
en‘
sex’a
nd
‘
gender’
.

♦ Sexr efe
rst o our phys
iol
ogic
al make -
up and those biolog
icaldiffere
nces
which dete
rmineusasf emaleorma l
e:dif
fer
ence
sofc hromosomes,ge ni
tal
s,
hormones.
♦ Gender,howe ver
,ref
erst
oours oci
alma ke-
upandt hosecultur
all
yc onst
ructe
d
dif
fer
enceswhichdis
ti
ngui
shusasfe
mi ni
neorma s
cul
ine:di
ffe
r e
ncesofdres
s,soci
al
rol
e,expect
ati
ons,et
c.

Wea rea l
lbornfemaleorma l
e;bute achofusl earnstobefemini
neormas culi
ne
accordi
ngt oourexperi
enceoftheprevail
ingsocialnorms.Thus,s
exual
ly,wome n
(notme n)aree
quippedtoconce
ive,carr
ya ndgivebi r
thtochi
ldr
en.However,the
se
funct
ionsdonotne c
essa
ril
yme a
nt hatwome nandme nhavetobest
ere
otypedalong
thefoll
owinggenderli
nes:
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 116

‘FEMI NINE’? ‘
MAS CULINE’
?
emot ional rati
onal
privatea ndpe r
sonal(
int
eri
or) publicandi
mpe rsonal(e
xte
rior
)
home -andc hil
d-c
entr
ed job-andtas
k-centred
qui et noisy
pas si
ve acti
ve
be auti
ful str
ong
smoot h rough
artsa nde ducat
ion sci
encesandengineeri
ng

Suc hmut ual l

yr ei
nf orc i
ng*bi nar yoppos it
ionsunde rpi nmanype opl e’se xpe cta ti
ons
ofwha titi stobeagi r l
/womanandaboy /
man. The ya lsounde rpi ndomi na ntnot i
ons
ofhowwome na ndme ns pe aka ndwr ite, andwha ts ubje ctsora reasofl i
fet he ys peak
andwr itea bout .Thus ,stere ot ypica lly,inc onve rsationme nt alkl oude r( ofte nabout
spor tandpol it
ic s
),s we armor eandc ompe tewi thonea not he r;whe r ea swome ntalk
mor equi etlya ndmor e‘pr ope rly’(of tenaboutc hildr enandr elations hi ps )andt he y
suppor toneanot he r.I nter msofge nr e s,a gains ter eotypi cal ly,me nl i
kewa rs tori
e s
andpe r hapspor nogr aphy ,whe rea swome nl iker omanc esa ndpe rhapsdome stics oap
ope ra. Cl ear l
yt he sest ere
ot y pe sdopa rtlyc or res pondt oobs e rvabl epat ter ns .Equal ly
clearly,howe v er,the ybynome ansappl yt oa llme na ndwome n.Nordot he yappl y
toa llhi stor icalpe r i
odsa ndc ulture s,ort oa llpar tsofnomi nally‘ thes ame ’s oc i
ety.
Thust heVi ctor i
anmi ddleanduppe rc lasse smayhav eidol i
s edwome nas‘ thes oft
e r
sex’and‘ a nge lsint hehous e’.Butt hisc har acte ri
s ationdi dnote xte ndt ot hef e ma le
factorywor kerswhoi nc lothi ng, manne rsa nde vent askswe reof t e
nv irtua llyi ndi sti
n-
guisha bl ef rom t hema les.Simi larly,ande qua ll
yc ompl exl y,We sterni sedwome nand
me nmaya ffectt hea ppe a ranc eofe qual it
ybywe ar i
ng‘ uni se x’c lothi ng( e.g .je ans);
butt hi sdoe snotguar ant eee qual i
tya sane conomi cf act .Nor ,c onv er sely,doe sthe
we aringoft hey ashma kandt he ire xc l
us ionf rom publ icof fic epr ev entmanyMos le
m
wome nf r om ha vinggr e
atmat riarc halpowe rove rt hef ami l
ywi thint hedome stic
sphe re.Ge nde rdiffere ncesa r et here forea lwa ysi nfle ctedwi thot he rMULTI CUL TURAL
differenc e sofpe riod,c l
ass,c as t
e,nat ion,r e li
gion,a geandf ami lialr ol e.Tha ti swhy
manype opl ewor kingi nt hi sar eac onc ent rateonat t itude st omode sofs exual
reproduc tion,br oa dlyunde r stood( e.g.r epr es enta tionsofpube rty,me ns t r
uat i
on,
conc ept ion,c ont racept i
on,pr egna nc y,a bor ti
on,bi rthandc hi l
dc are ),aswe lla sthe
gende ringofmode sofe conomi cpr oduc tion( e .g.nur sing ,s ecretar ial andhous ewor k
gende re daspr ima r i
ly‘ woman’ swor k’ ).
Butt he rei sani nc reasingr e cogni tiont ha tac onc eptual isingofi ssue sbas eds olely
ons exua lr eproduc tiona ndg ende rr ol e sisnote nough.Obv ious lyhomos exua li
ty
needst obea dde dt ot hevar ioushe teros exual equat ions .Bute vent hat ,t houg hc rucial,
ispot ent iallylimi ting,andal l tooe as ilyr ecupe rate dasa‘ que er’/
‘stra ight ’di chot omy .
Af ur the rt erm anddi sti
nc tioni sr equi r ed.S exual ity,asc ur rent l
yde fine d,r efe rsto
sexualor ient ationandt hepl ayofde s ir
eac r ossawi der angeofobj ects ,s ubj ect
pos i
tionsa ndpr actices.AsEv eKos of skySe dgwi c kput si ti nhe rhi g hlyi nflue ntial
Epi stemol og yoft heCl oset:
Otherdi
mensi
onsofse
xuali
ty,however
,dist
inguis
hobjectchoicesquit
ed if
fer
entl
y( e
.g.
,
human/ani
mal,
adult
/chi
ld,
singula
r/pl
ural,autoe
roti
c/a
lloerot
ic)orar enoteve
nab out
obje
c tc
hoi
ce(e.
g.,
orgasmic/non-
orgasmic,non-co
mme rcial/
comme rcial
,usi
ngb odi
es
only
/usi
ngmanufact
uredobje c
ts,
inprivat
e/inpubli
c,spontaneous/s
cripte
d).
(1990:I ntroducti
on,Axiom 2)
Fe
mini
sm,Gende
randSe
xual
ity 117

Ba ttle sof( andf or )t hes exe s.Cont raryt oc asua lopi ni on,t he reha sal wa ysbe e n
anac ut eawar ene sst hatwome nandme nar ee xpe c tedt opl aydi stinc tr ol e s,and
ane qua llya cut eawar ene sst hatt he yof tenf ailorr ef us et oc onf or m.Al te rnat i
v es
ares ome time se xpl or edt oo.Chauc er’
s‘ Wi feofBat h’ sPr ol oguea ndTal e’and
Shake s pe are ’
sTheTa mi ngoft heShr ewaswe lla shi sSonne tsar ebutt hr eei ns t
anc es
ofe ar lierc las sict e xtsbyme ni nwhi cht radi tiona lge nde rrol esar ei nve rte dand
spor te dwi t
h.Amongt hea nc ientGr eeks ,Soc ra teswa sg ay,Sa pphowa sal e sbian,
andt he ybot hwr ot eofl ovepa rtlyi nt hos ete rms .Chr is ti
nedePi sa n’sCi tyofLadi es
(c. 1405)i sal earne dandwi ttyat tackont hea ss umpt ionsofme die va lpat ria rc hyand
ac elebr ationa swe llasade fenc eoft heunr ecogni seda chi eveme nt sa nds uppos edl y
supe riormor alityofwome n.Mar yWol l
s t
one c raft’
sAVi ndicat ionoft heRi ght sof
Woman( 1792)i sapowe rfulpl eaf ors oc i
alr efor m ofwome n’sl otatat imewhe n
ther estitut ion ofmi ddl e-clas sme n’sr ight swasbe ing t rumpe ted.I bs e n,t oo,
scandal i
s edbour g eoi spr opr ietywi thhi she ad- ont ackl ingoft heni ne te ent h- cent ur y
‘woma nque s tion’ inADol l’sHous e. Vi rginiaWool f,t oo,mos tf amous lyinARoom
ofOne ’sOwn( 1929) ,a ctedasf emi ni stliterarye chot ot hewor koft hes uf fr ag ettes
int he1920s .I n par t iculars hepoi nt edt ot hel ac k ofe duc at ion,l eis ur eand
oppor tuni tywhi c
hhi the rtoha dpr eclude dmos twome nf rom wr iting,a ndal sobe ga n
tor e -c ons truc taf ema lel i
ter ar ytra dition( e
.g.,Be hn,5. 2. 3aa ndBa rr ettBr owni ng ,
5.1. 2d) .Al i
tt lelate r
, Si monedeBe a uvoi ri nTheS econdS e x(1949)of fe redapol itical
andphi los ophi cal histor yofwome na st hei ns t
itut i
ona li
s edot he rr elat ivet odomi na nt
not ionsoft hema les e lf.
Al lt he sewr it
e rsc onf i
rmt hatt he rehasl ongbe e nanac utea war ene ss,and
some time sapol i
tic alc ons cious ness,oft hec ons t
raint sofge nde rr ole saswe l
la sa
ne edt oe stabl ishmor epos i
tiv ec ondi tionsa ndr ole sforwome ni npar ti
c ular. S exua li
ty,
too,mal eandf emal e,hasr e pe atedl ybe enati ssue .Wi tne ssthev ar ious‘ obs ce nity’
trialsand tha thav er oc ke dt hel iterar ye stablishme ntov ert hepas t
cent ur y:Os c arWi lde ’si mpr isonme ntf orhomos exual ity( 1895) ;t hebanni ngof
Ma rgue riteRadc liffeHa ll’
ss ympa the ticandnowc las sics tudyofl e sbi ane xpe rienc e,
TheWe llofLone line ss( 1928) ;t heat t empta tc ont inui nge xpur gat i
onofD. H.
La wr e nc e’sLadyCha tte rley’sLove r(1959–60) ,a lsonowanove l andfil mc las si
c ;the
atte mpt edpr os ecutionoft hedi rectorofHowar dBr ent on’ sTheRomansi nBr i
tai n
(1980)f ors exua llye xpl ic i
tandpol iticallyabr asiveanal ogiesbe t we e nt heRoma n
invas ionofBr itaina ndBr itish‘ occupa tion’ofNor the r nI reland,bot hc onc e iveda s
homos e xualr ape .Ma nyot he rc as esc oul dbec ited.Al la ttes
tt oa ttempt st opol ice
thebounda riesbe twe enLI TERATURE ( orar t)andl ife,a swe llast ode e pa nxi eties
aboute xpl or at ionsa nde xhi bit i
onsofs exua lity.( Thoug hwema ya lsor ecal lt ha tthe
us ual c yni cal de fenc eofpr os ec utedpor nogr aphe r sist hec laimt ha t‘It’sar t, isn’ tit? !’
)
Fouc aul t’sTheHi stor yofSe xua lity( Vol .1,1976)i sapr imar yr efe renc ehe re .It
laidt hef ounda tionsf ora nunde rstandi ngofs oc ialre gime sa ndi ns titut i
onsi nt e rms
notonl yofe xpl i
citlyhe teros e xua la ndhomos e xua lpr ac tices,buta lsoofi mpl icitly
homos oc i
alorhomophobi ce xpe ctations .Thuse veryt hingf rom t heor ga ni sat i
onof
school ing ,he al thc areandpr is onst odr essc ode sa nddi etar yr egime smi g htunde rwr ite
cer tain ki ndsofmal eorf e mal ei de ntification and ‘ bondi ng’asa c cept abl eor
unac ce pta ble:t obee mbr ac ed( homos ocia l
)ors hunne d( homophobi c) .
Cl ear ly,the n,‘se xualpol itic s’isnone wt hing ,e spe cia llyifwet aket hist oi nc lude
‘thepol icingofs e xual ity’aswe lla s‘ thebat tleoft hes exe s’.Mos ti mme di ate l
y,
howe ve r,itist otheWome n’sLi berat ionandGa yRi ght smov eme nt si nitiat edi nt he
late1960sand1970st hatmos tpe opl elookf ort her oot sofc ont e mpor aryFe mi ni sm,
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 118

GenderandSexual
itySt
udi
es.Be
low wer
etr
acet
hes
eroot
sthr
ought
hef
iel
dsof
LanguageandLi
ter
atur
e.

‘
GAY’
,‘
QUEER’
ANDANOTEONTHEPOLI
TICSOFLANGUAGE

Sincethe1970st het er
m‘ gay ’hasbeenwi d e
lyus edtor ef
ertohomos exu alwo me nand
me nbut,latterl
y,ma yber eservedforhomos exualme nal one
.‘Le s
bian ’isi ncreasingl
y
theprefer
redt er
mf orho mos exualwome n.Bot h‘ g
ay’and‘ l
esbi
an’,howe ver,arec urrentl
y
covere
db yth easserti
velyup -frontuseof‘ Queer’,asin‘Queerpo l
it
ics
’and‘ Que erread i
ng
andwr i
tin
g’ bysomehomos exua so
l ft
hems el
v es
.‘Queer’thenbecomesapos iti
ve l
yc harged
ter
mf orho mosexuality
,deliberatelychal
lengingt henegativ
elychargeds enseo fth eearli
er
andpe rsi
stentanti-
h omos exualorhomoph obicus ageoft het er
m( cf.‘qu e
er-bashing’)
.
Me anwhil
e,somepe oplec on t
inu etobemoant heas s
oci
ationsofboth‘ga y’and‘ queer’with
homos e
xuality
,nothwithstand i
ngt hefactthatbot hhavehads uchassociati
o nsint helarger
cult
ureori nsubculturessinc eatl eas
tthes ixteenthcentury
.

LANGUAGEi sacommonpl a
c etos
tarte
xploringthewa ysinwhichwome nandmen
ar
ecul
tura
llyconst
ruc
tedthroughdis
courseandnotjustbiologi
cal
lyde
termi
ned.We
maydis
ti
ngui s
hfourmainkindsofapproach,allofwhi c
ht osomeexte
ntoverl
ap:
♦ TheAngl o-Ame ricanandAus tralasianappr oa ch(r epr e
s entedbys uchwr i
te rsas
Lakof f,Spe nder,Mi llera ndS wi ft,andTa nnen)t endst obemor epracticalandove rtly
politi
cal:languag eisse ena s‘ma n-ma de’ora tleast‘man- centred’andi tisthetas kof
thefemi nistlang uag e-
us ertoov erthrowt hatorde randc onstruc tonef airertowome n.
♦ TheFr enchappr oa ch( represent edbys uchwr itersasKr isteva,IrigarayandCi xous )
tendstobemor et he oretica
l andpol iti
call
yelusive,ande mpha sise
sPSYCHOANALYTI C
mode ls.He relanguag ei sseenast hepr i
ma rys yst
em whe reinwel earnt oc ons t
ruc t
our s
elvesa ndot he r
st hroughdi f
f ere
ncesofa llkinds ,inc l
udi ngt hoseofge nder.I tis
thereforet het as kofe achofust or enegotiateours ubjec tpos it
ionsandge nde r
identit
iesasbe stwec an.
♦ ‘
Bl ack’,‘ethnic’or‘ pos tcol
oni al’ approa c
hes( r
e presentedbys uc hfig ur esasHur s t
on,
Fanon,hooks ,Smi thandS piva k)of tencombi nepol i
tical andps ycholog i
calempha ses:
langua gei ss een ast hepr imar ys it
ewhe rege nde ri de ntityi sfur therve xedby
combi nationsofWe sternandi ndi g e
nousve rsionsofpat r
iarchyandmat riarc
hy .
♦ Ga yandl esbianwr i
te rs(repr es entedbys uchf igur esa sRi ch,But ler
,Kos ofsky
Sedgwi cka ndDol l
imor e)attemptt owr es
tthewhol enot ionofdi f
ferenc esconstructed
onhe t
e r
os exuall inesf rom itspr ideofpl ace.Insteadt he ypr opos er adicallyrevised
not i
onsofwhati tis(not )tobe , andr eadandwr i
te,from ar angeofas sert
ivel
y–but
oftende li
be ratelye lusiveande va si
ve–‘ queer’pos it
ions .
I
npr acti
ce,muchoft hebestcontemporarywor konlanguag
e ,genderandsexuali
ty
(
e.g
.t hatbyCame ron,Coate
s ,Mi l
lsandWe edon)at
temptst otakecognis
a nc
eof
many,ifnota l
l,oftheabovepe r
spect
ives
.Forthisr
eason,thefollowingr
eview of
t
opicsoffersasynthesi
srat
hert hanas e
grega
tionofapproaches.

Theg
end
ere
dent
ryi
ntol
ang
uagea
ndt
hes
ymbo
licor
der
I
nlearni
ngal anguage
,welear
ntol abelour
sel
vesandothersas‘gi
rl’and‘boy’,
‘
daughte
r’and‘s
on’,‘
si
ste
r’a
nd‘br
other’
,‘mummy ’a
nd‘daddy
’,‘a
unty’and‘uncl
e’,
Fe
mini
sm,Gende
randSe
xual
ity 119

etc.Thisproce
ssofdif
fer
enti
ati
onisstr
ongl ygenderedinf undamentall
ybinaryway s.
Asar e
s ul
t,wemayl earntoignoreorr epres
sdi ff
erenceswi t
hinandt hec ommon
groundbe t
we enwhatnominall
ypassas‘ma sc
uline’or‘fe
mi ni
ne’:t
he‘femini
newi t
hin
thema scul
ine’
,fori
nsta
nce,andviceve
r s
a.Wemaya ls
opl aydowns exualdif
fere
nc e
s
andpr efer
enceswhicharenotjustnegati
velyne i
ther(neuter)
,buta l
ternat
ivel
ya nd
pos i
ti
velyother.

Na
mesa
ndt
it
les
Ma nyl anguage s,inc l
udi ngEng li
sh,hav eadi sti
nc t
ly‘ pa trilineal’skewt ot heway s
inwhi cht he yas signf ami lyname sandt i
t l
esde not ings tat us.Fami lyname sa re
invari
ablydr awnf rom themal er athe rtha nt hefemal eline. Thusmymot he r’s‘ma iden
name ’wa sPar sonsa ndhe rmot her’s‘mai de nname ’wa sSt e phe nsonandhe rmot he r’
s
‘maide nna me ’wasGr i
mwood.Butyouc oul dnotpos s iblyknow t ha tf rom t he
surnamePopewhi c happe arsont hef rontoft hisbook.Tha twa smyf athe r’
sname ,
andhi sfather’s,andhi sfa t
her’s....I nt hiswa y,wome n’si de nti
tiesandmat ril
ineal
tra
ditionsi nge ne ralar er e
lati
ve l
y‘ hidde nf rom hi st
or y’.Ti tles
,too,a reg enera l
ly
dist
ributedi nwa yswhi chbe trayag e nde ri mbalanc e .I nEngl ish,mal eswi l
lbe
addre s
seda s‘Mr ’( shortf or‘Ma s
te r
’)thr oughoutt he i
rl i
v e s,whe therthe yma rryor
not.Femal es,howe ver,ares t
il
lus uallyaddr essedas‘ Mi ss’whe ngi r
lsandunmar r
ied,
andthe ntheybe come‘ Mr s’whe nthe yge tmar ri
ed.I not he rwor ds,wome nar es orted
int
ot hec ategor i
ess ingle/avai
lable( Mi ss )andmar ried/una vailable(Mr s),whe reas
me n( Mr )arenot .Norhast her e l
ativene wcome r‘Ms ’s olveda llthepr oble ms.
Thought echni callythiss impl ys ignals‘ femal e’,regar dle ssofmar ita
ls ta t
us ,itis
commonl yunde rstoodbyma nype oplet ome an‘ f
emi nist’
. Suc histhepe rsi
stentpowe r
ofpat ri
archy .Inde ed,i tisonl ywhe nwome na cquir epr of essi
onals tatusa s‘Dr ’
,
‘Pr
ofe ss
or’,‘Yourhonour ’,etc.tha ttheyac hievetitulare qual itywithme n.Andt he n
ofcour sewee ncount ert hepoi ntedmat t erofhow manyf e mal edoc tors,a cade mics
andj udgesthe rer eall
ya re .

‘
Unma
rke
d’me
nand‘
mar
ked
’wome
n
Imbal anc esbe twe enmas culineandf emi ninet ermsar epe rva s
iveinEngl i
sh,asi n
manyl angua ge s.Us uallyt hista kest
hef orm oft hemas c uli
net erm be i
ngpr i
vileged
as‘nor mal ’(unmar ked)andof tenposit
ive,whi lethec or respondingf emininetermi s
‘abnorma l’(ma rked)andof tenne gat
ivelyloade d.Fa mi l
iare xampl esofmas culi
nea s
norm ar e‘ man’and‘ manki nd’(not‘wo/ manki nd’);‘ themani nt hes tr
eet’and
‘chairma n’( cf
.ar cha i
c‘ Ma dam c hai
rma n’a ndmode rn‘ chairpers
on’).Exampl e sof
mas culi
neaspos i
tivea ndf emi nineasne gativea r
e‘ mas ter’(cf.‘mistr
e s
s’);‘
dog ’(cf
.
‘bit
ch’),aswe llasamot l
eyhos tofwor dsforge nitali
a:c oc k(cf.cunt);chest(cf
.t i
t)
,
etc.Mor e over,not withs t
andi ngt hec lamourf orandaga i
nstpol iti
callycor r
ect
pronouns ,itiss ti
llnothar dt ofindpe oplewhobe lie
vet hatthemas culi
nepr onoun
‘he’ispe rfectl
ya cceptabl ee venwhe nthepe rs
onr eferredt omaybemal eorfemal e
(e.g
.,‘
Thes t
ude nt...he...’ ).Forsomet hes hif
tt o‘ heors he’(some ti
me swr i
tten
‘s/
he’)ort hepl ural‘the y’see mst obec uri
ous l
yunt hinka ble.
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 120

Wo
mena
ndme
ninc
onv
ers
ati
on
RobinLakof finabookc alledAWoman’ sPl ace(1975)c la imedthatinc onversati
on,
comparedwi thme n,wome nt endto(i
)us emor e‘he dge
s’,c onti
nuall
yqua l
if
yingwha t
t
he ysay(‘I
t’
ss ortofhot ’,‘
I’dki ndofli
ket o’,‘Igue ss
’)
;( ii)besuper-polit
e( ‘
Woul d
youplease...’ ,‘...ifyouwoul dn’
tmi nd’); (
ii
i)a ddon‘ ta gquesti
ons’ (
‘Peteisher
e,
i
sn’the?’
;‘We ’llgo,shallwe ?’)
;and(iv)ge ne r
allya nswe rque sti
onswi thaqui zzi
cal
ri
seinintonation( e
.g.inr es
pons etotheque sti
on‘ Whens hallweme et?’thea nswer
‘
Ar ounde ig
hto’ c
lock?’).Youmayf ee
lt he reiss omet r uthi ntheseobs ervati
ons.
Howe ver
,laterresear
cher s(e
.g .
,Tannen1992)poi ntoutt hatmuc hs t
il
l dependsupon
educati
on,classande t
hni c
ity,aswellast empe rame nt
.

Se
xis
tsy
nta
x
Thec ombi nationa ndor der
ingofwor dsalwaysc arryimplic
ationsf orf ocusand
emphas i
s.Theor derofprecedencein‘MrandMr s’
,‘ma l
eandf e
ma le’a nde ve
n‘ he
ors he’mays ee m natural
;butt r
yr e
versi
ngt heseite
msandc onsiderwhe therthat
seems‘ natural
’t oo.Conv e
rse
ly,noti
cetheorderofdeferencei
ntheformul aofa ddress
‘Ladiesandg entlemen’.Ofte
ni ti
stheov er
allorganis
ationofthetextwhi chbetrays
as existbiasinf avourofthemal esubjectort hema scul
ineviewpoint .He ncethis
charac t
eristi
cs toryope ni
ngf r
om theUK t abloidnews paperTheS un:‘ Aterri
fied
19-stonehus ba ndwasf or
cedtolienexttohiswi feastwome nr apedhe rye st
erday’
(se
eCa me ron1998:17) .

Wr
iti
ngasawo/
man
I
tiss
ome
time
smai
ntai
nedt
hatwome
nandme
nha
vedi
ff
ere
nts
tyl
esofwr
it
ingand,

ins t
anc e ,havear guedt hatthereisadi s
tinctiveform of‘ womanl ys peech/writing’
whi cht he yc all,respe c
tivel
y,parle
rf emmea nd .
Bot hofthem par tly
taket he irc uef rom Vi rgini
aWool f
’spraiseofDor othyRi c
har dson’sdevelopme ntof
‘theps yc hologi cals e
ntenceoft hef emaleg e nder’(1923;s eeCame ron1998) .The
ge neralc ha racter i
stic
sofs uch‘womanl ywr iti
ng/speech’arereckone dtobel ongand
loos elyc oor dinat e
ds entences,
fluidc hang esoft opic
,ar es
istanceto‘li
near’logicand,
impl icitly,awoman- centredfocusoni nnerf eeli
ngsandpe rsonalrelat
ionships .Set
ag ainstt hisa ret hepr esuma bl
yar chetypalc haracter
isti
csof‘ manlywr it
ing’:tightly
cont rolleda ndhe avilysubordinateds e
ntences ,order
lyandl i
ne arprogres
sionoft opic,
andama n- centredf ocusone xter
nal act
ionsa ndpubl icrel
ati
ons hi
ps.Thr e
ei mpor tant
qual ific ationsne edt obemade ,howe ver:

1 I
rig
arayi
nsi
stst
hatul
ti
mat
elyonl
ybi
olog
icalwome
nhav
efac
il
it
yin‘
par
lerf
emme
’,

2 manywome nwr i
tersf
romthefifte
enthce
nturytot
heprese
nthav
ec ul
ti
vate
da‘pl
ain
’
orsu ppose
dly‘manly’s
tyl
e;
3 therethere
foreremainsabigquesti
onabouthowfa rs
o-c
all
ed‘womanlywri
ti
ng’i
s
tie
dupwi thcontradi
ctorynot
ionsofMode rn
ism andse
xualesse
ntial
is
m.Isita
peri
o d-s
peci
ficph aseposi
ngasaun i
ver
saldete
rminant
?
Fe
mini
sm Ge
nde
randSe
xual
ity 121

LITERATURE,a st
heabover eviewconfirms,iscl
earlynots e
paratedfrom af unda-
me ntalconc er
nwi t
hl ang uagebymos tf
eminis
ts.Nori sitdivorcedfrom al arge
r
CUL TURALa ndpoli
tic
a lpr oj
e c
t.Nonethe
les
s,therearedist
inct
ivehist
or i
calphas e
s
andc r i
ti
calemphaseswi t
hinf emini
standgender-
basedlit
erarys t
udie
s.The s
emay
beide nti
fiedunderseveralhe ads,a
slongaswereme mberthatthese‘
heads’some ti
mes
argueamongs tthems elvesandmayorma ynotbe longt othes ame,c onstantl
y
me tamor phosi
ng‘body’.

Ge
nde
redl
it
era
cie
san
dge
nre
Mos twome nf ormos tofhumanhi storyhav enotbe ena ll
owe dore ncoura gedto
learntor eadorwr it
e .Andwhe ntheyhavebe comel iteratethisha softene quipped
themt odonomor et hanke e
phous e holdac count s,wr it
el et
te rsanddi aries,and
pe r
hapsr eadtheBibleandnov elsi
nt hev ernacular(e .
g.Engl is
h) .Wome nha vethus
oftenbe ende nied‘ higher’ormor es peciali
sedl earningi nt heCLASSI CS ( Lati
n
andGr eek)andi nt hes c
iences.Ther esultsofal lt hisha vebe enc ompl exa nd
many- edged.Though l ongdi scourage df rom maki ngs ubstant i
alc ontri
but i
ons
tot r
aditi
ona lgenress uchaspoe tr
yanddr ama ,wome nde vel
ope dfacil
ityinbot h
readinga ndwr it
ingt he‘newer’,andi nit
iallynot i
onal l
yi nferi
orge nr
eoft henov el
(seenarrati
ve).Theya lsoculti
vatedfor msofr ecordingt hei nte
r i
or i
seds e
lf(through
diari
es)a ndpe rs
onali nter
acti
onswi thot he rs(throughl etters
)whi chha vel att
erl
y
be e
nr e
cog nis
edaspr e -e
minently–butnote xc l
us i
vely–‘ feminine ’mode sofwr i
ti
ng
(seeauto/biography).

Re
pre
sent
ati
onso
fwo
menb
yme
n
Ani ni ti
alande ndur i
nge mphas i
si nfemi nistliterarys tudie shasbe enoni mag esor
repre sentat i
onsofwome ninwor kbymal ewr i
ters.Gi v ent her elat i
veabs e
nc e
ofwome nwr itersf rom t het radi t
iona lmal e-domi natedc a
non,t hisf ocuswasa tfir s
t
inevitabl e.So,t oo,wasane ar lyins i
stenc eont hewa ysi nwhi chma lewr it
e r
smi s
-
orunde r-representwome n.Mode rnmal ewr iter s
,c hie f
lynove li
sts,s uchasD. H.
La wr ence ,Erne stHe mi ngway ,He nr yMi l
ler,PhillipRot ha ndNor ma nMa iler
,we re
thepr imar ytarget sint hepi one e r
ingpol emi cal wor kbyKa teMi llett(Sexual Politi
c s
,
1970) .The seme nwe r
er oundl ya tt
ac kedf orr e
pr esentingwome nass te
re otypes,often
‘sex-obje cts’
.Att hes amet i
me ,‘imag esofwome n’criticis
m wa sbe inge xt endedt o
ea r
lierbas ti
onsoft hema lec anons uc hasChauc er,S hake pe areandMi lton( e.g.
,
Ge rma ineGr eer’sTheFe maleEunuc h,1970) .Be hinda ndi nfor mi ngal lthe s
ewor ks
we redi scernedanumbe rofpowe rfulpa t
riarchal stereoty pes,ma nyoft he m ultimate l
y
identifie dwi thbi bl i
c alwome n.I na dditi
ont othemai npol aritiesofwoma nass inful
tempt res s(theOl dTe sta mentEv e,Adam’ s‘ s
pa rer i
b’ )andwoma na shol ymot her
(theNe w Te s
tame ntMar y,‘ful lofgr ace’oragr ievingmat e rdol or osa),the rewe re
woma na swhor e( Salome ,thewhor eofBabyl on)ort hes il
ent ,s ubmi ssivewoma n
(Rut h,Mar t
ha). Itisstillcommon,a ndof tenus eful,forr eade rstor eadwi thac rit
ical
eyet raine donpr eciselys uchs tereotypes,whe the rthe yar er eadi ngBe owul for‘ the
Be at
s ’
.I nc r
eas i
ng ly,howe ver,i tisrecog nisedt hatmal ewr i
tersdonota lway ss i
mpl y
mi sr
e pre sentwome n;t he yma yal sor eneg otia
t eandc ha ll
eng et hes tereotype s.The y
maywe llbee xplor ingmas c
ul inityandt he i
rowns exua lit
yt oo.
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 122

Re
dis
cov
eri
ngan
dre
val
uingwo
men
’swr
iti
ng

Thenextphaseoffemini
stcri
ti
cism andr e
searc
h( somet
imesc
all
edgynoc
rit
ici
sm)
haste
ndedtoconcent
ratel
essonme n’srepres
entati
onsofwomenthanonwome n’
s
st
ruggl
etorepre
sentthemse
lves.Thef e
we stabl
ishedfe
ma l
enove
lis
ts(
Auste
n,the

nume rouspr e
vious lymar ginalisedori gnor edfe malewr i
ters(Br a
ds treet,Be hn, Butts,
Manl ey,Wol lst
one craft,Ma ryS helley,Edg ewor th,Ba rret
tBr owni ng ,Dicki nson,S t
e i
n
–tome nti
onj ustaf ew)ha vebe eni nvestigatedaf reshorf orthefir sttime .The irwor k
hasal sobe enwi delypubl i
she dandpr omot ed,not abl ybypr essess uchasVi rago,
Pandor aandt heWome n’sPr ess.Att hes amet ime ,thereha sbe enac onsiderable
commi tme ntt opubl i
shinga ndstudyi ngc ont empor a r
ywome n’swr i
ting ,oftenwi th
ane yetrai
ne dons pecifica llyf e
mal etraditionswhi chc onv entiona lLI TERARYHI STORY
hadpat ronis e
dori gnor ed.Cr uci
alt extsint hisde l
ibe r
atea ndof tenda ri
ngr eshaping
oft hel i
teraryl ands capei ncludeEl l
e nMoe rs’
sLi t
eraryWome n( 1976) ,El aine
Showal ter
’sALi teratureoft he i
rOwn( 1977) ,Sa ndraGi lbertandSus anGuba r’
sThe
Ma dwomani nt heAt tic( 1979) ,JoannaRus s
’sHow t oSuppr essWome n’sWr i
ting
(1983),Da l
eS pe nde r
’sMot hersoft heNove l(1986)andJ aneS pe nce r
’sTheRi s
eof
theWomanNove lis
t( 1986) .Nori sthi ssimpl yamat t
erofput ti
ngwome ni nt he
existi
ngpic ture.Thee ffecthasbe ent os wi t
cht hepi ctureands hiftthef oc use nti
rely.
Thust he r
ehasbe enat hor oughgoi ngc ri
ticalandhi st
or i
c alr eva luationofs uch
socialphe nome naa s‘ be ings ingle’,mar ri
age ,child-bearingandr eari
ng,madne s
s
andhys t
eria,andwi dowhood.Thei ns ti
tutionsofr eli
gion,e duc ation,t hel aw and
me dici
neha vebe ene spec iallyexplor edf ortheway si nwhi cht heyr e
latet owome n’
s
(andme n’
s)powe r
sov ert he i
rbodi es,mi ndsa ndpr ope rt
y.

Re
adi
ngan
dwr
it
ingb
yora
sawo/
man

Latterl
y,therear esi
gnst hatthei s
suesofwome n’
swr it
ing,incl
udi ngtheac tivi
ti
esof
wome nwr it
inga ndr eading,ha veope nedoutag ain.Doy oune e dtobebi ologi
call
y
awomant owr i
teorrea d‘asawoman’ ?Ist
obeawoma norama nt obel ockedinto
cert
ainki ndsofs ympa thyandant ipathy?Ori sitama t
teroflearningtoi dentif
ywith
cert
ains ubje
c tposit
ionswi thinandar oundag i
vent ext–andt hereforeofpot enti
all
y
unlearningandr el
earning?Ins hort,canwome nandme nr e
(en)gende rthems el
vesas
cert
ainki ndsofwr i
terandr e
ade r?What evertheans wers,thepoi ntispr e
c i
sel
ythat
ther
ei sroom f orpotentialagreeme nt
,a swellasper s
ist
entdisagreeme nt,aboutwho,
unde rwhats oc i
al,politi
calandps yc
hol ogi
calc i
rcums t
ances,whe r
ea ndwhe n,can
clai
mt owr iteorr eadby,f ororasawoman( seee .
g.JardineandS mi t
h1987;
Came r
on1998;Mi ll
s1994) .

Be
comi
ngo
urb
odi
esou
rse
lve
s

Thereareseve
r a
lwa ysi
nwhi ch‘t
hebody’ f
eat
uresincontemporaryculturaldebate
s
andpracti
ces.Thefactt
hatthesedebatesandpracti
cesarecentr
altobutnotpe culi
ar
toFeminis
m, GenderandS e
xualit
yStudiesisameasureoftheli
veli
nessoft he‘
bodies’
i
nque s
tion.Especi
all
yinfluenti
alareJudithButl
er’
sBodiesthatMatter(1993),Susan
Bordo’
sUnbe arableWe i
ght:Feminis
m,We ste
rnCul t
ureandt heBody( 1993),and
Fe
mini
sm Ge
nde
randSe
xual
ity 123

DonnaHar
away’s‘A Mani
fes
toforCybor gs
:Scie
nce
,Te
chnol
ogyandSoc
ial
is
t
Fe
minis
m’(
1990)(e
.g.i
nLei
tch2001:2266–98).

♦ Wome n’sbodi eshav elongbe enrepr esente da sobj ectsofma lede s i

reandoft he
‘masculineg aze’i npr act
ice srangi ngf rom hi ghar tnudepor trait
ur etopopul ar
advertis
ing ,andf r
om r apet opor nogr aphy( cf.5. 1.4).Iti soneoft hepr i
mar y
purposesoff emi nis
mt orec lai
m andc elebrat etha tbodyasa na cti
v esubject/agent
initsownr ight.
♦ Appe alstoordi splaysoft hebodypr omi sea nac tualit
yandpr esencewhi char e
supposedlybe yondwor ds.Ac cordingt oc ertainf eministPSYCHOANALYSTS,bodi es
defyorde fernotonl ya‘logoc entri
c’(wor d-ce ntred)wor ld-vi
e wbutmor epa r
ti
c ul
a r
ly
cel
ebrateapr e-Oe dipal*semi oti
cfluxbe fore ,alongsideande vena gainstthes y
mbol i
c
‘or
de roft hef ather’(i.
e.,phal l
o-logoc e
nt ri
sm) .
♦ Mor epr acticall
yandur gently,thebodyi sas i
teofdi s
e a
sea nds ic
kne ss(including
eati
ngdi sorde rsandAI DS) ;andi tiswome n’sa ndme n’sbodi estha tarei nte
r vened
inore xtende d,of te
ndi ffe
re ntl
y,bye verythingf rom s urgery(me di c
a landc osme ti
c)
andc ontrace pti
on( internalande xternal)t ot att
ooi ng,hair-
s t
ylingandc lothing.

Thebodyi stheref
oretheulti
mat esit
eand*s ig
nf oralldi
scourse
songe nde
r,sexa nd
sexuali
ty.Thereforei
tiscruci
a lhowfarthebodyistake ntounderwri
teandgua r
antee
versi
onsnotonl yoff eminini
tyandmas culi
nit
y(i.e
.,gender)butals
oofhe t
ero-a nd
homos exuality
.Ti meand a gainthear gumenti swhe therme na nd wome na r
e
‘nece
s s
aril
y’,‘e
ssenti
all
y’,‘
biological
ly’
onet hi
ngoranot her
.Arewea shuma nbeings
alwaysa lr
eadys omev ers
ionof‘ femini
ne’or‘mas cul
ine’and‘female
’or‘male’?Or
arewes ti
llinthepr oce
ssofbe comingsome thi
nga nds omeonee l
se–a l
ternati
ve ,
other,plural
?

Ho
wtopr
act
iseaf
emi
nis
tan
aly
siss
ens
iti
vet
oge
nde
ran
dsex
ual
it
y

Begi
nbyc onsi
deri
ngtherolesandr e
prese
ntat
ionsofwomena ndmenasthe
yaff
ect
yourunders
tandi
ngofthetext(
i)inyourimme di
atecont
ext
;(i
i)i
nit
sini
ti
almoment
ofproduc
tion.Moreparti
cular
ly,consi
der:

♦ thes exualc ompos iti

onandor ienta tionandge nde rrolesoft heg rouporc ours
ei n
whi chyouar es tudying.How e vide ntar et hesei nt er
msoft het extsandt opi c
s
highlighted;soc ialhier
archiesanddy nami cs;theki ndsa ndpat ternsofc ont ri
bution?
Fori nstance ,aret heat mos phereandc ri
ti
c alage ndadi sc e
rni blyf emi nistora nti-
feminist,andhe tero-orhomos exua l?
♦ theki ndsofwome nandme nr epr esent edwi thint hetext.Ist hereas enseoft ension
betwe ena ndwi thinthesexe s?Whatki ndsofwome n’
sandme n’sr olesandr elat
ion-
shipsar enotr epr e
sented–a nda ree ithe runspoke nore v
en‘ uns pea kable’(i.e
.taboo)?
Pays pe ci
alat t
e ntiontor epresentationsof :fa mily;oc c
upat ionsout sideandwi thin
thehome ;g ende re
dwaysofs peaki ng,dr essingandbe havi ng ;c lothedandnake d
bodie s;sexuala ctivi
ty;childbirthandc hil
dc are ;si
ngleormar ri
eds tates;other
comme rcial
,l egal,me dical
,e ducat iona l
,militaryandr eligi
ousi ns t
itutionsast hey
bearonwome nandme ndi ff
e rent ly( e.
g.,t hear my,c l
e r
g y,s chool s
,hos pi
tals);
compl icati
ngf a ctorsofclass,ethnic it
y ,ageandot he rculturaldi fferences .
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 124

♦ thes ex,se xualor ientat i

onsand ge nde re xpec tati
onsoft hewr it
er.Ar ethe s
e
ascert
ainablef rom t het extorf r
om e xt er
nal( e.g.a ut
o/ biographical)sources
?How
fararewej us t
ifiedi nide ntif
yingthea uthor ’ss ubje
c tpositionwi tha nyofthoseoff
ered
byt hetext?Whatas pe ctsof ,say,genr e,nar ration,c ha racter
isati
onandi magery
preventsuchar eadyaut hor–textident i
fic ation?
♦ thegenderr olesands exua lpr act
icesc urre nta tthet ime .Cant hetextber eadasa
form ofsexuale xpre s
sion,r epress
ionorne g otiat
ion?Whatbe haviourseemst ohave
beenc onsi
de r
ed‘ pr oper ’or‘ normal’,a ndhow f arar es uc hpropr i
etiesandnorms
rei
nforcedorc hal le
ng ed?
♦ yourownr e adinga ndwr i
tingpr act
icesasawo/ man.How f ardoyout hinkgender
diff
erencesa nds exualpr e
ferencesaffec tthewa yyour elatet othistext:whom y ou
identi
fywithandwhatyoul ookf orandv al ue ?Agai n,cons i
dercompl icat
ingfact
ors
suchasc l
as s,ethni cit
y,agea ndtempe r ame nt .

Goont oinvest
igat
eotherrel
atablet
extsbywome nandme nattheti
me,a swellas
otherme diaandmode sofreprese
ntati
on.How didwome na ndme nfea
tur ei
nt he
perf
ormi ng orvi s
ualarts
,f orinstance
,eithera spr oducer
sorasobj ect
sof
repre
sentati
on?How r el
ati
velypowe rf
ulorpowe rl
esswe rewome nandme n,gays
andlesbianswithrespe
cttopubl i
cat
ionandbr oadcast
ing?How muc hha vethings
changednow?

Exa
mpl
e
ReadAdri
enneRic
h’s‘Dial
ogue
’(5.
3.4b)wit
htheabove‘
Howtopra
cti
se’
questi
ons
andsug
gest
ionsi
nmi nd.Goont ocompareyourr
espons
eswi
tht
hefol
lowing
.

Fe eli
ngawayi ntot hec onve rsati
on. Thepoe mi sadi alogueofapar t
icularlyope n
andt e a
s ingki nd.The reisg e neralunc ert
aintyaboutt henat ureoft her elations hip
betwe ent hena rra t
orandt hes peaker.Thes hi
ftingindeterminac yoft he‘ I’
sand‘ she’s
make sforane speciall
ye nig ma ti
ce ncounter.I
nf actthewhol et hings e e
mst obemor e
ofamonol oguet hanadi alog ue:thereareno‘ you’s,forins t
anc e,a ndonl yone‘ we ’
.
Perhaps ,t hen,iti sthedi aloguewi thust her eaderswhi chismos tins i
stent.Wear e
privyt ot hea ct
ionbute xc l
ude df rom anys ureknowl edgeofwha titme ans .Asa
result,pr ecise
lyhow wer eadt hispoe mi ntermsofge ndera nds e xua l
ity(a ndmuc h
els
e )ver ymuc hde pendsuponwhoa ndwhatwer eckonwea r
e .Ita ls
o,ofc our s
e,
depe ndsuponwhatwei nferf rom thet e
xt,andwhatwemayknowa boutt hea uthor
(alittl
ei nformat ionaboutAdr ie
nneRi chissuppl i
edint hesuppor tingnot e s)
.Is hall
thereforebe gi
nwi ths omet entati
veque s
tions:

♦ Isthe‘
oldring’at okenofpas tf
ri
endship,a‘mar riage’r i
ngperhaps?
♦ How dower espondt othepe rsi
st
enceandna t
ur alviolenceof‘ourtalkhasbe aten/
li
kerainagainstthes creens ’
?orthestudieddistanceof‘ welookateac hother’?
♦ Isthesecond,r eported‘I ’(whos peaksi nitali
c s
)t alkingofanot here ve
ntand
rel
ati
onshi
pa ltoge the
r?Ifs o,whyisthefir s
t,re
por ti
ng‘ I’soobsess
edbyt heme mor y
ofwhatwass aida sto‘li
v ethrough[it
]ov erandove r’
?
♦ Coulditbe,the n,thatwhati sbei
ngs oe l
usi
velys poke nofini t
ali
csinfactrefersto
therel
ati
onshipbe tweent hetwopar ti
cipants
?ordoe si tref
ertoanothe r
?
Fe
mini
sm,Gende
randSe
xual
ity 125

Att hispoi ntmos tr eade rspaus ef orf ur the rr efle ctionandi nt rospec ti
on.The ymay
alsor e a chf ori nf or mat ionaboutt hewr iter,oratl e astas ens eofwhos /hei s.Of ten
the yr et ur nt ot hebr iefbi ogr a phic alnot es .
Goi ngpubl ict hroughdi scus s
ion.He r ear es omeobs erv ationsonmye xpe rie nceof
study ingt hispoe mi nse xual lymi xe dgr oups .The sear et heki ndsof‘ answe r’us uall
y
for thcomi ngonc epe opl ehav ef ormul a teds ome thingl iket heaboveque stionsf or
the ms el ve s.Ov e rtlyhe te rosexualr eade rs( oftenme n)whoha venoknowl edgeofor
pe rhapsi nt ere sti nAdr i
e nneRi chus ua llype rsistint hevi e wt hatt hes econds peaker
iss pea ki ngofanot her,fe mal e –ma ler elations hip,andt ha ts hei stalkingaboutt histo
thefir st .Howe v er,r e
ade rsse ns i
tivet ohomos exua l
it y(of tenwome n)whoar eawa r
e
ofRi ch’ sr a di ca lfe mi nistands ubs e que nt lya ssertive lyle sbians tanc et endt or eadt he
poe m qui teot he rwi se:asac omme ntonaf ema le –femal er e l
ations hip,pr oba bly
be twe ent het wopr esentpar ticipa nt s,thena rr
a t
ing‘ I’int hefir stpa rta ndt hes pe aking
‘I’int hes e condpa rt.Butot he rr eadi ngsa repos siblet oo,andt he semaybevoi ced
byar angeofwome nandme n.Pe rhapswes houl dnotas sumet he‘ I
’de ntit
yofe it
her
nar rat orors pe ake rwi th Adr ienneRi c h.Orpe r hapswes houl dt r e
att hi sasa
dr amat ise ddi al og uebe twe ent wopar tsoft hes elf:oneobs ervingandt heot her
obs e r
ve d.I nanye vent ,a st hedi sc ussionc ontinue st he rer e mai nmanys ug ge sti
ons
andque stionsi npl ay.Ist he‘ s ex’i nque stion( ‘Idon’ tknow/i fsexi sani l
lusion’ )the
biol ogic aldi ffere nc ebe twe e
nf emal eandma le
?t hes oc i
al ge nde rdi f
fere nce?thes exua l
ac t?Wha tki ndofs ubj ect,ge nde re dandot he rwi s e,ist he‘ I’whoa sks‘ whe therI
wi lledt of e el/wha tIhadr ea da bout ’
?Thewi lli
ngv i
c ti
m ofr omant i
corofr adical
femi nis tl iter atur e,pe rha ps?
A‘ Ri c h’t radi tion.Ours e ns eoft hec ontext sofwr itingandr eadi ngc oul dbe
impor t antt oo.Ri c h hasl ive dt hr ough ape riod ofc hangi ngge nde rr ole sand
cont i
nui ngs exua lr evolut ion.Re adi ngt hepoe m ar ound1967,whe ni twasf irst
publ i
she dandwhe nRi chhadnoty et‘c omeout ’a sal e sbia n,mi ghtha vee nt aile
da
‘he teros exual ’r es pons e.Re adi ngi tinPoe msOl dandNe wi n1984,whe ns hehad
‘comeout ’,mi ghtha vepr ompt edanot he r( perha pss ug ges tinga‘ repr essedle sbian’).
Re a dingi ti nCar ol Rume ns’sc ont rove rs i
a llytitledc oll
e ctionofPos t
-femi nistPoe try:
Maki ngf ort heOpe n(2nde dn,1987)mi ghte ve nhaves ug ge stedapos t-f
emi nistor
apos t-le sbi anr e adi ng( what eve ronemi ghtunde r s
tandt hos et ome an) .Butwhat e
ver
yourownr e adi ngof‘ Di alog ue ’,onet hi ngatl easts houl dbec lear.Ge nde rdi ffer e
nc e
s
ands exua lpr efer enc esa rethe ms elve sc aughtupi nt heong oi ngdi aloguebe twe ena nd
wi thins pe cificwr itersandr ea de rs.Thei mag eandf actof‘ woman’ or‘ ma n’a rene v e
r
simpl yag ive nbutal waysi npa rtre made .Ri ch,he rse l
f,hasf amous lyr efer
re dt ot hi
s
pr oc e
s sas‘ re -vis ion’( seeDi sc ussion( iii),p.126) .

Ac
tiv
iti
es

(
a) Applythe‘ How toprac t
is
eaf emini
s tanalys
is...’me thodt oat extbyawoma n
andar el
atabl
et e
xtbyaman( e.
g.,t
extswhi chtreatsi
milartopi csorbelongtothe
samepe r
iodbutdi f
fer
e ntgenres)
.Compa reyoura nal
yseswi thot herpeople’
sand
consi
derhowf aryoucanorc annotachieveconsensusonmat te
r sofwome na ndme n,
wr i
ti
ngandr eading.(Suggesti
onsfrom Par tFive:Wyat tandWr oth(5.1.
1fand
5.1.
2b);PopeandHands( 5.
1.3bandc );Behna ndDe f
oe( 5.2.3aandb) ;Will
iam
andDor othyWor ds
wor th(5.4.
2.aa ndb) ;Yeat
sandKaz antsi
s( 5.1.
4).
)
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 126

(
b) Compar ethedi al
ogueinHolli
nghurs
t’sTheSwimmingPoolLibrary(
5.3.4c)wit
h
thati
nRi ch’s‘Dial
ogue’(
5.3.
4b,analyse
dabove)
.Cons i
derinwhatwaysyourown
sexual
ityisputont heli
nebyr eadingthesete
xts.Alter
nati
vel
y,compa ret
he
repre
sent
at i
onsof( non-
)humans e
xualit
yinthesc
ienceficti
onofShel
ley
,Dickand
LeGui n(5.2.6).

(
c) Lookingorlooke dat?Doingordonet o?Speaking,spokentoors poke nabout?
Putthesequest
ionstot herepr
e s
entat
ionofwome nandme ninanyt extwhi ch
int
ere
sts(andperhapsir
rit
ate
s)you.Goont oconsiderhow youmightre writ
epa r
t
ofitsoast oc hall
engeandc hangether ole
sandpe r
spect
ivesitoff
e rs.(Te
xts
commonl ychos
e ninPartFiveincl
ude:Shakespeare(5.1.2a);Rhys(5.2.4d)and
Conrad(5.2.
5b).)

Di
scu
ssi
on
Suppor
tyourar
gument
s,wher
epos
sibl
e,wi
thr
efe
renc
est
ospe
cifica
uthor
s,t
ext
s,
peri
ods
,genr
esandmoveme
nts
.

(
i)n
otionsof‘
women’
s’or‘
femi
nine’l
ang
uagejustaidandabe tant
i-f
emini
st
t
hin
king.
Debo
rahCamer
on,TheFemini
stCr
it
iqueofLanguage(1998:11)

(
ii
) when wel ook atwome nwr i
ter
sc ol
lec
tive
lywec an s
eean i
mag i
nati
ve
con
tinuum,ther
e c
urre
nceofce
rtai
npatt
erns
,themes,
probl
emsandi
magesfr
om
gen
er at
iontogener
ati
on.
El
aineShowal
te,ALi
r terat
ureofthei
rOwn(1977:10)

(
ii
i)r
evisi
on–t heactofl
ookingback,
ofseei
ngwit
hfre
she y
es,ofe nt
eri
ngano l
d
t
extfroman ewcri
ti
caldir
ecti
on–isfo
rwomenmorethanac hapte
rincult
ura
l
h
istor
y :i
tisanactofsurvi
val
.
Adr
ienn
eRich,‘WhenWeDe adAwaken
:Writi
ngasRe -Visi
on’(
1971)
inBar
tho
lomaeandPe t
rosky(1999:604)

(
iv)theinq
uiryint
obothhomose
x ual
ityandgenderwil
lneedtocedethepri
ori
tyof
bothter
msi nt
heserv
iceo
famor ecomple
xma pp
ingofpowerthati
nter
rogat
es
thefor
ma t
ionofe
achinspe
cifiedracial
regi
me sandgeopol
it
ica
lspati
ali
zat
ions
.
J
ud i
thButl
er,Bodie
sthatMatter(1993:240)

(
v) me nshoul
dtakeser
iousl
yatl astt
he‘het
ero’
inheter
os e
xuali
ty
,whi
chme an
sthe
heter
ogenei
tyinus,onus,and...g i
veup...t h
atop pres
siv
erep
resent
ati
onof
thesexualasact
,comp l
eme ntari
ty
,twosexes
,coupl
ing.
Step
henHe ath,‘MaleFe mi
nis
m’ i
nJ ar
dineandSmith(1987:22)
Al
sos
ee:MARXI
SM;POS
TCOLONI
ALI
SM;PSYCHOANALYS
IS;‘
Keyt
erms
’p.115.
READI NG:Int
roduct
ory:Be l
seya ndMo ore1997:1–20;Kapl
aninCoyee
l tal.
1990:750–63;
Sel
dene tal
.1997:121– 49;St i
mp sonan dSe dg
wickinGreenbl
atta
ndGun n1992:251–70,
271–302;Jehle
ninLe ntricchi
aandMc Laughl
in1995:263–74;Goldmana ndWolfr
eysin
Wolfr
eys2001:224– 42. Anthologies:Came r
on1998; WarholandHern
dl1991;Belse
yan d
Moore1997.Fu ll
ers t
udi e
s:Onl anguage–Came r
o n1998,1992;Krist
eva1984;Tannen
Fe
mini
sm,Gende
randSe
xual
ity 127

1992;Mil
l Onl
s1995. ite
ratureandtheory–Showalt
er1977;Mo i1985;Mill
s1994;We edon
1996;Glo
verandKaplan2000. Forre-vis
ionsofmascul
ini
ty,s
eeJ a
rdineandSmi t
h1987;
Brooke
randHu mm1989: 106–18;Boo n
ea ndCadden1990.Onsexuali
tyand‘que
er’the
ory:
Bris
tow1997;Butl
er1993;Se dgwi
c k1990;Sinfiel
d1994;Do l
li
mo re1991.

2.
8 POSTSTRUCTURALI
SM ANDPOSTMODERNI
SM

Ov
erv
iew

Pos tstruc t
uralisma ndpos tmode rnism aret wor elatabley etdi stinctc ont empor ar y
move me nts.Bot har ec onc ernedwi thther adi c
ali nstabili
tyofs ubje c
ts( whe the r
conc e
iv edashumans ubjects, s
ubj ectmattersorwhol edis c
iplines)andbot hcelebra te
kindsofope nne s
s,pl urali
t yanddi f
ferencei ns ys t
e msofal lki nds .Bot har ea lso
de vote dt ot hepl ayofi nde terminac ywi thin and a round me ani ngs.Butt hes e
twomove me ntsarea lsodistinct.Pos tst
ruc t
ur alis
mg rowsoutofa nac ade micmi l
ieu
in Li ng uisti
cs,Ant hropologyand Phi l
os ophy a nd ispr i
mar i
lyc onc erned wi th
LANGUAGE.P os t
mode rnism gr owsoutofanar tisti
candl it
er arymi li
euandi s
prima ri
lyc oncernedwi thg l
obal COMMUNI CATI ONSa ndt hec omme rci
almul ti-
me di a.
Pos t
struc t
urali
sm andpos tmode rnisma rebot hc learlyt e
rmst ha tde pendonpr ior
conc eptsf orthe i
rde fi
nition( i.e.St r
uctur alism andMode rnism) .Aswi thpos t-
col onia l
ism,howe v er
,wemus trecogni s
et hatt hepr efix‘ post-’canme an‘ afte
r’inat
leas ttwos enses:‘afteranddi st
inc tfrom’aswe l
las‘ aftera ndar esultof’.Thati s,
Pos tstructurali
smc anbes eena sar adicalbr eakwi t
hSt ructuralisma swe llasanat ur al
ext ensionofi t.Thes amec anbes aidofPos tmode r
ni sm’srelationt oMode rnisma nd
Pos tcoloni al
ism’sr elat
iont oCol oniali
sm.Wet hereforene edt oknow whati sbe ing
suc ceede dors upe rsededine achc ase.
Struc turali
smi sagr ab-bagofat erms tuffedwi thawi der ang eofwr iter
sand

andofChoms ky;thee arlywr i

tingsofBar t
hesandDe r ri
da;andt hewr itingsoft he
muc he arlierRus s i
anFORMALI S TSa srediscovereda ndt ranslat
e dint heWe stdur ing
thel ate1960sa nde arly1970s .Whata l
lthe s
ewr itersandwr it
ing sha vei nc ommon
ist heunde rs
t andingofphe nome na(wor ds ,poems ,na rratives,my ths,c us toms ,soc ia
l
pr actices)notasdi scretee nti
tiesbutaspa rtsofl argers tr
uc t
ur esors ys tems .The
emphas i
si sonma kings e nseoft hingsass ignsi nlar ger*s ign-sy stems ,andon
pe rceivingt hewaysi nwhi c
hones ign-systemr elatestoanot her.He nc et hec lose
ass ociati
onofs tructurali
sm wi th*s e miotics/
semi olog y
,t hestudyofs ign- systems .
Pos tst
ruc turalismi schieflyas sociatedwi tht hel aterwr it
ingsofBar the s,De rr ida
andFouc aulta ndi s‘post-’int hatitbot he xtendsa ndt os omee xt ente xpl odest he
pr emi sesofS tructurali
sm.Whe reasas tructuralista pproac hwoul dt endt ot re ata
sign- system asac ompl ete,f i
ni shed,pot entiallyknowabl ewhol ewi thanot ional
cent re,a pos tst
ruc t
ura l
istappr oac h woul dt end t ot r
eata s ign- syst em asan
inc ompl et e
,unf i
nisheda ndul timat elyunknowabl ef ragme ntwi thmanypot e nt ia
l
cent resornoc ent r
ea tall.Wemayt he r
efores ayt hatSt ructuralis
mc onc e ntrateson
‘whol esys t
ems ’whe re
asPos t
struc t
ur al
ismc onc entratesont he‘ hole sins y stems ’.Put
ye ta not herway ,whe reSt r
uctur alismc onc entrat eson‘ sense-maki ng ’ac t
ivit i
e s,
Pos t
structura li
smc onc entrateson‘ nons ense-maki ngac tivit
ies’or,pe rhapsbe tte
r, ‘the
maki ngofs ens eothe r
-wise ’
.
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 128

Pos tstruc tur alism i spr obabl y be stknown f ort heana lytic alt ec hni que sof
de cons truc tion.Thi si nvol vesbr eaki ngdown at ext( orot he rar tefa ct)i nt oi t
s
cons titue ntdi f
fer enc esa nd i de ntifying i tsnot i
onalc ent re ,t he ne xpl or ingt he
proc edur eswhe re byc er t
ai noft he sear epr e f
e rredor‘ privi lege d’ .A c har ac te risti
c
de cons truc tivemovei st oi nv ertdi fferenc e sandt opoi ntt owha ti sma rginal ise dor
abs e nt,t he r ebys e ttingupal terna ti
vec ent re sorc ha llengi ngt henot ionofc e nt re
s
altog e t
he r
.Pos tstruc tural i
s tsinge ne ral,a ndde cons truc tor sinpa rticul ar, aree spe ciall
y
fasc inat edbya bse nc es,g apsa nds ilence sa ndar eke enonof fer i
ngr adi cali nv e rsions
(somewoul ds aype rver sions )oft her elationsbe twe enf ore grounda ndbac kgr ound.
Pos tmode rnismi nvol v ess ome thi ngr ela tabl ey etdi stinc t.Mode rni sm, itspr ec ur sor,
canbebr oadl yc har ac terisedasane ar lyt we nt ieth- cent ur yl iterar yandar tisti
c
move me ntwi thana esthe ticoppos edt ot hatofni ne teent h-c ent ur y‘ c l
as sicr e alism’ .
Mode rnis tsi nEngl i
s hi nc ludes uc hf igur e sasJ oyc e,Wool f,T. S.El iot,W. B. Ye ats,
Car losWi ll
ia ms ,St evensa ndBe cke tt
.Al l oft he sewr iter sde ve lope ds trat egiesof‘ non-
realis t’re pre sentationi nvol vingc ol l
age , mont a ge, pa stiche ,‘stre amofc ons cious ne ss’,
mul tiplepoi nt sofvi ew,andot he rki ndsofhi g hlys el
f-c ons c ious ,r eflexi veand
appar ent lyf ragme ntar yt echni que s.Wha tmos toft he s
emode rni stsa ls ohavei n
commoni st heirimpl i
cat ioni na‘ hi ghar t’v iew ofCULTUREandt he i
rc onc ent ra tion
onat radi tional lyl i
ter aryme dium:t hewr ittenwor d.I ti si nt he sel atte rr espe ct
s
thatpos tmode rnis m mos tobvi ous lybot he xte ndsande xpl ode st hepr emi sesof
Mode r nism. Pos tmode rnis mi sbr oa dl ypopul istra the rtha nna rrowl ye li
tisti nappe al,
andt e ndst obemul ti
me di ar athe rt hanpur elyl it
e ra ryi nmat er i
a ls.Att hes amet i
me
pos tmode rnis ttext sde pl oymanyoft hes trategie sofMode r nisma ndpr omot ean
aes the ticwhi c hi ss tillpal pabl ynon- real ist.Thuswef i
ndt ha tc ol lage ,mont ag e,
pas tiche , mul tiplev i
e wpoi nt ,refle xi vityandope nint erte xtual ityar eal soc har ac teristi
c
ofs uc hpr e-emi ne nt l
ypos tmode r ndi s
c our sesasadve rt
ising,popul armus ic ,ga me
and c hats hows ,maga z i
ne sand maga z inepr ogr amme s,TV and t abl oid ne ws
repor ting,i nt erac tivevi de o,c omput erga me sandt heWor ld- Wi de -We b.I nf ac tjust
aboutanyas pe ctofmode r nl i
fehasapot ent ially‘ pos tmode rni st’e dg et oi tins of ar
asi ti sc onc erne dwi t
ht hes elf-cons iouspr oduc tion,pr oje ctiona ndc ons umpt i
onof
refle xi vei mag esofal lki nds ,e spe c i
al l
yt hos eint hec omme r cial,g lobaldomai ns .By
thisde fini ti
on,s hoppi ngma llsandDi s
ne y landa r et ypi calpos tmode rn‘ t
e xts ’.
Re l
at ionsbe twe ena ndr eact ionst opos tstruc tur a li
s m andpos tmode rnis mv ary
gre at l
y .S omes eet het woasc ompl eme nt aryas pe ctsofaki ndofi nt ellec tual–
comme rc ial‘ Ne w Ag ei
s m’ ,a ndg e tc orres pondi ngl ye xc i
tedori rr i
tat ed.Ot he rss ee
the m asut terlydi stinc ti nor igi nandt r ajec t
or y .Me anwhi le,pol iticalc ritique s
prol ife rate .Pos tstruc tur alismi sat tac ke dbys omeMARXI ST,FEMI NI STa ndPOST-
COLONI ALc riti
csasaki ndofhype r-scepti calgamewhi chi sfina llyde bilitatingand
self-de fe ating .Ifal ldi f
fe re nce sa ndc e ntresar ear bi trar y,the nwhatg r oundsa r et he r
e
formor al lyandpol it
ic allyi nf or me dpr ef erenc es ?Ot her s,howe ve r,r ec ogni set he
ground- br eaki ngora tl ea stg r ound- cl
e aringpowe rofde cons truc tiont oc ha l
le nge
alls uppos edly‘ ne ut ral’di ffere nc es,‘ nat ur a l
’hi era rchi esandf ixe dc ent res .Pos t
-
mode rni sm,me anwhi le, i
sr egul ar lymaul e df ori tsc ompl i
c itywi thv ar iousbr andsof
capi ta lism,pa triar chyandne o- c oloni alism.Thoughs omec ritic sdopoi ntt ot he
pot ent iallys ubv ersiv epowe rofpos tmode r nistt ext sins of arass uc ht e xtse xpos eand
spor twi tht hes upe rficialar tificea ndgl ar ingc ont radi ctionsofc ont empor ar yl if
e
rathe rt hans moot hingt he m ov e randc onc ea l
ingt he m.

Keyter
ms:COMMUNICATION a
ndMEDI A;FORMALISM INTO FUNCTIONALISM;
abs
enc
eandpr
ese
nce
,gapsa
ndsil
enc
es,
centr
esandma
rgins;ae
sthe
tic
s;a
uthor(
death
Pos
tst
ruct
ural
ism andPos
tmode
rni
sm 129

of)
;di
ffe
renc
es;i
mage
;*me
tat
ext
ual
it
y;r
eal
is
m andr
epr
ese
ntat
ions
;*s
igns
;subj
ect
;
tr
ansl
ati
on.

Ma
jorfig
ure
san
dmo
del
s

Wenowr evie
wthemainconc
eptsandfigur
esass
ocia
tedwit
hPosts
truc
tur
ali
sma nd
Postmode r
nismintur
n.Asusual,t
hisi
sbasi
call
yac he
ckli
stde
signe
dtopr ompt
act
ivit
iesandfur
the
rreadi
ng.

Sa
uss
urean
dsi
gn-
sys
tems
Thec onc eptoft he*s i
gnc ompos edof‘ signi fier ’and‘ signifi
ed’i sf undame nt alt o
struc t
ur alism andpos tst
r ucturali
sm al ike.S aus sur emadei ttheba sisofhi sGe ner al
Ling uisticsandt he r
ebyope ne dupt hewayf ora nunde rst
andingofCOMMUNI CATI ON
int e
rmsofs ign-systemsi nge neral.InS aus sur e’sv i
ew,wor dsdonots impl yme an
thi ngsi nt he mselves.Wor dsar et hepr oduc tofs yst
emat icye ts hiftingr elat i
ons
be twe ens oundsi nai rormar ksonpa per( signi fie rs)andt hos easpec tsofe xpe r ience
whi cht hoses oundsormar ksar etake nt or efert o( s
ignifieds).The rei st here for eno
ne cessar yreasonwhyt heEng li
shwor ds‘ tre e’,‘blue ’and‘ wa l
k’,fore xampl e ,s houl d
me anwha tt heydo( aft
eral l,otherla ngua geshav edi ff
erentwor dsc or respondi ngt o
compar ablephe nome na).Ra ther,wor ds‘ me an’ byv i
rtueofana ssume da ndbr oadl y
agr eedr el
ationamongs tpe oplewho‘ spe akt hes amel ang uage’andt herefor edr aw
ont het hes ames ign-system.Att hes amet ime ,the reisalway satens ionbe twe e nany
par t
iculari nstanceorut teranceofawor d( t he‘ parole’)andt hel anguag es ys te m
vie weda sawhol e( t
he‘ langue ’)
.Par ticularpe opl eorgr oupsofpe opl eal wa ysme an
slightly–s ome ti
me sv ery–di f
ferentthi ngsbyos tens i
blythes amewor d.I nt hea bove
cas est hepr eciseme aning swoul dde pe ndony oure xperiencesof‘ tre es’,‘blue ’a nd
‘wal k’a ndt hec ont extsinwhi chyour out ine lyme etandus et hesewor ds.I ns hor t,
signsa repar tsofappar entlys ta
blebutul tima telymovi ngs i
gn-syste ms .
Manyoft hec rucialdifferencesbe twe enS truc t
ur alistandPos tst
ruc tur ali
stpos iti
ons
canbepl ac edinr elati
ont ooneoft he set wopol ar i
ti
es.

St
ruc
tural
ist
stendt
oemphas
isesys
temsascl
osed‘whol
es’
.
Po
sts
truct
ural
is
tste
ndt
oe mphas
isethe‘
hol
es’wi
thi
nandar o
undop
ens
yst
ems
.

sys
temati
seunders
tandingofs ymbol
icint
e r
acti
onwi thi
nCULTURES.Hi smodeli
s
basi
cal
lyst
ruct
ural
istinthatheuseds
etsoffundame nt
alopposi
ti
onss
uc has‘
natur
e
v.c
ivi
li
sat
ion’
,‘wil
dv .dome s
ti
c’and‘
rawv .cooked’toproduc
eanoverviewofhow

havenotonlyaf
unct
ionalbuta
lsoasymboli
cdime nsion.Ever
ythingfr
om potsa
nd
buil
dingst
ogest
ure
,c os
tumeandfie l
dlayouttherebybe come‘goodsforthi
nking
with’( )
.Thesyste
matici
nterr
e l
ationsa mongthe s
earte
fact
sand
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 130

practi
c esals
oe ncourageaki ndof‘ t
hinki
ngbyana logy’( bri
colage).Fori nst
ance,
potsa nds pear
smaybeas soc i
atedwith,res
pe c
tivel
y,fe minineandma sc
ulineina
gi
v e
nc ult
ure,andbot hpai rsoft er
msma yt henbeac commodat e
dwi thi
nal ar
ger
st
ructur a
loppositi
onrelati
ng‘ nurtur
e’(maint
aini
ngc i
v il
isat
ion)and‘nat ure’(ke
eping
myt hs,dramasand
narrativesinge ner
alr ehearsea ndr e
solv
et hec ont
r adicti
onse xper i
encedwi thin

approachtomy thissi
milartoPropp’
sapproachtof olktal
einthatbotharelooking
fortheconst
ant,underl
yingstruct
ure
sthatrel
ateonena r
rati
vetoanother
.The yare
les
sinter
est
edintheidi
osy ncr
asie
sofvari
ousversi
onsort hepecul
iarpr
essureswhich
makee acht
ell
ingincontexttosomeexte
ntunique.Inthisres
pectst
ruct
urali
stmode l
s
havemuc hincommonwi t
hFORMALI STmo del
s,whi c
ht heypartl
ydraw upon.

Bar
the
san
dth
eop
eni
ngu
pofmo
der
nmy
ths

Bar t
heswasas truc t
ur ali
s twhoal wa ysha ds tr
ongpos tstruc t
ur ali
stt endenc ies.Hi s
earlyMyt hol ogie s
conc l
udi ngs e ct
ionon‘ Myt ht oday’ar gue sforane xtens i
onof*s i
gn-theor ys oa st o
recognisemyt h,i ncludi ngnar ra
tivea nddr ama ,aswha tBar thesc alls‘second- or der
sign-sys
t ems ’.Thati s,notonl yar et heyc hi eflymadeofwor ds( a‘fir st
-orde rs ign-
system’);t heyar ea lsomadeofs t
ringsorf rame sofwor dswhi c hc anbeal igne dwi th
certai
nge nr esofve rbale xpe ri
ence( ‘second- orders ign- sys
t ems ’).A simpl ee xampl e
woul dbet hef ormul as‘ Onc euponat i
me...’a nd‘...a ndt he yal lli
vedhappi l
y
everaf t
e r’.The s ear ema deupofas e r
iesofi ndividua lve rbals igns( ‘Onc e’,‘upon’ ,
etc.)
.Howe ver,t ake nt og ethera sstr i
ngsofwor ds,t he yal sos ignalt hebe ginni ng
and e ndi ng ofat raditi
onalki nd ofc hildren’ss tor y.Suc h at tempt satf ormal
systema tisationr e curi nBa rt
he s
’sthe oreti
calwor k,a ndt heyof t
e nhav ea‘ tota lis
ing’
(andt here fores truc turalist)airaboutt hem –at tempt ingt oe mbr ac e
,i fnote xplain,
everything.Anot he rinstanc eishis‘Int r
oduc tiont oaS tructur alAna lysisofNar rati
v e’
(1977: 79–124) .Si gnific a
nt ly,howe ve r
,Bar the s
’sowna naly ticalprac t
iceof tenbe li
es
ore xceedshi st he orisi
ng.Manyoft hee ssaysi nMy thol ogie sar elivelyandmor eor
lessadhocme ditat i
onsonc ont e
mpor arypopul arc ulture :‘
TheFac eofGr etaGar bo’ ,

wha twa st henane wte r

rain.Andt he ircumul ati
vee f
fectistos ugge stmuc hmor e
thatCULTUREi splural
,hy brid,many -
ce nt
redandul tima t
ely‘non-totalisable
’.Int hi
s
Bar t
he sc onfir mst hestronglypos t
str
uc tur
a l
istsidetohi sproject.Ther eisas i
mi larl
y
sugg estivedi s
junc t
ureinhi slaterworkS/ Z( 1970).Thi soffersahi ghlyc ompl exa nd
elabor ateov erviewoft hepr ocesse
sofr eadingandi nterpret
ationint ermsofj us tfive
*c ode s(proaireti
c ,her
me ne uti
c,semic,symbol i
candr eferenti
a l
).Howe ver,again,in
Ba rthe s’
sowndar i
ngandvi rtuosore adi
ngst he sec odesa res eenc onv ergi
ngand
diver ging,c oalescingande xplodi
ngi nwa yswhi c harede cide dl
ypos tst
ructuralis
t
rathe rthans tructural
is
t.The reisal
wa ysas ensetha tthesystemi sopena ndi npr ocess.

De
rri
da,
dec
ent
ri
ngan
dde
con
str
uct
ion

De
rri
daist
hephil
osophe
rwhohasprobablydonemosttochal
lengedominant
Wes
ter
nnoti
onsof‘whol
ene
ss’and‘
cent
re’insymbol
ics
truc
tur
esofal lki
nds,
Pos
tst
ruct
ural
ism andPos
tmode
rni
sm 131

espe cia l
lyi nl anguag e.Pr oc e edingf r om t hes truct ural i
sti ns i
ghtt hatal lme ani ngi s
cons titut edt hr ought hei nt e rplayofdi ffe r
e nces( Saus sur eha dr ema rke dthatla ng ua ge
is‘ as ys tem of...di ffer enc eswi thoutpos i
tivet erms ’
) ,De rri
daa r
gue st hatal l
me aningsar eul ti
mat ely‘ de f
er red’.( Thea mbi guityoft heFr ench allows
him apunon‘ diffe renc e’and‘ de ferr al’.
)Ac cor di ngt oDe r ri
da,t he reisne veran
enc ount erwi thme a ninga ss uch, simpl yac ease l
e s
spl ayofdi ff
e r
enc esbe t
we e nt hos e
ter mswhi char epr e senta ndt hos ewhi char ea bs ent.Putanot he rway ,weonl y
unde rsta ndt hing sbyunde rstandi ngwhatt heya renot .Mor eov e r
,inanyg ivenc ul ture
the rei sat ende nc yt oas sumeahi era rc hyofdi ffer enc es,t oi mpl ypr eference s.Thus
indomi na ntWe sternt radi tionsi ti sc ommona ndc onve nt ionalt opr i
vilege‘ whi te’
be fore‘ bl ack’ ,‘mal e ’be for e‘ f
e ma le ’,‘up’be for e‘down’ ,‘rea son’be fore‘thes ens es’,
‘
t hewhol e’be fore‘ thepa r t’,‘pr esenc e ’be fore‘ abs enc e’,‘cent re’befor e‘mar gin’,a nd
soon. The sea rea llins tanc e sofwha tDe rridaa ndot he rpos tstructura li
stswoul dt er m
‘viole nthi e r
ar chi es’.Iti st hust her ol eofde cons truc tivet hinke rsnots implyt oi nve r
t
the sehi e rarc hies( fore xa mpl ebynow pr iv i
leging‘ bla ck’be fore‘whi t
e’or‘ femal e’
be fore‘ mal e’)butac t
ual lyt or eope nt hepl ayofdi ffe renc esr oundt het e
rmsandt o
res is
tt hel ur eofme rely*bi na ryt hi nki ng .Int hea bovee xa mpl esthisme ansr adi cal l
y
rethi nki ngournot i
onsoft he‘ colour ’s pe ctrum ( bot hi nt hephys icalandt hes oc ial
sens e);r e cogni singt hepl ur alityofpos s i
bl ege nde rr ol esa swe llaspe rmut ationsof
homo-a ndhe t
e rose xua lity;a ndg e ne rallyope ningupar e lati
v isti
cse nseofa lterna tive
–nots impl yoppos e d–di fferenc esa ndc e ntres.
Muc hofDe rrida ’
swor ki sc onc ent rat edupont hedomai nofl ingui st
icphi losophy
–e v enwhi leheat t
a cksma nyofi tspr e mis es.Cha rac teristically,heisc onc erne dwi th
thev exe dr elationsbe twe e ns pe echandwr it
ingandt hee ff
e ctoft ryingt o‘de c entr e’
thehumans ubj ectf rom t hec or eofphi los ophi calde bat e.Heal soof fe r
sthec hal lenge
ofanon- We sternappr oac ht ois s
ue sofr ealityandr e pr esenta ti
on( inc l
udingpr obl ems
ofabs enc eandpr esenc e,andnon/ se ns e)whi chi snots impl yi tstra diti
ona lobv ers e,
i
. e.Ea ste rn.Puta not he rwa y,De rridae xpl orest hepr obl emsa ndpos sibil
iti
esof‘ s
e ns e-
ot her- wi se’–be yondt hebi nar ypr inc i
pleofs ens eornons e nse.Si gnifi
cant ly,t his
pr ojec ti ss ee nast oor adi calbyr ight -wi ngpol iti
c alc omme ntat orswhoac c use
de cons truc tioni stsoft hede struc ti
onofc i
vilised( We stern)va l
ue s.Me anwhi l
e ,ov e r
t l
y
MARXI ST,FEMI NIS Ta ndPOSTCOLONI AL c omme ntator ss ome time sc ompl ainof
De rrida’sappar entphi los ophi caldi stanc ef r
om poi ntedl ypol i
ticali ss
ue s.Ei ther
way ,De rrida’ sde cons truc tivet ec hni que s,likeal lt ool s,r emai npol iti
call
ypowe rful
orpowe r l
essde pe ndi nguponwhot he ya rewi eldedbyandhow.

Fo
ucau
lt,
dis
cou
rsea
ndh
ist
ori
cald
isc
ont
inui
ty

Foucaul twasc hieflyc oncernedwi ththei nterr

elati
onsofknowl edgeandpowe r
,
espec
iallythewa ysinwhi chlegal,medicalandr el
igi
ousdi sc
oursesope r
atetoproduc e
changingpe rcept i
onsofwhati tistobe‘ normal’or‘deviant’(‘
sane’or‘insane’
,‘l
aw-
abidi
ng ’or‘criminal’).Alongwi thBarthes,Foucaultwa sals
oc ommi tte
dt oexploding
thedomi nantWe st
ernnot ionoft hea uthorasthes olesource,origi
na ndgua rantor
ofatext ’
sme anings .Ins t
ead,theypropos edthatthec oncept‘author’bet r
eatedasa
hist
oricall
yvar iableandpol i
tical
lycontestedsit
e.The yalsoshift
edthef ocustotexts
i
nc ontexta sintertextualcons t
ructs
,insist
ingthatculturesareexpressedthroughnot
simplybywr itersa ndpr oduc ers
.Fouc aultarti
culatedvariousinflue nti
alhistori
cal
mode l
sofs el
fa ndot he raswe llasar adicall
ydis/conti
nuousvi ew ofhi s
torywhi ch
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 132

hasbe enve ryinfluentialwithNEW HI STORI CISTS.Her e

s i
ststhenoti
ont hathist
ory
cane v
erbeunde rs
tood,l etalonetol
d,wi thinas inglenarrativ
eframe.I nst
ead,he
argue s
,wemus trecognisethatthemanyl oc ali
s e
dnar r
ativesofhist
ory,
likethemany
discoursesofc ult
ure,donotaddupt oas inglec oherentwhol e.Hist
or yisalways
fractureda ndoffba l
ance.Inde e
d,Foucaul te mpha s i
sesthatwhatmos toft e
narrest
s
usinhi storyisasens eofradicalrupt
ur ewi tht hepa s
t.Itisthedisc
ontinuityrat
her
thant hec onti
nuit
yofhi s
torywhi chi
ss ignific ant.

Ly
ota
rda
ndt
hep
ost
mode
rnc
ond
iti
on
Lyot ardma ke sac ompa rabl eat t
a ckonwha thec allst he‘ grandnar ratives ’(gra nds
)i nThePos tmode r nCondi tion:A Re por tonKnowl e
dge( 1979) .Bygr and
nar rativesLy ot a rdme a nsa l
lt hos eov e rar c
hi ngi nt ellectuals che me swhi chpur por t
toof f
e rat ota lisingf ramei nwhi cht ounde r st
ands omea s pectofmode rnl if
e.The
Enl ightenme ntbe liefi npr og re ss,Dar wi niane volut ioni sm,MARXI STp ol i
t i
caland
economi chi stor y,a ndFr e udi anPSYCHOLOGY ar eal ls eenaspot entiallyr e press ive
andr egr essivef or ce sins of ara st he yl imi twha thec al ls‘ i
nt ens it
ie sa nde ne rgie s’
.
What eve rthe ira vowe da ims ,a llthe sef or msofknowl edg ema ybe comes trait-jacke t
s
wi thinwhi cht hehuma nbodyandmi nda rer estraine d.I npl ac eofs uc h‘ gr and
nar ratives’Lyot ar dar gue sf orapol iticsof‘ smal l-scal enar rative s’( )
,
wor kingf rom t hei mme di atea ndt hel oc al,a ndwi thoutas pi rati
onst oa nyt ota l
is i
ng
–andpot e ntia llyt ot alit
ar ia n–gr as poft hewhol e.Int hefie l
dofdi scour sethi sme a ns
thatLy otardi sc ommi ttedt owha tWi t tgens t
e inc all
s‘ langua geg a me s’:pe opl eplay i
ng
the i
rr oleswi thal lt hee ne r giesa ndr e sour cesatt he i
rdi spos al–e vent ot hepoi ntof
be ndingorbr e aki ngt her ul esa ndi ns istingt hata not he rga mebepl aye d–buta tno
timebe lievingt ha tt heirsi st heonl yga me ,ort ha tthe r
ei ss omegr ande rme ga-ga me
ofwhi c hal lga me sar es impl yapar t.
Anot he rdi me ns ionofLyot ar d’
sv isionoft hepos t mode rnc ondi tioni shi sa tt
e ntion
tot hei mpl icat ionsofc ont empor a rygl oba lc ommuni c ations .Gi venouri nc reas i
ng
capa cityt obr ingf rag me nt soft he‘ far ’ne ara ndt oi nc orpor atefra gme nt soft he‘ pas t
’
int hepr ese nt,hea r gue stha ta llknowl edget he r
e bybe come satonc eg lobal a ndl oc al,
time lessandt ime ly.Cont e mpor aryhumani tyhast husdones ome thingr adic ally
par adoxi ca lwi tht hepe rc ept ionofs pa c eandt ime .Thi slineoft hi nki ngi st ake nt o
itslogi cal( somewoul ds ayi llog i
c al)e xt remei nt hewor kofBaudr ill
a rd.Hea r gue s
thatmode rnCOMMUNI CATI ONSa ndMEDI A( inc l
udi ngc omput er- assistede diting
andt rans mi ss iont e chni que s)ha vebe c omes ope rvas iveands ophi sticatedt hatwe
cannol onge rc la imt oha veav ie
w of‘ ther e al’unt ouc he dbyhumanhand,mi ndor
mac hine.I ns teadwea ret r ea tedt oc ompos iteimage sofi mag esofi mag e s–wi thout
anygua rant e eofan‘ unt ouc he d’r e alitybe yond.The s e‘ i
ma ge swi thoutor i
gina l
s’
Ba udr ill
a rdc a llss imul ac ra.Thus ,mos tpr ov ocat i
ve ly ,hear gue st ha ti nas ens e
the1992Gul fWa rdi dnotr eal l
yt akepl acef ormos tpe opl eint heWe st
.I tsc om-
muni cationt hr oughane labor atelyme di atedmi xofr e all ifeands imul ationme a nt
tha tforma nyt hee ve ntse xi stedi n‘ vir t
ua lreality’a nd‘ cybe r-
spac e’.Itc oul dal lj ust
aswe llhavebe e nadai lydos eofhi - t
e chwa rs toriesanddi sa st
e rmov ies.
Pos
tst
ruct
ural
ism andPos
tmode
rni
sm 133

Po
stmo
der
nis
m at
tac
kedan
dde
fend
ed
Pe rhapsnots urpr isingl y,t he rear emanywhot akee xc ept iont ot hi svi e w oft he
pos tmode r n wor ld.The ys e et he i mpl i
c ations and c ons eque nc e s of g loba l
communi c a tionsmor epos i
tive ly,a spot ent iallye ma nc ipa tingr at he rt ha ne ns l
avi ng ,
he i
g hteningande xte ndi ngr at he rt handul linga ndc ons traini ngours ens esofr e ality
–v irtua landot he rwi se .Some ,howe ver,at tac kt heve rynot ionof‘ thepos tmode rn’.
Ea gletona ndHa rve ys ug ge stt ha tPos t mode rni smi sfinal lyl it tl
emor et ha naf a nc y
labe lfor‘ lateCapi talism’( seeMARXI SM, p.107,110) .Me anwhi le,S ai d, Spiva kand
othe rspoi ntt othel aiss ez-fairec ompl ic ityoft hec onc e ptwi thne o- c
ol oni al i
sm and
‘coc a-colais ation’ ,a swe llasi tsc asual lyunr ec ons truc teds ter eoty pe sofg ende ra nd
sexual ity( se ePOSTCOLONI ALI SM a ndFEMI NI SM) .
Andye tt he r
ea ret hos es uc ha sJ ame son,Hut che ona ndBha bhawhos ee‘ the
pos tmode r nc ondi tion’ass ome t hingwes houl dne ithe rdi smi s
snorac qui esc ei n.
Rat he r
,wemus tpl a yi na ndwor kt hr oughi t,e nga ginga cti
v elywi thi tss trateg i
e sin
orde rt or e dir ectitspol iticalag enda.Hut che onf ore xampl edr awsat te ntiont ot he
produc tivelydi srupt ivee ffectsofmuc hpos tmode rnpr a cticei nwr iti
ng ,a rta ndt he
me di a.S hec itesnume rousi nst anc esofpar ody ,c ol l
ag ea ndnon-orant i-
re alist
repr esentat ionsandpe rforma nc eswhe ret he r ei sas ens eofc reat ivec ritiquef rom
wi thinapos tmode rni stae sthe ti
c–nots impl ya nunc riticalwa ll
owi ngi nc ons ume r
cultur e.Mor epar ticular ly,Hut che onpoi ntst ot her adi c ala ndpot ential l
yl iber ating
viewofhi stor yasf ac ti
onr at he rthan‘ fac t’.S hear gue st hata lter na tivehi stor ies,bot h
actualandpot e
nt ial,c anonl ybege ner at edonc et hei llus ionofas ingl eove rarc hing
stor y( Lyot ar d’
s‘ gr andnar r ative ’)i sf rac tur ed,di spe r s
e da ndr e -
f orme d.Shei s
espe ciall
yi nt e rest
e d( asi sWa ug h)i nt hec apa cityofs uppos edl y‘ fic tional ’ wr ite
r sa nd
othe rimagi na ti
vear tiststobl ura ndr e dr a wt heboundar iesbe twe e nf ac tandfic tion,
not ablyi nt hege nr es het e rms‘ his toriog r aphi cme tafic tion’ .Al ongwi thFi ske( 1987) ,
Hut cheonal sopl ac esc ons ide rabl ee mphas isont hec ritica la ndc reat i
v epowe r s(a s
we llast her espons i
bi l
ities)ofr ea de rs,audi e nc esa ndv iewe rs.S heobs erv est ha tpe opl e
gene rallyt akewhati smos tus e fulandhe lpf ulf ort he ms e l
ve s ,andi gnor eorr eject
whatt he yj udgei rre l
e vantorhar mf ul .Ove rall,t he n,Hut che on ar gue sf ora
recogni tionoft heoppor tuni tiesaswe l
la st her i
s ksofl ivingt hr ought hepos tmode rn
mome nt:e xpl oringa nde xpe rime nt i
ng,nots impl yc opi ngorc oppi ngout .Int hi s
respe cthe rpos i
tionr ese mbl est hatofBe njami nandBr e chtmuc he arlier.Fort he yt oo
urge dc ultur allyawar ea ndpol i
tic allya ctivee nga ge me ntwi t ha l
lt hec ont e mpor ar y
me di ar esour cesa tthe irdi spos al.Andt he yt ooc ouns elleda ga ins tlof tyi ndi ffe
r enc e,
reac ti
ona r ydi saffectionori ndul g enti mme rsion( se epp.107–110) .

Thea ccou ntofPost

str
uctur
ali
smi nthi
ssect
ionemphasi
sesit
sprimari
lyphi
losophi
cal
concer
ns. Foraspec
ifical
lypsyc
hoanal
yti
cfr
amingofre
lat
ediss
uestodowi t
hfragmente
d
andd i
splac e
dsubj
ects
,espec
ial
lyLacan’
snoti
onof‘l
ack’
,seePSYCHOLOGY;al
sos ub
ject
ident
it
yan drol
e.
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 134

Ho
wtop
rac
tis
ePos
tst
ruc
tur
ali
smi
naPos
tmo
der
nmo
men
t
Begi
nbyc ons
ider
ingt hev ar
iouski ndsofsubj
ectinplay:thesubjectma tt
erofthe
te
xtinhand;t heacade micsubje
c twi t
hinwhichyouar est
udy i
ngi t
;somes e
nseof
your
selfasahuma ns ubjec
tconstitutedint
ermsofgender,e
thnici
ty,cla
ss,educati
on
andpe rs
onalhistory.Thi sserv
e sasapr el
iminaryreminderoft hei nterr
elat
ed
st
ruct
ur e
sa ndmome ntswi t
hinwhi c
hyouandt hete
xta r
ec urre
ntlyc onst
ructi
ng
meaning.Goont oc onsiderthefollowing:

Dif
fere
nc e
s,binaryandpl ural:
♦ Whata ret
hemai nc ontr
astsandt ensions,es
pe ci
all
ythe*bi naryopposit
ions,t
hrough
whichthetextsee
mst oope rat
e(e .
g.na t
urev.arti
fice;pa s
sionv.rea
son;me nv.wome n;
humanv .ma chi
ne;orderv .dis
or der
;pa stv.present
;i ndivi
dualv.soci
ety;etc
.)?
♦ Whichpol arit
iesseemt obepr eferredbe f
or etheiroppos ite
s,thusestabli
shinga
per
ceptualhierar
chy( e.
g.passionbe forereason,pas tbeforepresent
)?
♦ Whatot her
,pluraldiff
erencesdoe sthetexta ppeartoe xpressorsuppress(e.
g.other
waysofs e
eingands a
ying‘ t
hes amet hing’diff
erentl
y )?

Centresa ndma rgi

ns,de -c
entr i
nga ndre -
centri
ng:
♦ Whati sas s
ume dt obec entralwi thi
nt het e
xt( e
.g.ac er
taint i
me,plac eands etof
parti
cipants;apa r
tic
ularae stheti
c,mor al,economicorpol i
ticalpremise)?
♦ Whati st re
atedasmar ginalori gnoredc ompletel
ybutmi ghtnone thelessof
fera
rel
atedy etalt
e rnati
vec entreofi nter
estandval ua t
ion(e.g
.ot herpreviouslymer e
ly
implied ore xclude d placesand pa r
ticipants;otherr e
latabletime sand plac es
;
alt
ernativeaesthe t
icandmor alpr e
mi s
es)?
♦ Isthereinfacta nyli
mi ttot henumbe rofdi ff
erentcentr
esy ouc a
npe rceivewithin
andar ound t het ext?Andhow doyou,i ndividuallyand c ol
lect
ively,arri
vea t
prefe
rringsomebe f
oreot hers?

Closedandope ns truc tures,‘wholes’a nd‘holes’:

♦ Trytode scr
ibet hete xta sa‘whol e’,compl eteanduni fiedinitsel
f.Dot hesamef or
thelanguage(orothe rs i
gn-syste
m)i nwhi chitisreal
is
e d.(Ineff
ect,thisme anssay
ing:
‘Thetextiswhol lyX. ’‘Thel ang uageiswhol l
yY’ ,ands oon.)
♦ Nowt r
ytos eethet e
xtasas e
riesof‘hol e
s’throug hwhi chc anbeg l
impse dfragments
ofotherwor dsa ndwor l
ds.Dot hes amef orthel anguage( orsign-syst
em)i nwhi ch
itisrea
lis
ed.(Ine ffect,thisme anss aying:‘Thr oughthi stextIgetgl i
mps esoftexts
AandBt owhi chi tissimi l
arorr elatable.Throug hthiss i
gn-sys
tem Ig etg l
impsesof
otherrela
tablesign-sys t
ems .’
)

Nar r
atives ,‘gra
nd’and‘ small’
,localandg l
obal ,facti
onalandme tafic t
ional(t
hisis
whe rewegomor eobv iousl
y‘ Postmoder n’
):
♦ Ar et
he rea nylarger‘narrati
ves’(gener
alps ychological,pol
iti
cal
,sci
entificorreli
gious
framewor ksandr egi
me s)whi c
ht hetexts e
emst odr a
w onorc ontributeto?Inwha t
sensec ouldi tbevi ewedasane pisodeinagl obalc ul
turalhis
tory?
♦ Orwoul dyour atherseeitonas mallers c
ale,asac onfigurati
onofpe cul
iarl
ylocal
andt os omee xtentuniquee ffec
ts?
♦ How f ari sthet extc a
tegorisableasfic t
ionorf ac t
,storyorhistory?Orwoul dyou
ratherc at
e goris
ei tasfacti
onalandhi /
story?Why?
♦ Doe sthet extcomme ntoni ts
elf(*me tatextually)?Ori ssuchr ef
lecti
onands elf
-
reflexivityal sothepr e
roga t
iveoft hereade r
,a udienceorv i
ewe r(e
.g.you)?
Pos
tst
ruct
ural
ism andPos
tmode
rni
sm 135

Ex
amp
le
ReadthetextofQueen’
s‘BohemianRhaps
ody’(5.
1.6c)wi
ththeabove‘How t
o
pr
acti
se...’gui
del
ine
sinmi nd.Thenc
ompareyourres
pons
eswit
hthosebel
ow.

Pre l
imi na ryr efle ctionont heki ndsof‘ subj ect’ i
npl aywi thina nda round‘ Bohe mi a n
Rha psody’pr oduc es,forme ,s ome thi ngl iket hef ollowi ng .Te xtual ly,t hisi sas ong
aboutamar ginal isedfigur e ,a nout cas t
:t hepr otag oni sts eemst obea‘ poorboy’who
face sade at hs e ntenc ef ormur de r
.I nt hisr espe c titi ss imi lart oanumbe rofr oc k
songswhi c he xpr es sal i
e nat ion and di saffec tion.Cont e xtual ly,f rom apr ese nt
per spec t
iv e,‘Bohe mi anRha psody’i ss trong lyi de nt ifiedwi thQue en’ ss i
nge r,Fr eddi e
Me rcury,whodi edofAI DSi n1991,whe nt hes ongwasr e-re lease d.Thi sf actha s
tende dt or e i
nf or cet he‘ trag ic’s enseoft hes ongaswe llas,pe rhaps ,theg ende r i
ngof
it
spr otagoni st.Me anwhi l e,fr om myowns ubj ec tpos it
ionasawhi te ,mi ddl e-age d,
mal el ectur eri nEngl i
sh( anda nol dQue enf an) ,Iam a wa ret ha tt he rea reat titude s
andpe rspe cti
ve st hatma ynotbes har edbyal lpr esentr eade rs .Theme rei nclusion
int hisbookoft hewor dsofapops ongmaygr atewi thmor et radi tionalpr opone nts
of‘ EngLi t’(‘ItmaybeEngl ish–buti sitLi tera tur e?!’).Thi spar ticul arc hoi ceofs ong
maya l
soc l
a shwi tht hemus icali nterestsandt aste sofyoung er,pe rha pspr edomi na ntly
fema l
es tude nt s.
Theg ene ralpoi nti stha ta l
lt hea bove‘ subj ects’( thes ubj e ctmat te roft het extand
thes ubjec tpos itionsofbot hpe rfor me randi nte rpr eters)ar eal limpl icat edi na n
unde rs
t andi ngof‘ Bohe mi anRha ps ody’ .Ea chandal lmi ghts e rveasf oc us e
sf ora
systemat i
ce nqui r yi ntonotonl ywhatt hes ongme ansbuta l
s ohowi tme a ns.What
aret hec ondi tionswhe r ebyt hist extope ratesi nt hewor ld?Whatar et hes ociala nd
textuals truc t
ur e sandr e l
a tionswi thinwhi chi tc anbes ited–orc itedands i
g hted?
Anyt hingl ikeac ompr ehens iv eans we rwoul dt he refor ene edt oc ons ide rt hei nterplay
betwe enanumbe rofve rba l,mus icala nd( inpe rfor manc e)vi s ualc ode s.Itwoul da lso
nee dt oe ngagewi thava rie t
yofs pe cificye ts hiftingdi sc our se s–c omme rciala nd
educ a t
iona l
,popul aranda c ade mi c.I nwha tfol lowsIs ha l
lc onc ent rateont hewor ds
oft hes onga sr epr oduc e di n5. 1.6c .Howe v er,asoc casionde ma nds ,Is hal lpi ckup
thebr oade rc onc er nss igna lledabov e.A pos tstruc tur al
istr eadi ngmus tne cessarily
recogni set ha tal ls tructur esar ei nte rrelatedye tope n,whi leapos tmode rnr espons e
cannotbel imi t
e dt owor dsal one .
Ifwepl ott heov e ra
lls tr uct ureoft het extof‘ Bohe mi anRhaps ody’i nt e
r msof
*bi naryoppos iti
onswec omeupwi ths ome thingl iket his:
‘
realli
fe’v
ersus‘
fan
tasy
’;li
fev
ersusdeat
h;‘I
’(murde
rer)v
ers
us‘
he’(murd
ered)
;
i
ndiv
idualver
sussoc
iet
y;sol
ovoic
ev er
suschor
us;ang
elsve
rsu
sdev
ils
;aggre
ssi
on
v
ersusapat
hy...
Thisi siniti
allyusefulbe caus eitoff
e rsa nov erallconceptualgri
dwi thi
nwhi cht o
str
uc tureani nter
pretation.Ul ti
ma te
ly ,howev er
,i ti
slimiti
ng.Forwhats uc hsimple,
fixe doppos iti
onsfailtoc atchar ethepl urala nds hi
fti
ngdi ff
erence
sthatar einplay.
Fori nstance,‘Mama,( I)jus tkill
edaman’i nv olvesthree(nottwo)par t
ici
pants:one
spoke nt o(‘
Ma ma’),ones pe aking(I,unde rs
tood) ,andones pokenabout( ‘
aman’ )
.
Me anwhi l
e,t hesingermodul ates–s ome t
ime sg radually
,s ometi
me sabr uptly–
throug hawhol earrayofpos t
uresande motions( agai
nnotj usttwo).Hei sbyt urns
l
anguor ous,ag gr
essive,de fiant,terrified,pat heti
candapat heti
c.Binarystructures
maybeagoodpl acet os t
a rt.Theyar er ar
elyag oodplacet oend.
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 136

Int ermsofwha ti se xpl i

c i
t l
yc entre d,t hedomi nants ubj ectpos i
tionoft het exti s
emphat i
c allyma le:‘poorboy ’(x4) ,‘jus tki l
ledama n’ ,‘s i
lhoue ttoofama n’ ,‘Gal i
le o’.
Thi sisr e i
nf or ce dbyt hef ac tofama l
es inge ra ndana ll
-ma l
eband–andpe rha psby
measamal ec omme ntat or .Howe ve r,t he rei sal soama rginaly e ts trongf e mal e
pr ese nc es igna ll
e dbyt her epe atedappe al st o‘ Ma ma’and‘ mamami a’.Mor e ov e r
,
stillot he r
,non- bi na r ypos s i
bi l
itiesar eope ne dupbyt her ecog ni tiont hatFr eddi e
Me r cur ya ffect edanal te rnat e l
yors imul ta neous ly‘ ga y- mac ho’pe rsonai npe rfor -
manc e .Hedi dt hisi nc re as i
ngl yove rtlybe twe en1975,whe nt hes ingl ewasf irst
rele as ed,and1991whe ni twasr e-r ele as ed.Asar e sul t,t hege nde ringofbot h
pe rfor me randpe rfor ma nc es hiftednot ic e abl yove rade c adea ndahal f,jus tasi tma y
stilldobe twe enonev iewe r/l
istene r/re ade ra ndanot he r.He tero-a ndhomo- sexual
inte rpr etat i
onsar ene ve ra bsol utelyc i
r cums cribe d.The yar eal waysr ene g ot iable .
‘Bohe mi anRha ps ody’i sanappa rent lyfini she dye tinr e alityope ns truc tur ei not he r
wa ys .Iti sobvi ous lyc ompl etea nd‘ whol e’i nt hati tl astss ixmi nut esandphy sical ly
soundsmuc ht hes amee v e ryt imey ouhe a ri t( i
nPar tFi vei toc cupi esade termi nat e
spa c eont hepape randi sf rame da sane nt irete xt )
.Ital sohasadi sc erni blebe ginni ng,
mi ddl eande nd.Thes ongope nsandc l
os ess impl ya ndqui etly,butt he rei sahe llof
al otgoi ngoni nt hemi ddl e( i
nc ludi ngf ul ldi abol ic /a ng elicc hor usande xtende d
inst rume nt als olos ). The rei sa nove r
al ls ens eofnar rativ eanddr ama tics truc tur e, too:
‘I’( the‘ poorboy’ )i st ellingot he rs(not abl yt hec hor usa ndus )oft het er riblet hi ng
he ’
sdoneandt hepuni shme ntt hata wai tshi m.The r ea rea l
s os e ve ra lke yphr as es
repe at edov ert hec our seoft hepi ece,ma nyoft he m pa s sedbe twe ens inge randc hor us,
not abl y‘ poorboy ’,‘anywa yt hewi ndbows ’
,‘ma ma( mi a)’,‘ easyc ome .e a syg o’,‘ let
me( hi m,you)go’ .I nal lt he sewa yst e xt ualc ohe siona ndade gre eofpe r cept ual
cohe re ncear ea chi ev ed.
Att hes amet imet het e xtobvi ous lyf al lsapa rtinva riouswa ys .Iti sf ul lof‘ hol es ’
.
Foronet hi ng,t he‘ I ’whos peaks /
sing si se ithe rhi g hl yvar iableori nc ons iste nt.He
swi tc he sf rom a ggr essiont oapa thy,t er rort ol a nguor ,wi t
hl itt
lenot iceorappa re nt
caus e.I tisal sounc l
e arwhe the rany thinghasr eal l
ypr ogr e ssedbyt hee nd,ori nde e d
whe t he rt hewhol et hi ng,ast heope ni ngl ine sas k,i s‘ re all ife’or‘ fant as y’.( Do
‘Ga li
le o’,‘ pic col o’and‘ magni fic o-o- o- o- o’ ,fori nsta nc e ,r e l
atet oany t
hi nge lseor
eve nt ooneanot he r–e xc epta sas eriesofs imi lars ounds ?)
Forac ombi na tionofa lltheabover e as onswemayt he refores ayt hatt hist exti s
atonc e‘ whol e’a nd‘ ful lofhol e s’
.Iti sade termi nat es truc tur ewi thpar tlyc ohe re nt
me ani ng sandi tist e emi ngwi thi nde ter mi na ciesanddi s cont i
nui tie s.
‘Bohe mi anRhaps ody ’dr awsuponav ar i
e tyof‘ gr andna rrat i
ve s’int hati tc anbe
readi lyal igne dwi thc erta inr ecog nisabl ege nr esa nds c ena r i
os .I tr ehe ar se sac las sic,
pe rhapsdi s tinc ti
v elymode rn,c onf r
ont at ionbe twe e nt hei ndi vidualands oc iety:t he
out s ide rpi tt eda gai ns te ve rybodye ls e.The‘ poorboy’f ig ureobvi ous lyke ysi nt o
popul ari ma ge sofa ngr ya ndapat het i
cyoungme n,r e be lswi tha ndwi thoutc aus es.
Ital sohi nt satac ombi nat i
onoft hefig ur eonde ath- r ow wi tht ha toft heFaus t-like
damne ds oul( ‘
Tool at e.Myt imehasc ome...’ ).Inal lt he ser e spe c t
st hist extc an
be‘ pla ced’ge ne rical l
ya ndi nter textual ly :i tc anbev ie we dasane pi sodei nal a rge r
cul tur alhi s tory .Att hes amet ime ,t hispar ti
cul art e xtof f ersape c uliarandt os ome
ext entuni quec onfig ur at ionofe f
fe c
ts .Iti sahi ghl ydi stinc tive‘ smal lna rrat i
ve ’ini ts
ownr ight .Hi stor ica l
l y,‘ Bohe mi anRha ps ody ’wasamongt hef irs tc oope rat ions
be twe enar oc kbandandf ullor che stra.I twasi nnova tiv ei ni tsus eofaf ull-leng th
pr omot ionalvi de oi nc or por atingc omput erise dgr a phi c s.I naddi tion,asa lready
me ntione d,t hes e nseoft hes ongwa sgi ve nabi tterlyi roni ct wis tbe caus eoft hef at e
Pos
tst
ruct
ural
ism andPos
tmode
rni
sm 137

ofthesinge
r.Theant
icipa
teddeat
hofthe‘poorboy’andthatofFre ddi
eMe rc
ury
throughAIDShavetendedtobeconf
use
dint hepopul
arimaginat
ion.Thedeathin
thesonggetsmixe
dupwi ththedeat
hofthes i
nger
.Fi
cti
onlendsits
e l
ftofac
t,and
vic
eve r
sa.Thetwocombinedmakeupthefactiona
lhi
/st
orythati
st herockl
egend
thatis‘
Que e
n’.

Ac
tiv
iti
es

(
a) Binaryoppos it
ions,viole
nthierarchi
esandtheplayofdif
fere
nc e
s.Beginbyanal ysi
ng
Shake s
pe ar
e’s‘
Mymi st
ress’e
ye s
’(5.
1.2a)orDefoe’
sRobinsonCr usoe( 5.
2.3b)–or
anyot hertextthatinterest
syou–i ntermsofbinaryopposit
ions(e.
g.bl ac
kv .white,
man v .woma n,s pe aki
ng v.s pokento,e t
c.)
.Exami nehow f a
re ach oft hes
e
oppos i
tionsiswe i
g htedtowar dsoneofthepolarit
ies
,therebyinst
ituti
nga‘ viole
nt
hier
ar chy’
.Finall
y,c onsiderallthewaysinwhi chyourreadingofthet exte xpose
s
pluraldiff
erencesbe yondthoseofs i
mpleoppositi
on.

(
b) Pract
isi
ngPost
moder
nis
m.Speculat
ehowyoumi ghtturnoneofthec l
ust
ersoft
ext
s
i
nPar tFiv
e(ontheWordsworths(5.
4.2)
;Brooke(5.1.2f–g)
,e t
c.)int
opartofa
postmoder
nis
tmulti
mediaeve
nt .Addac omme ntaryexplai
ningy ouraimsand
rat
ional
e.

(
c) Attempttoapplyt he‘Howt opr ac
tisePost
str
uctur
alism...’methodtoatwe nti
eth-
centurypost
/mode rni
sttext(e.g.Becket
t’
sNotI ,5.3.3d)andani ne
tee
nth-century
classi
creal
is
tte xt(e.
g.Austen’sPrideandPr ej
udice,5.2.
4b).Whats t
rengthsand
we aknes
sesshow upi ntheme thodwhe nyoudot his?Andi st
hereanysensethatit
suitscer
tai
nki ndsoft e
xt–a ndpe rhapscert
ainge nr
esandpe r
iods–be t
terthan
others?

Di
scu
ssi
on
(
i) [
Poststr
uct
urali
smis]thejoy
ousaffirmati
onoftheplayofthewor
ldandofthe
i
nnoc
e nceo
fbecoming,t
heaffirmati
onofaworldofsignswit
houtf
ault
,wit
hout
t
rut
h,andwi t
houtori
gin...
JacquesDerr
ida,
‘Struct
ure
,SignandPlayintheDi s
cours
eoftheHuman
Sc
ien
c e
s’1966,i
nLod geandWo od(2000:102)

(
ii
) [De
const
ruct
ive
]r ea
dingsandinte
rpr
etati
onshaveatendenc
ytoe ndupall
l
ooki
ngthesame,
alldemons
tra
tin
gthecease
les
spl
ayofthesi
gni
fierandnothi
ng
muchel
se.
JeremyHawthor AConc
n, is
eGlossar
yofConte
mporaryLit
eraryTerms
(1994:149)

(
ii
i) Thepoi
ntisthatwearewithi
nthecult
ureofpost
mod e
rni
smtothep oi
ntwhere
afaci
lerepudiat
ionisasimposs
ibl
ea sanyequall
yfaci
lece
lebr
ationofitis
compl
acentandc ompli
ci
t.
Fr
e dr
icJameson,‘
Ide
ologi
calPosi
ti
onsinthePost
modern
ism Debate’
,
inLodgeandWood( 2000:357)
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 138

(
iv) Thec ur
rentpost
-st
ructur
ali
st/
pos
tmo d
ernchal
lengestoth
ec oher
ent,
a ut
o nomous
subjec
tha vetobep utonh ol
dinfemini
standp ost
coloni
aldisco
urses,forbo t
h
mu stfi
rstworkt oa s
sertandaffi
rm ad e
nie
doral i
enatedsubjec
tivi
ty :th
ose
radi
calpostmodernchall
engesar
einman ywaystheluxuryofthedomina ntorde
r
wh i
chcanaf f
ordtoc hal
lenget
hatwh i
chitse
cur e
lypossess
es.
LindaHu tc
h e
on‘Ci r
cli
ngtheDownspoutofEmpi re’(1989)inWi ll
iamsan d
Chrisman( 1993:281)

READI NG:I ntroductory:Moo n1992:30– 2,89–91;Mappi nCo y

leetal.1990:777– 90;
Hawtho r
n1994:106– 11,174–6,137–8;Se l
denan dWi ddowson1997:103– 88;Greena nd
LeBihan1996: 49–90; Eagl
eton1996: 79–130; Ne wto
n,Wo lf
reysandPlot
n i
tskyinWo lf
reys
2001:33–46, 117– 51, 261–92.Pos tr
uctur
ali
s m andpostmode r
nismtoget
he r:Sarup1993.
Full
erstudi
esofPos t/struct
urali
sm: Cull
er1975, 1981;Ha wkes1977;Harland1984; No rri
s
1991;We edon1996( femini
st);
Yo ung1981( anthology);
Ba rthe
s,Foucaul
t,La can,
Jame son
andEag let
oni nLod geandWood2000;De rrda1992.Ful
i l
ers t
udie
sofPos tmoderni
s m:
Hutcheon1989; Brooke r1992(anthology);
Mc Ha le1992;Wa ugh1992a,1992b( anthol
og y)
;
Ma r
shall1992;Wh eale1995( r
ea der)
;Co nnor1996;Cah oone1996( anthology)
;Ma lpas
2001.

2.
9 POSTCOLONI
ALI
SM ANDMULTI
CUL
TURALI
SM

Ov
erv
iew

Awa rene ssoft hec oloni aland pos tcol oni aldi me nsionsofEng lishSt udi eshas
mas sive l
yi nc rease dove rt hepa s
tt wode c ade s.Soha sr ecogni t
ionoft hef ac tthat
mos tEngl ish- spea kingc ount ries( inc l
udi ngBr i
tain,Ame ri
ca,Aus tr aliaandNe w
Zeal and)ar efunda me ntallymul ti
c ultura la ndi ns omes ensesa lwaysha v ebe en. Signal
mome ntsi nt hemode rnr a i
si
ngofc ons c ious ne sswe retheCi vi
lRi g ht sand‘ Black
Powe r’move me ntsoft hel ate1960sand 1970si nt heUSA.I nt heUK t he
cons eque nc esoft heBr it
ishEmpi reands ubs eque ntlyt heCommonwe al thc amehome
(bothl iterallya ndme t
aphor ically)from t hel at e1950sonwar ds :by1990a roundfiv e
millionpe opl ef rom t hef orme rc ol onie s( c hieflyt heWe stI ndies,Af rica,I ndia,
Paki st
ana ndHongKong)hade mi gra t
edt ot he‘ mot he rl
a nd’i nsear chofwor kand
abe tterl i
fe.I nAus traliaandNe w Ze aland,me anwhi le,sincet he1970satl east,the
pos i
tion ofi ndi genousAbor igi
nala nd Maor ipe opl e
spr evious lydi s
pl ace d or
dispos sessedbyEur ope ans et
t ler
sha sbe e npr omi ne ntonpol iti
calande duc ational
agendas( thoughaswi tht he i
rc ount erpa rts ,theNa ti
veI ndia nsofAme ric a,some ti
me s
mor eha sbe ens a i
dt handone )
.Themos tr e centa ndr adic a
ls it
eofpos tcol onial chang e
intheEngl i
sh- speaki ngwor l
di sSout hAf rica. Thes ystem of‘ apar t
he id’( aBoe rwor d
me anings epa ration/ segrega t
ion)wa sf or mal lyov e r
thr owni n1994.
S uchpr odi giousc hang esha veimpor tanti mpl icationsf orEngl i
shS tudi es .Wear e
expe ri
e ncingahug es hiftint heway swec ons truc tandappr oachours ubj e ctsofs tudy,
aswe lla sint hewa yswepe r
c eiveour se lv esa sc ertainki ndsofi deol ogi ca lsubj ect
,
geogr a phically and hi stor i
cal l
y.Al ong wi th FEMI NI SM a nd GENDER STUDI ES,
postcol onialisma ndmul t
icultur al
ism ha vea rgua bl ydonemor et otrans for mours ense
ofwhowear ea ndwha twear eaboutt ha nanyot he rr ecentint el
lec
t uala ndpol iti
cal
move me nts.Thr oug houtt heEng l
ish- speaki ngwor l
dde batesaboutt her oleofEngl ish
ine duc ationr egul arlybe c omee mbr oile di nar g ume nt sa boutnat iona lorr egional
Pos
tcol
oni
ali
sm andmul
tic
ult
ural
ism 139

ide ntity,‘mono- ’or‘ mul t

i- ’c ultural i
sm,maj or it
iesandmi nor ities.I ne ve rydoma i n
ofl anguag e ,literat ur eandc ultur et he r ei sa nac utet ens iona nds ome t
ime saf lat
cont r adi ction be t we en gl oba lisi
ng pr oc esse sofs tandar dis ati
on and l oc a li
s ing
pr oc esse sofdi ffe rent i
at ion.Thusi nEngl ishLANGUAGE s tudi est he rei sc ur rent ly
muc hat tent i
ont ot hef ol lowi ng :
Ne wEng lishesoft hef or me rBr i
tishc ol oni es, chieflyi nAf ric a,theCa ribbe a n,I ndi a,
Aus tralas iaandt hePac ificr im.The s e‘ new’Engl is he si nc ludeva rietiess uc has
*pi dgi nsand*c r eol esaswe llasa lterna ti
venat ionals ta ndar ds( se e5. 1.5,5. 3. 3c ),
thoug hi nf ac tmos toft he m ha vebe ena roundf oral ongt ime .Themos tnot abl ea nd
powe rfulol d‘ ne w’Engl i
shi snoneot he rt hanAme r
ic anEng lish,whi chha si tsr oot s
de epi nc oloni alhi st or y and i tsbr anc he smovi ng i n a pal pabl y mul til
ingua l
atmos phe re( i
nc ludi ngSpa ni sh, Fre nc handnat iveAme ri
c anl angua ge s).The rei snow
as trongi nter es
ti nnot ionsofgl oba ldi s pe rsal( *di aspor a )anddi ffe rent i
at ion.Thi s
isinpar ti nr eactiont oWor ldorI nt ernat ionalEng l
is ha saki ndofg lobals t andar d.
Thi si spr ima r
ily wr itten and pr int ed,and s ubs tant ial lyAme r ican i ns pe lling ,
voc abul aryandgr ammar .I ti sc ommonl yus e df ori nt er nat ionalc ommuni ca tioni n
scienc e ,technol og y,bus ine ssa nde duc at ion, andhasaki ndofc olloqui alc ount erpa rt
int hevoi ceoft heAme ric anpopul arme di a( not abl yHol lywoodfil ms ,TV,a dve r ts
andpops ongs )
.The set oohavear emar kabl ygl obalr ea ch.Loc ally,Engl ishma ybe
conc eive dasa‘ ki ll
e rla nguag e ’
,e nda nge ringi ndi genousv ar ie t
iese venasi te na ble s
globalc ommuni c at i
on.
Ki ndsofi l/
lit
e rac y.I ns o- called‘ Thi r dWor ld’or‘ de ve lopi ng’c ount ri
e sthea bilit y
tor ea da ndwr ite,of t eni nEngl ish,i sar ar es killandapr izedc ommodi ty.Bas ic
ill
itera cyi sac ont i
nui ngpr obl em. Me anwhi l
e ,ins o-cal led‘ Fi rstWor ld’or‘ de v elope d’
count riest he rear es ignst ha tliterac y( i.e.,r ea dingandwr itings kills,a ss uc h),may
bede c reasingbot hi n pr ac ticeandpr e stige .Par tl
yt hi si sac ons eque nc eofan
inc reas inge mphas i
sonvi sua landaudi o- visua lmode sofCOMMUNI CATI ON, rathe r
tha nont hewr i
tte na ndpr i
nt edwor dal one .Me anwhi le ,thegul fbe twe ent hebar e ly
lit
e ratea ndt hes ophi stica tedl y‘ comput e rl it
e ra t
e’c ont i
nue st owi de n.
InLI TERARY s t udie s,t oo,pos tc oloni aland mul ticul tur ala ge ndasar ehav ing
pr ofounde ff
e ct
s :
‘Eng lis
hLi terat ur e’i sc ur r entlybe i
ngt rans f orme di nt o‘ Li t er
a tur e(s)inEng l
ish’ ,
or‘ Li terar yS t
udi es’or‘ Li teraryandCul tur alS tudi es ’
,dr oppi ngt he‘ Engl ish’
compl etely( see1. 5. 9).Thi st endst ohappe ne ve nwhe ret he r ei snof or mal cha ngeof
de pa rtme nt alna meorpr ogr ammet itle .
Thec onv ent i
onal Angl oc e ntrica ndAngl o-Ame ricanc anonsofl ite raryc l
a ssic sar e
be ingr e casti nt hes ha pe sofawi devar ie t
yofnat ionaland r e gionalc ultur e s.
Ca r i
bbe an,Af ric an,Aus tr alian,Ne w Ze al and,Canadi an and ot he rl ite ratur e s
(the ms elvesa l
way shy br i
d)now c ommonl yf e atur easc our se sandpr og ramme si n
the irownr ights .S ot oodonat i
onal ,r e gionala nde thni cwr iti
ngsi nEngl is hf r om
wi thint heBr iti
shI sles, from I reland,Wa l
e s,Sc otlanda ndi ndi genousCa ribbe ana nd
As ianc ommuni ties;asdot hewor ka ndt radi tionsofBl ac kAme rican,Spani s h,
Chi c ano,J ewi shandot he rgr oupsofwr ite rswi t
hi nt heUSA.
The rei sani nc reas ingr e cogni tionofnon- We st ern- Eur ope ange nr esofwr iting,
*or alpe r f
or manc e and c ul turalpr oduc tion.Le g e nds ,hi storie s,l a ws ,f abl e s,
ane c dot es,or ator y,s ong,c ha nt,s ong- and- da nc ear eal lma ki ngt he irwa yont oa
trans for me dc ult ur alage nda,andt he r ebyc ha ll
e ngi ngt hedomi nantWe ste rnne o-
clas sicaldi v i
s i
onofl iter atur ei ntot heme ga- genr esofpoe t
r y,pr os eanddr ama .The
latterof t
e ndon’ tf itt hehybr i
df or msofor ator y,wr itinga ndpe rfor manc et hat
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 140

chara cte
ris
ema nypre -
colonial
,c olonialandpos t
-colonialve rbalarts.Theprinted
nove l,forins t
anc e,isbeingr ecognisedasj ustone,distinctivelyWe ster
nf orm of
narrat i
ve.Al lthisisalsopr ompt i
ngar evis
eda warenessoft henat ureofpr e-pri
nt
orala ndma nus cri
ptcultureswithintheOl dandMi ddleEng lis
hpe r
iods.Anglo-S
axon
oral-formul aice l
egiesandbat tle-poe msturnoutt ohaveas urpris
ingamounti n
commonwi thmode r
nCa ri
bbean‘ dub’poe try
.
Te xtsint ranslat
iona renow muc hmor eli
kelytobe‘ set’i
nEngl is
ha ndLi t
e r
ary
Studie s
.Cl assicwr it
ersoft hemode rnWe s
ternEur opeant heatresucha sIbsen,
Pirande l
loandBr echthavebe ennat urali
sedaslegi
ti
mat e‘Eng .Lit.
’subject
sforqui t
e
awhi le
.Mor er ec
ently,muc hattentionisbe i
ngpaidt otranslationsoft hewor ksof

Ame ric a,Kunde r

aand Ha velf rom Ea sternEur opeandCha ngf r
om As ia.The
chal l
e ng ei na l
lthe sec asesist ogr as pthenat ur eoftr anslationas ,initsbr oade stsens e,
ana ctivityoft ransfor mat ion:be twe encultur esa swe llasl angua ge s.Eas yac cessc an
leadt oappr opr iati
onaswe l
lasas simil
a tion.Thepos sibili
tyofr adic almi sint er-
pretat ionbe c
a useofani gnor a nc eofl ocals ocialandhi st
or i
ca lcondi tionshast obe
recogni sed.
I
nt ermsofbr oade rCULTUREt hereisac orrespondi ngr elati
vising,andt os ome
extentac hallenging ,ofe xc l
us i
ve lyWe s
ternEur ope anmode l
s:
Thec las sicalhe rit
ag eofGr e eceandRomenow t e ndst obes ee na longs idemany
othe r,some ti
me sol der‘ classic
al ’cul t
ures.TheMi ddlea ndFarEa s
t,I ndi a,Chi naa nd
Japa n,a swe l
la sthel ar gelyor a lcul t
uresofAf ricaa ndt heAme r
icas( Nor t
h,Ce nt ral
andSout h)a lsoha vet he irhighl ye laborate,di sti
nctiveandof tene xtreme lypowe rful
philos ophi es,scienc esa ndwor ld-views .
Chr istiani tyandt heBi ble,inpar tic
ular,mus tbes e eni nre l
a ti
ont oot herr eligions
andt he i
ra ssociatedmyt hs , s
tor ies,symbol ism,be li
efs ystemsandhol ybooks .The re
ises pe ciali nterestina ndi nv estigat i
onoft hos efor msofr eli
g i
ousor gani sationand
spirituali nsightwhi chwe r
edi spl acedbyt hede l
iberatedi s s
e minationoft heBi bleas
par toft he‘ civil
ising ’pr ojectofc olonisation.
Ov e rall,t he n,pos tcoloni aland mul ticulturalpe r spectivese ntai la r adi cal
reconfigur i
ngofEng lishS tudie s,notame ret i
nke ri
ngwi thit.(Wemaydr awc omf or t
andi ns pir ati
onf rom t hef actt ha tsuchc hang esandc hal l
enge sa ret her uler athe r
thant hee xc eptioni nEngl ishSt udies:see1. 2. )Thef ollowi nga res omeoft hemos t
pe r
s i
s tentque stionsa ndt hemos tpr omine ntfigur esint hislive l
ya ndi mpor t
antar e a
ofde ba te( forr eferenc ess eeRe ading,p.155) :

♦ How de episs kin-de ep?Whe ndoe se t

hnicitybe comer acis
m?Whe ndoe spat ri
ot i
c
pridebe comena ti
onal istpar anoia?(Fanon,Ga t
es,Young) .
♦ Whathappe nswhe n‘ thee mpi rewr i
tesba ck’?Orwhe npe ople(
s)att
emptt of orget
orr ecl
aims omeoft heirma nypas t
s ?(Rushdi e,Ashc roft,Grif
fithsetal.
,Gat es).
♦ Whe reandhow a rewet oloc atethema nya ndva ri
ous‘ c
entre
s’and‘ mar gi
ns ’of
culture?Ca nwee vere xpe c ttheset obemor et hanpr ovis
ionalandc ontested?
(Bhabha ,Said).
♦ Whatde sir
esanddang ersar einvolvedwhe nwet rytor e
cognis
epe opl
e(s)asot her?
Canwebes os ureours e
lvesa reunitaryands t
ablei nt hefirstplace
?Andwhe ndoe s
ar espectforc ultura ldifferencet i
pi ntoac overts ens eofseparati
on/segregati
on?
(Kristev
a,Mor rison,Spi vak) .
♦ Canany onee ver‘ speakf or’a ndi ne verysens ereprese ntsomeonee l
se?(ame mbe r
ofonee t
hnicg roupr epresent i
nganot her,forinstanc e?)Ifpeopleaspir
etol ookand
Pos
tcol
oni
ali
sm andmul
tic
ult
ural
ism 141

soundlikeoneanot her,thenwhoi s‘ mimicking’whom?Whos e‘mask’isinpl ay?In

whos el
a nguagedoes‘thes ubaltern’(depende nts ubordinat
e )speak?(Spivak,Mi nh-
ha,Bhabha) .
♦ Whatofc ommuni tyandc onsensus ,per
sonale xpress
ionandc oll
ecti
vec ele
br ati
on?
Ori sita l
ldivis
iona ndc onfl
ict,pe rs
onalr epr essi
on,publ icoppr e
ssionors ecre
t
suppres
sion?Ca nwer eje
c tcer
tainimpe ri
ali
st(a nda ri
stocrat
icandpa tr
iarchal)aspect
s
oftheWe ster
nEur opeanhuma nista ndEnlightenme ntmode lsofhuma nna t
ur e
,whi l
e
buil
dingoni tsprojec
tofj usti
ce,re asonandde moc racy?(hooks ,Hall
,Nor ris).

Keyterms:ENGLISH/Engli
shes(1.1.
);LANGUAGE;LI TERATURE; CULTURE;a bsence
andprese
nc e...centre
sandma rgi
ns;auto/bi
ographyandt r
avelwr i
ting
,s el
fa nd
other
;canonandc l
assi
c;colonial
is
m( post
-andne o-);si
milari
tyanddi ffer
enc es
;
et
hnic,et
hnoc e
ntri
c( e
.g.Anglocent
ric,Eurocent
ric)
;lit
eracyandi ll
it
eracy;nati
ve;
*oral
it
y;orient
ali
sm;race,raci
sm;standardsandv ar
ieti
es;t
ransl
ation.
Al
sosee:MARXI M,
S FEMINISM andECOLOGY.

Ma
jori
ssu
esa
ndmo
del
s
Thet er
rai
nwear etraversi
ngi sunevenands hif
ting.Itcanbebothfrustr
atingand
fasci
nati
ng,dangerousa swellasdeli
ghtf
ul.(Forawhi te,mal
e,middle
-aged,Brit
ish-
bornunivers
ityte
a cherofEng l
ishther
earepe culi
arperil
saswellaspri
vil
egesinthis
area.Youwi llhavey ourown. )Thereare,mor eover
,noabsolutel
yr el
iableand
imparti
al‘maps’
.Ihaves i
mpl ysetupsomes ignpostsandaskyout of
ollowt hes
ea s
longasseemshe l
pful–t henlookf ororsetupot hers.

Co
lon
isa
tion–av
ari
eda
ndo
ngo
ingp
roc
ess
‘
Col onis
ation’isthea ct
ivit
yofma kingcolonies.‘
Coloni ali
sm’i sthest
ateofbe ing
ac olony.Bot htermsul timatelyde ri
vefrom t heLat inc olonia,me a
ning‘ f
arm’
or‘ s
ett
leme nt
’.Botht herefor
eal s
os hareac ommonr ootwi tht heword‘cult
ur e’
,
throughLa ti
ncolere(past
.pa r
t.cult
um)–‘ togrow’(seeCULTURE) .Ascurre
ntlyused,
colonis
ation(thea ct
ivenounwes hallsti
ckwi thhere)isana l
l-purpos
eterm whi ch
cane mbrac emanydi ff
erentr e
lati
onsamongs tpeople sandt hingsandpl aces
.I n
Briti
shcolonisati
onal onewema ydist
inguis
ht hefollowi ngkindsands tagesfrom
thetwe l
ft
ht othetwe ntiet
hc entur
ies:

♦ ‘i
nternal’colonisationwi t
hintheBr i
tis
hI sle
sbyEng landofWal es,Irela
ndand
Scotland,involvi
ngs uccess
ive‘
plant
ations ’ofEngli
shsettl
ersanddi s
pl ac
eme ntsor
‘cle
arances’ofnat i
ve sfrom theWe s
ternI slestot
heHi ghlands;als
o‘ encl
osur e
s’of
commonl andande vi c
tionsofnati
veswi thinEngland;
♦ ‘exte
r nal
’colonis
ationbe yondtheBrit
ishI sle
sinwha tbe
ca mesuccess
ivelytheBr i
ti
sh
Empi reand( from 1931)t heCommonwe alth.Exte
rnalcolonie
sma ya lsobef urt
her
disti
ng ui
shedac c
or dingt othewaysinwhi chtheycamei ntobeing:
♦i
nit
ialt
radi
ngr
elat
ionse
vent
ual
lyl
eadi
ngt
oimpe
ria
ladmi
nis
trat
ion(
Indi
afr
om
t
hes
eve
nte
ent
h-c
ent
uryEa
stI
ndi
aCompa
nyt
othet
went
iet
h-c
ent
uryRaj
);
♦ di
ssi
dentr
eli
giousc
ommuni
ti
es,
pri
mar
il
yoft
rade
spe
opl
e(e
.g.t
hePi
lgr
im Fat
her
s
–andMothe
rsandChi
ldr
en–whos
ett
ledNe
w Engl
andi
nAme
ric
afr
om t
he
1620s
);
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 142

♦f
armi
nga
ndmi
ningc
ommuni
ti
esofs
ett
ler
s,l
ivi
nga
ndwor
kingl
arg
elyont
hei
r
own( asinNe w Ze aland)orwi tht hemoreorl essenfor
cedl abourofnati
vesor
sl
aves( i
nSouthAf rica,otherpar t
sofAf ri
caandt heAme ri
cas )
;
♦sl
avetransport
a t
ionande nforcedlabouronal ar
ges ca
le(fr
om We s
tAfri
catothe
CaribbeanandNor th,Ce nt
r alandSouthAme r
ica);
♦convicttr
ansportat
ionandpe na
lc oloni
es(e.
g.BotanyBayi nAus tr
ali
a,so-
call
ed
becauseofane arli
erna tura
lhi s
torys ur
veybyJ amesCooke tal.
).

Itisimpor tanttor e c
ogni set hes hiftingpe rmut at i
onsa ndc ompl e xint er depe nde nc i
es
ofal lthe seaspe ctsofe mpi r
e .Tr adingr elat i
onsc oul dl eadt oi mpe ria lc ont rol( asi n
India).Afir s
tpha seofr eligiousf oundat ionmi ghtbes uc cee de dbyawe lterofot her
kindsofs ettler
,i ncludings lavea ndt he nmi gr antl abour( asi nNor thAme rica )
.
Farmi ngandmi ningmi ghti ni t
iallybeunde rtake nbywhi tes e ttlers,butt he ndr aw
onna tiveands l
avel abour( asi nS out hAf rica) .Eve nt het erm‘ pl ant ation’ha sshi fted
ins ens e.Initi
allyi treferredt o‘ t
ra nspl ant ingofpe opl e’;onl yl ater,byas soc i
a ti
on,
wa st hes ensee xtende dt opl a ntationsoff rui t
,s ugarc anea ndc otton.
Thei nt er
na l
–e xternaldyna micoft hepr oc es sesofc oloni sa ti
onwi thinandbe y ond
BritainandAme ricamus tals obeappr e ciate d.Manyoft hepe opl ewhowe ret hefir s
t
Eng lishs ettl
ers( farme rs,mi ners,c raf t
s pe opl ea ndt rade rs,a swe llass oldie rsand
sail
or s)e migratedoutofne ce ss
ityorc ompul sion,notoutofc hoi ce.Of tent he yhad
beendi spos s
e s
sedi nBr itaina sar e sultofl a nde nc losur esa ndc leara nc es( espe cially
inIre l
and,S cotl
a ndandt heHomeCount ies).Al te rnat i
ve ly,oraswe ll
,t he yha dbe en
lef
tun-orunde r-empl oye ddur i
ngt heI ndus trialRe v olution,c hi eflyasar es ultoft he
me chani s at
ionoft hec ot tonandwoolmi l
ls,t hemi ne sand f armi ng.Re ligious
dissent ersfledpe rsecuti
onasmuc hast he ys oughtne wc ommuni ties .Cr imi nal swe re
‘tr
ans por ted’abr oa d(e.g.,toAus tralia);andmanyoft hes oldi ersa nds ailor soft he
empi rewe ree i
the r‘presse d’( i
.e.for ced)i ntomi lit
a ryandna vals e rvic e,ort ookup
armsabr oadasanal ternat ivet oune mpl oy me ntors tarva tiona thome .Thust he
histor yofe mpi reand e xpl oitationbe yondt heBr iti
shI slesi sc ont inuouswi th
thehi stor yofe mpi reande xpl oitationwi thint heBr itishI s
le s.Thi she lpse xpl aint he
compl exandof t
e nv exedr elationsbe twe ent hec oloni sersabr oa da ndt hec oloni al
author i
tiesbacki nBr itain.Itwa snotonl yt hec ol oni sedwhoha ds omebone st opi ck
witht heirBr i
tishmas te
r sandmi stre s
s es.

Thes
lav
e-t
radet
ri
ang
le

Thec lassicBr i
tish–Ame ric
ane xampl eillustrati
ngthei nterde pende nciesofe mpi reis
the‘slave -tradet ria
ngle’whi chl inkedBr it
aint oWe stAf ricaandbot ht otheWe st
Indie
sa ndt heAme ric
as( se
eAppe ndixA) .Shipsfrom Br itainwoul dhe adforWe st
Afric
awi thal oa dofs upplie
s( includingguns )fort hes ettlersa ndthe ira l
liesand
tri
nke tsf ort henat ives
.I nWe s tAf ri
ca,t heywoul dpi ckupAf ricans laves,s pices,
anima lski nsa ndi voryandt aket he m alltot heCar i
bbe anandAme rica.Onc et here,
thes lave swoul d bes old and s ettowor kont hes ugar-c ane,c ottonand f ruit
plantations .S ugar,mol asse
sandr um,a swe l
lasr awc ot
ton,woul dt he nbet aken
backt oBr i
ta i
nf orma nufacture,sa l
eand‘ home ’consumpt ionore xpor t.Ands oba c
k
roundaga in.Thewhol e‘tr
iangul ar’ope rationhad,i nt heor ya tl e
ast,ane l
e ga nce,
simplicityande ffici
encywhi chma deitamode lofe conomi cr es
our cema nage me nt.
Unless ,tha tis,y ouhappe nedtobeanAf ric
a ncaptured,e ns l
av ed,trans port
e dand,
Pos
tcol
oni
ali
sm andmul
tic
ult
ural
ism 143

ifyous urvivedt heappa ll

ingv oyage,qui tepos sibl
ywor ke dtode ath.Thes lavetraffic
acrosstheAt lanticha sresultedi nthi
sphas eofs lave
rybe ingreferredtoas‘ t
heMi ddle
Passage’andi tsdefini ngs pac e(afte
rPaulGi lroy)as‘ t
heBl ackAt lantic’
.( See5.2.3
forac lusterofpe r
spe cti
ve sons l
avesa nds l
a very
.Or oonoko( c.1681)i saboutt his
very‘slave-tradet r
iangl e
’.)
Ame ri
ca,too, hasthusbe eni nbothc olonialandpos tcolonial
s t
atessincethea rri
val
oftheEur ope ans,anda r
gua blywe l
lbe fore
.Na ti
veAme ricanIndianswe r
e–a ndi n
somes ens eremai n–t hecol onised;thought he i
rowne arlie
rtribalwa rsande mpires
compl icatet hepi ctur efur ther.Me anwhi le,whi teWe sternEur ope an se t
tle
rsi n
Ame r
ica(not ablytheEng lishandFr e nch)we recolonisersthenc hange dthe i
rstatus
bybr eakingawayf rom t he irrespectivehome l
andst os etupnat i
onsoft he irown.
The yalsos ubsequentlybr okeawa yf
r om onea nother,notablyinFr ench-andEng li
sh-
speakingCa na da.

Co
lon
ise
rs,
col
oni
sedan
dsl
ave
s
Theoret
ical
ly aswellaspract
icall
y,itisimpor
tantt
o di
sti
ngui
sht
hevar
ious
par
tic
ipantsi
nt hepr
oces
sesofcoloni
sat
ion:

♦ t
hecolonis
ers
,‘f
orei
gners’
,thosewhoi ni
tial
lycomef rom el
sewhere;
♦ t
hecolonis
ed,‘
nati
ves’
,thosewhowe rebor nintheplace(f
rom Lati
nnatus–‘
born’
;
c
f.nati
on);
♦ s
laves
,whowe r
eoftenneit
he rcolonis
e r
snorc olonis
e dbutforc
iblybr
oughtfr
om
e
lse
whe re
,andtheref
orewe reboth‘forei
gn’a nd‘non-nat
ive’i
ntheirne
w pla
ce.

Itisals oimpor tantt oobs e r

vet hatov ert i
met hef ami l
iesofc oloni ser smaybe come
second- ,third-andf our th-gene rations ettl
ers ,andt he re f
orea real so‘ nati
ves’int hat
theyt oowe r
e‘ bor n’t he re.Settlersma yal sohav ei nterbr edwi tht hei niti
alna ti
v es,
thusc ompl ic
at i
ngi ssuess til
lf urthe r.Mor eov er,taki ngas tilllong erhi s
tori
calvi ew,
wemus talsor ecog ni s
et hatma nyoft hec oloni sedha vet hems elve sats omet imebe en
colonis e
rs( displacingandpe r
ha psdi spos sessingot he rpe opl es).Col oni ser
s,too,ma y
we l
lhavebe enc oloni sedats omepoi nti nt heirpas t.Thusi nBr itaint heNor mans
colonisedt heGe rmani ctr i
beswhot he ms e l
vesha dcol oni sedtheCe l
ts. InSouthAf rica
theEng lisha ndDut ch( Boers)c ol oni sedt heZul us ,whot he ms elvesha dcoloni sed
earlie
rt ribesandna tions‘ native’tot hes out he rng r
as slands .Int hisr espe c
tnope ople
isinabs olutet ermse i
the r‘nat i
ve ’or‘ foreign’t oapl ac e
.Wear eal li nsomes ense
visi
tor s,tempor ar yt enant s.Putanot he rway ,every bodyi sinvol v edinva ri
ouss tag e
s
ofpos t/colonia l
ism,be for e
,dur i
ngoraf terthee vent.He ncet heopt i
onal sl
ashedf or m
(/
)int het ermi tself.Anal ternat i
vei st oc ons i
de ranyande veryphas easi nsomes ense
mid- colonialism.Aswi thwar s,the rei sa l
way sonegoi ngons ome whe re.
Tos omee xtent ,
t hen,t hela bels‘c oloni ser’and‘ col oni se
d’ma ybes wappe da round
ove rtimeandf rom pl acet opl ace.Col oni sationi sav arieda ndongoi ngproc e
ss.Ye t
itisc rucialt or ecogni set hat ,ov eranygi venpe ri
oda ndi nanygi ve nplace,s ome
peopl e,of tenwhol epe opl es,havei nde e dbe enc oloni serswhi l
eot he r
sha vemos t
certainlybe enc oloni sed,andpe r hapse nsl
av edtoo.Thusi nt hepa stfivehundr ed
yearsmany( nat i
ve )Af rican, Ame rica nandAs i
anpe opl esha vebe ena tthesharpe nd
ofc olonisationwhi leot hers(c hieflyWe st e
rnEur ope ansandt he i
rde s cendants)ha ve
beendoi ngt hes har peninga ndc utting .The rear e,t her ef
or e,c rucialdi sti
ncti
onst o
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 144

bema intaine dbe twe ent hos e‘ doi ng ’andr es pons i

bl eforc ol oni sat ionandt hos e‘ done
to’ anda ffecte dbyi t.Hi s tor ydoe si nv olveac tionsa ndr eac tionsa swe lla sint erac ti
ons
andi nte rrelation.Thi sl atte rpoi ntmays ee mt obeobvi ousandl abour ed.Howe v e r
,
itwoul dnots e ems oi nt hec ont e xtofc ertai nki ndsofNEW HI STORI CI STa nd
POS TMODERNI STa ppr oac h whe r eag enc y,c aus alityandr es pons i
bi li
tyt hr eat e n
to di s solve i nto an a mor phousmas sofr elations wi thoutde t
e rmi na tion or
discr i
mi nation.I ns hor t,t or e pe at ,s omepe opl ewe re–a nda re–mor ec ol oni sing
tha nc ol onis ed.Topr e tendot he rwi sei sine ffectt ot ellnohi / s
t or ywhi leaf fec t
ingt o
telleve ryora nyhi /s t
or y.Andweal way st ellsomehi /stor y .Thepoi nti st or e aliset ha t
thati spr e cise l
ywhatwear edoi ng:t or e fl
e ctuponourknowl e dge ,r eme dyour
ignor a nc e,andr e cogni set hei ne vitabl epa r tialityofourpoi ntsofvi e wa nds ubj e ct
pos itions .
Pos tcol oni alism,ass uc h,c an bebr oadl yand t he or eticallyde fine d as‘ wha t
growsoutofa ndawayf rom c ol oni a li
sm’ .Li kePOSTSTRUCTURALI SM a ndPOST-
MODERNI SM, thet e rme xpr esse sas t atewhi chi sbot hc ont inuouswi thanddi stinc t
from t hatwhi c hi ts uc cee ds . Pos tc oloni alism, mor enar rowl yandhi stor icallyde fine d,
isus ual lyunde rs toodt or e fert ot hes t
at eoft hos ec ount ri
e swhi cha c hiev edf or mal
pol i
tic alinde pe nde ncef rom Br itai n( andf r om ot he rWe ster nEur ope anpowe rss uc h
asSpai n,Fr anc e ,Por tug al ,Hol land,Be lgium andGe rma ny)f rom t hemi d- twe nt iet h
cent ur yonwar ds .Asf ara sBr itaini sc onc erne d,manyoft he sec ount riesbe came–
ands omes t
i l
la r e–me mbe r soft heBr it
ishCommonwe a l
t h( firs tr ec ogni sedi n1931) .
Howe ve r,ast hea bovemor ec ompl e xandf lexi blede f
ini tionsofpos t/c oloni alism
impl y( embr a cingt hes imul tane ouspr ese nc eofbot hc ol oni a landpos t
c oloni al state s)
Br it
a i
nandAme ric ac anbec har ac terisedasbe ingi nbot hc oloni alandpos tcoloni al
condi ti
onsvi rtua llys inc et hebe g i
nni ngofmode rnhi stor y.I nt hisr espe ct,t hemos t
recent , s
uc ce ssful inde pe nde nc emov eme ntbyaBr iti
shc ol onywi thi nBr itainwast ha t
ofEi re(Sout he rnI reland)i n1922.Sc otla ndandWal esg aine dar e gionalPa r li
ame nt
andAs se mbl y, respe ctive l
y ,a tt hebe ginni ngoft het we nt y-fir stc e nt ur y
. Br itain’smos t
recentc oloni a l‘war ’ waswi thAr ge ntinaov ert heFal kl andI s l
ands /Ma lvina si n1982.
Me anwhi le,i n1997,HongKongwasha nde dba c kt oChi na;t hought heBr itis h
gov ernme ntag ainr e f
us e dt ogi vebac kGi br altart oS pai n.
Ne o- coloni al ism( me ani ng‘ ne w- style’c ol oni alism)ge ne rallyme anst hee xe rciseof
interna t
iona lpowe rt hroug he conomi candc omme rc ialr at hert ha nmi li
ta ryme ans .
TheUSA a ndJ apa nar ec ur re nt lyof tena cc use dofne o- c oloni a l
is m be ca useoft he ir
domi nanc ei nwor ldma rke tsa ndt he i
rpowe rt oma keot he rc ount r ie
se conomi cal ly
de pende nt.TheWor ldBa nki ngS ys tem,e s pe ciallyt heI nte rnat ionalMone tar yFund,
isa l
s oa rgua blyne o-col oni a li ni tspowe rt oma inta i
nt hede pe nde nc eofmany‘ Thi r d
Wor ld’c ount riest hr oug hc ont roloft he irde btsandt radea ll
ianc es .
Mul ti
c ultur alismc anbebr ieflyde fine das‘ awar ene ssoft hedi stinc tivelypl ural and
hybr idnat ur eofa llCULTURES’ .Iputt hec as eliket his,s light lypr ovoc ative ly,be caus e
itisimpos siblet opoi ntt oanyc ul turewhi chha sbe en,i sori se ve rl ikel ytobe ,‘sing le
andpur e’( i.e.monoc ultur al).Hi stor ical ly,t hos ewhohaves er ious lys oughtt o
mai nt aint hemyt hofapur ec ult urehav ebe enr abbl e-rous ingi de ol og ue s( e.g.Hi tler).
The r ear e,howe ve r,v ar i
ousv iewsofwhatmul ticultur alc anme an.I tc anme an:

♦ multi
racial
,inwhichcasetheemphasisisonpe r
ceiveddif
fere
nc e
sinpeople
’s‘
colour’
,
hai
rtextureandphy si
calbuild(whi
te,black,yel
low,etc.
)Ra ceist
hecoreter
m he r
e,
ac onceptt hatissti
llhe avywi t
h ninetee
nth-c e
ntury noti
onsoff ixed human
physi
olog i
calty
pes,part
icularl
ythemi st
akenbe li
efthatdiff
erentpe
oples(Afri
can,
Pos
tcol
oni
ali
sm andmul
tic
ult
ural
ism 145

Cauc asian,As iatic,e tc.

)havef unda me nt al
lydi ff
erentphy sicalandme ntalc apac i
ties
.
He ncet hene gat ivec har geoft het erm‘ r acism’.
♦ mul ti
-ethnic,whe rethee mphas i
sismor eonpe ople’ssoc i
al orga ni sationa ndc ult
ural
prac t
ices(e.g.dr e ssandma rriagec us toms )ratherthant heirphys i
ol ogicalmake -up.
Ethni ci
ty( de rive df rom Gr ee ke thnos ,me aning‘ nation’ )t he reforea voi dst he
biologicalde termi nism oft het erm‘ race ’andr ec
og nisest hef ac tt hatpe opl ec anbe
borni ntoac e
r t
a ing roupbutt ha tthe ymays ubseque ntlytakeupt hec ult
ur alpr acti
ces
ofanot he rg roup.Et hni cit
yof fersthepos sibil
ityofc ultura lcha ng eandva riati
on;
racei mpl iesbi ol ogical l
yde t
e rmi ne df ixi t
y.( Compar et hec r uc ialdi sti
nc tioni n
GENDER S TUDI ES b e twe enbi ological l
yde termi neds exands oc iallyc ons tructed
gende r.
)Et hnicityi sat erm whi chispos itivelyvalue d.Et hnoc ent rism,c onve rsely
,is
negativelyc harge dbe causei tre f
e r
st ot het e
nde ncyt opr ivil
e georc entreonec ulture
befor eothe rs,whi cht herebybe comemar ginali
s e
dori gnor ed( e .
g.Angl oc entric
,
Euroc entric).
♦ culturaldifferenc esofa llkinds ,inc l
udi ngdi ff
erence sofc lass,r ank,c aste,se xuality
,
gende r
,oc cupat ion, region,age ,dis/
a bility,etc.–aswe llasr aceande thnicity.Thoug h
broadandpot ent ial
lybl and,t hise xte nde ds enseofmul ticultur alism ha st heg r
eat
adva ntaget hati tdoe snotc onc entrateupononec ulturaldi fferenc et ot hepot enti
al
exclusionofot he rs.I trecogni s
e scul tur aldifferenc estobepl ur alandc ompl exly
interrel
ated( alsos eeMARXI SM a ndFEMI NISM) .

Finall
y,its houlda lsobenot edthatmul t
icultural
ismi sat e
r mt ha tc anbeus edi na
superficial,me r
elyexpe dientway .Itcanbeus edt opromot et hes ens ethate veryone
shoulds i
mpl y‘geton’ withonea not her–r egardl
e s
sofpe rsi
s t
ingdi spar i
ti
e sinac cess
toeducat i
on,wor k,hous ing,healt
hc are,etc.Thent heconc eptpa per sovert hecra c
ks
inaf undame nt
allyune qua lsyst
em.Somepur portedly‘mul t
ic ultur al’progr amme s
maye nc our ageaki ndofs ham orf ragil
ec onsensus,butwi thoutaddr ess
ingt her eal
(la
rgelye c
onomi c)ca usesofc onflict.Italsode pendsuponwhos ei nte r
estsar ereally
beingse r
ve dbyt hemai ntenanceordi ssoluti
onofe xis
tingcultur a ldifferences.Suc h,
inoutline,a rethepr oblemsa ndt hepos sibil
iti
esfacingallpur por tedlymul ti
cultural
init
iat
ivesf rom Nor the rnIrel
a ndtot hef orme rYug osl
avia,from i nne rcityLondon
toouterc ityJ ohanne sburg.Whos eve rs
ionorv i
sionofmul ti
c ultur alism,forwhom
andwhy ?

*Li
ter
acy
,il
li
ter
acyan
dla
ngu
agepo
lic
ies

Que stionsofwhoc anr ead,wr it

eands peakwha tkindsoft hinginwhatl anguage
(‘
na t
ive ’a
nd/ orEngli
s hand/oranot her)i
ne vit
abl
ybul klargeinpostcolonialcontexts
.
The ydi dunde rcoloniali
smt oo.Howe ver,bothlit
eracyandl anguagepol ici
esarea l
l
tooe asil
yi gnoredorobs c uredinanar rowl y‘l
it
erary’approacht otexts.Thef actof
readinga ndwr i
tingisr e
adi l
yas sume da ndforgott
enbyt hosewhohav el ongbe en
i
nont heac t.Soar ethepr iv
ilegesandpr ejudi
cesofthosewhor outi
nelyandpe rhaps
exclusivelyus eEnglish.(SeePr ologueandpp.11–12f orsomec urrenti nsti
tuti
onal
challenges.)Answe rstos uchpr oblems,aswes eeshortly
,v ar
ygr ea
tlyfrom pl aceto
place.Theunde rlyi
ngi ss
ue s,howe ver
,hav emuchinc ommon:

♦ How fararet
helanguag
esoftheEur
opeancol
oni
ser
s(Engli
sh,French,Spani
sh,
Por
tugues
e,Dutc
handGe r
man)pe
rmane
ntl
ytai
nte
dintheeyes,e
arsandmi ndsof
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 146

colonise dnon- Eur ope ans ?Cant heEng l

ishwor d‘blac k’,forins tanc e,everbef ully
cleansedofi tsdomi nantas soc iat
ionswi th‘ e
v i
l’
,‘dirt’a nd‘ darkne ss’,andt hewor d
‘white’e verbei nve stedwi t
hdomi nantas sociat
ionsot hertha nt hos eof‘ goodne s
s’,
‘i
nnoc enc e’,‘l
ig ht’and‘ cle
anl iness
’?Whatwoul dthi sdot oevery t
hi ngf r
om pi ctorial
represent ationsofGodasanol dwhi temant oadve r
t i
sings loga nsf orwas hing
powde rspr omi si
ng‘ whi t
ert ha nwhi te
’cleanne ss
?
♦ Whata rethepr actic ala l
terna ti
vestoEngl is
h( Frenc h,S panish,e tc.)from among st
thenat ivelang uagesoft hev ar i
ouss t
atesofAf r
ica,As iaandt heAme ricas?Wha tar e
theimme diatea ndt hel ong- term dis/
adva ntagesoft eac hingpe oplet or eadandwr ite
aswe llass pe akt he sel anguag es
,e s
pe ci
allywhe nr esour cesofal lki nds( including
thosef orbas i
cl ite
r acy )ares os carce?
♦ Whatar ethe‘ internal ’implic ati
onsf orregional,triba l
,c ast
eandna t
iona lidentit
yi f
anys inglel ang uage( Eur opea nori ndigenous )ischos ent ot hee xclusionofot her s
?
♦ Whata ret he‘e xterna l’implic ati
onsofapr esenceandv oic eont hei nternationalstag e
whi chis‘ Engl ish’orna ti
ve?Canawor ka blecompr omi sebef ashi one d?

The searepe rs
istentque stionsf acinge duc ationis
ts,lang uage -
planne rs,g overnme nts
andc ompani eswor l
dwi de.Be causet he yc utac rosss oma nyar easofl anguage ,
lit
eratureandc ulture,re fr
a ct
ionsoft hemc anbef ounde ls ewhe r
et hroughoutt he
book( see1. 2;ac c e
ntanddi al ectands t
anda rds).Fi gur e3( oppos ite
)pr esentsa
theoreticall
ypol ari
sedvi ew oft hedi lemmas .I
npr a ct
ice ,pe opleinv ariablyc omeup
wi t
hc ompr omi sesandhy br i
ds olutions .Inpos t-
inde pe nde nceTanz ani a,Keny aand
Mal ays i
a,fori nstance,Engl i
shi snol onge ra n‘offic i
a l
’l ang uagebuti tiss t
il
lwi dely
used.I nI ndia,Engl i
shs ha res‘ offi
cial’s tatuswithHi ndi,Ur duands e ver
alot her
languag esandi sof tenval uedf ori t
sext erna l
,non-se ct
a rians tatus.InNi geri
aEngl ish
has‘ offici
al’st atus,alongwi thI gboandYor uba ;butt he rec ontinue st obeve ry
pointe dar gume ntaboutt hehar mi tdoe sorbe ne f
itsi tbr i
ngst ot hel i
teracyof
indigenousc ultures.Ina nyg i
veni nstanc e,wear eli
ke lytofindami xtur eofa rgume nts
from bot hs ides.Ther esult,inpr incipleorpr act
ice,‘of ficially’orot he rwi s
e,wi l
lbe
ahybr ids it
uation.I nterestingly,muc ht hes a
mepr i
nc iplesappl ytoal lki ndsofbi-or
mul ti
lingualgr oupsandi nstitutions ,la r
geands mal l–f rom i ndivi dualf amilies
,
school sandne ighbour hoodst oi nternat i
onalc ompani esandwhol ec ount r
ies.

Re
nami
nga
ndr
ema
ppi
ng

Oneoft hefir stac tsofanye xplor er,conque rororc oloniser(thet ermsa reatfir s
t
flui dl
yi nt e
rcha ngeable)ist ona met hepl aceshe( andi tusuallyi sahe )‘discove rs’.
Thef actt hatt hepl aceshe‘ discove rs
’hav ebeenknownandi nhabi tedbyna ti
ve
pe oplesforg ene r
ations,a ndthatma nyname sforthepl acesa l
readye xis
t,isgene rall
y
ove rl
ooke dora ccountedofme r
e lyincidentalinter
e st.Some body’ s‘ Ne w Wor ld’is
alwayss ome bodye l
se’
s‘ OldWor l
d’.Visi
tor sinvariably‘ find’whatt hel ocalsha d
ne verlos t–orhadnotl ostye ta nywa y.Butwhatwe r ethemanya ndvar i
edname s
oft he‘ Ame ricas’(Nor th,Ce nt rala ndS outh)be foreAme rigoVe spuc ci
’sfirstna me
wa sappl i
edt oa lloft hem –pr ef acedbys omeappr oximat elongi tudinalmar ke rs
?
‘Ne w Engl and’be forether ec entlyar r
ivedEngl a
nde rsname di t‘Ne w’?‘ Aust ralia’
be foreitbl ew Eur opeanst he refr om thenor t
h( t
hena mec ome sf rom theLat inf or
‘southwi nd’–a us ter
,aus tralis)
?And,onc ethere,wha twe r
et het r
iba lname sof
‘Abor igines’fort he mselvesbe for ethevi s
itingEur ope ansc all
edt hena tivest hati n
Pos
tcol
oni
ali
sm andmul
tic
ult
ural
ism 147

ENGLI
SH VELANGUAGE(
NATI S)

Ass
oci
atedwi
thBrit
is
hEmpi
reand
/or Asso
ciat
edwithindi
genouss
oci
al
Ameri
canneo
-col
oni
ali
sm st
ruct
uresan
di nst
it
uti
ons

I
dent
ifie
dwi
thl
oca
lpo
were
li
te I
dent
ifie
dwi
thl
oca
lpo
wer
les
sne
ss

Lear
ntart
ific
ial
lyt
hro
ughf
ormal Lear
ntnat
ural
lyt
hro
ughr
out
ines
oci
al
educ
ati
on i
nter
act
ion

Mai
nlyf
orr
ead
inga
ndwr
it
ing–p
rint Mai
nlyforspe
aki
ngandl
is
ten
ing
c
ult
ure –or
alcult
ure

Par
tofp
ubl
i
c,o
ffic
ials
phe
re;i
nte
rna
tio
nal Partofper
son
al,i
nfor
mals
phe
re;
po
wer et
hnicsol
i
dari
ty

Acce
sst
ogloball
ear
ninga
nd Acce
sstol
ocall
ear
nin
g,c
ust
oms
commun
ica
tion andcommuni
cat
ion

Fi
gur
e3 Pos
tco
lon
ialpr
obl
emsa
ndp
oss
ibi
li
ti
eswi
thEng
lis
h

thebe lieft he yha df oundamor e‘ pr i

mi t
ive ’and‘ original ’ki ndofhuma na nima l
?
(TheEur ope anwor di sac onfla tionofLa tina bor igine,me a ni ng‘fr omt hebe ginning’;
justoneoft he i
rownt ribalna me swas‘ Koor i
’.)Putt heot he rwayr ound,di dy ou
know t hat‘ Aot e aroa ’wasoneoft heMa oriname sfor‘ Ne w Ze aland’be for ethe
Dut c hmanAbe lTas ma nvi siteda ndr ename diti nt hes eve nt eent hc e ntur y?Ort hat
‘Kent uc ky’i sI roquoi sfor‘ me adowl and’ ,and‘ Kans as’and‘ Arkans as’ar eS iouxf or
‘la
ndoft heS out hWi ndpe opl e’
?That‘ Ca li
for ni
a’ and‘ Te xas ’de ri
v efrom t heS panish
for,r espe c tively ,‘ea rthlypar adi se’and‘ alli
e s’
?I na llthe sewa ys,t hes uppr es si
onor
thes ur vi va lofpa rticul arpl ace-na me s,andt hec ease l
esspr oc esse sofr ena mi ng,g i
ve
usg limps esi nmi niat ureoft inyf ragme ntsofc ontinui ng ,i nvar iabl yc onte nti
ous ,
histor ies.
Ma ps ,too,a res ymbol i
caswe lla spr actical t
ool s.Forma nype opl ebor ni nBr it
ain
int he1950s( e.g.me )the rea rev ar iouslypr oudorpe rpl exe dme mor iesofmapsof
thewor ldl ibe rallyc olour edi npi nk( thec ol ourr eserve df ort heBr i
tishEmpi rea nd
Commonwe al th).The rewasal soc ur iosityaboutt hee xtr eme lys tra i
ght ,ge ome t
rical
andpat e nt lynon- nat ur al,nat ionalboundar iesofmos toft heAf ricans tates.Onl y
laterdi dIr e a l
isej usthowa rbitrarya nd‘ sha rp’,ine ve r
ys ens e , wast hemi d- nine te
enth
cent ury‘ ca rvi ngup’ofAf ricabyWe ste rnEur ope anpowe rs.Now,howe ve r,Ia m
cons ta ntl yr e mi nde doft hel ong -
t ermc ons eque nce sfort hes elf-(in)suffic ient( non-
)economi cde ve lopme ntofmanyoft he senat ionsi nt hemode rnwor l
d.Onas ti
ll
grande rs cale ,the r
ei st heunde rsta ndabl ebuts ti
lluns ettlingf ac tt hatmos tmapsof
thewor ldbe for et hee arlyt we ntiethc ent urywe rema debyWe sternEur ope answi t
h
ane yet oWe sternEur opea sthec e ntre,vi sua l
lyaswe llasfigur a tively.Af t
e rall,if
yout hinkt hewor ldr e volvesa r oundyou,t hat’
show youdr a wi t.Mor et echni cal
ly,
thet radi tional‘ Me rcator ’(coni c al)pr ojec ti
onoft heg lobe ,domi na ntf rom t he
seve nte ent hc ent ury ,ha das trongt e nde nc yt oexa gge ratet her elatives i
zeofWe st
ern
Eur ope .Mor er ec entpr ojectionss uc hast hatbyWi nc ke lr epr esentt hewor ldmor e
accur at elyi nt ermsofac tua llandar ea.Thee ffe
c thasbe ent os hr inkWe sternEur ope
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 148

tolessthanha l
fi tsf orme rs iz
er e lati
vet o,say ,Rus siaorAf rica.Onl a rge-scal
emaps
Brita
inal mos tdi sappe arscompl e te
ly.
In allt hesewa ys ,t hroug h pr oc essesofr enami ng and r emappi ng,We stern
Europe ansha vel eftt heirmar ks ,bot hphys i
c alandfigur ative,ont hes hapeoft he
mode rnpos t
/c oloni a lwor l
d.Tobes ur e,post- i
nde pe nde nc egov ernme ntswe r
eof ten
quickt ore-renamet heircount ri
e sa ndc iti
es,e ve nift heyc ouldn’tal way sdomuc h
aboutt hea ctualr e dr awingoft he i
rbor ders.ThusRhode sia( name daf t
erSirCe ci
l
Rhode s
)wasr ena me dZi mba bwe ;Salisburyi tscapi talwa sre name dHa rare;though
thesewe reonl yt wooft hepr eviousl ocalopt ions .‘Sout hWe stAf r
ica’wa sna me d
‘Nami bia’;t
houg ht hishadnoe xac trelati
ont oa nypr ec edingc ultural–pol it
ical
configur ati
on.Eac honeoft he seac tsof( re
)na mi nga nd( re-)mappi ng,whe t
he rby
colonisersorde -col onisers,i st hushi stori
cal l
yhi ghlys pe cif
icandmot iva
t e
dby
polit
icall
ydis ti
nc tag enda s.Onet hingi sc l
earaboutal loft he s
epr ocesses,howe v er
.
Thes i
gnsonbui ldings ,roadsandma psma yc ha ngeande ve n‘ r
eturn’,butt heyne ver
pointt oexac tlyt hes amepl a cesorpe oples.Thepoi nt ingi sa lwaysgoi ngoni na
dif
ferentsocialc ont exta ndhi s t
or icalmome nt .Thi sisapr inciplethata ppliesasmuc h
toac tual*signsast onot ionalone s .Issuesofr ena mi nga ndr emappi ng ,whe ther
unders t
oodliteral l
yorme t
a phor ically,arealsoc e ntraltos uc ha cti
v i
ti
esast ranslati
on
andt ravel
-wr it
ing( se eauto/ biogr aphy) .

Whitese
lve
san dbl
acko
the
rs:s
omec
ase
sofmi
s-,
unde
r-an
d
non
-repr
esent
ati
on

Inge ne ralt erms ,wet endt obr ac eas ens eofours el

v e
sag ains tours ens eofe ver yone
ande very thinge ls
ewear enot( i.
e .ot her s
).Ine thnicte rms ,thi sme anst hats pe ci
fic
cul t
ur a lgr oupst endt ode finet he ms e l
ve sbyr eferencet oot he rg r oupst he yar enot .
ThusaJ ewi sawar es /hei snotaGe ntile;aChr ist
iani sawar es /hei snotaJ e w or
Mos le m.Andc ount l
e ssBr iti
shj oke ss por twi tht hes uppos e ddi fferenc e sbe twe en
‘thisEngl ishma n,t hisI r i
shma n,t hisS cotsma na ndt hisWe l
s hman’ .Ofc ours e,the
bas isofal ls uc h dis t
inc tionsi se thni cs tereotype sofa g ene rallyne gat i
v ebut
oc casi onal lypos i
tiveki nd:t heJ ew maybeGod- f
ear i
ngorGod- chal l
e ngi ng ,fami l
y-
mi nde dorac qui siti
ve ;theSc otma ybewi ldlydr unke norahy pe r-sobe rPr esbyt eri
an,
ge nerousorme an; ands oon.Addphy siologicalfeaturest ot he s eca ricatur esa ndyou
qui ckl yge tr ac i
al stereot yping( thes allow- faced,hook- nos edJ ew; thefie ril
yr ed-haired
Sc ot).
The rea reobvi ous lyde eplyps ychol ogi calaswe llass oc ialdi me ns ionst ot hese
pr oce sses .Thepe r
sonwhor eckonshe r-orhi ms elftobe‘ pur ewhi te’ha sne cessaril
y
onl ybe enabl et odot hi sbyt akingonboa rdane qua l
lye xtre mei ma geof‘ pur ebl ack’.
S/hei st hust ot allyloc ke di ntoapr oc essofs el
f-definitionwhi c ha c
tua llyne edst he
‘othe r’t oma inta i
nt hefixe ddy na mi coft ha tdefini t
ion. Thei nv e rs
ea ppl i
e s,ofc our se.
‘Pur e bl ack’c ons cious ne ss( i.e.ne gritude )a ctually ne e dsa ni nte rnal ised and
ext erna liseds ens eof‘ pur ewhi tene ss’tomai ntainitsself-de fini tion.Si mi la rpr oc ess
es
ar eatwor kwhe npe opl et alka ppr oving lyordi sappr oving l
yofs ome oneors ome thing
asbe ing ,s ay ,‘Eng l
isht hr oug ha ndt hr oug h’,‘all
-Ame r ican’ ,‘ genui ne lyRus s
ian’or
‘typic allyJ apa ne se’
.Ina l
lt hesec ases ,the r
ei ssomes t
rongl yi mpl ie dobve rse(‘nota t
allEngl ish’ ,‘un- Ame r i
c an’,e tc.
)whi chunde rwr i
testheobs er va t
ion.
Themode loppos it
e( Figur e4)s howsadomi nantWe s ternEur ope anmi nd- setand
cul t
ur a lframe .Thi smode lisde eplye mbe dde dinc olonia l
isma ndpe rsi
s t
si nmodi fied
Pos
tcol
oni
ali
sm andmul
tic
ult
ural
ism 149

‘
WHI
TE’ ‘
BLACK’

c
ivi
l
isat
ion(
cor
rupt
ion) ba
rba
rim(
s i
nnoc
enc
e)
c
ult
ure(
asr
epr
ess
ion) na
tue(
r bac
ktot
rue
)
s
o t
ul(rappe
dinbody
) b
od e
y(xpr
ess
ess
oul
)
Chr
ist
i v
an(.Chr
ist
ianv
.Je
w) h
eat
he ot
n( he
rre
ligi
ons
)
Go
d(hev
t enge
fulf
athe
r) d
evi
l ot
s( he
rgods
)
r
eas nar
on( rowr
ati
onal
is
m) f
eel
i i
ng(nt
uit
ion)
i
nte
ll
ect
u c
al(er
ebr
al) s
ens
u i
al(nt
ouc
hwi
thbody
)
me
nta
lac
tiv
it whi
y( tec
oll
ar) ma
nualac
tiv
it wor
y( ker
)
s
exua
lre
str
ai r
nt(epr
ess
ed) s
exua
lfr
eed e
om(xpr
ess
ed)
c
lean
line
s obs
s( ess
ive
) d
ir nat
t( ural
)
s
cie
nc i
e(nhuman) s
upe
rst
it
io f
n(ol
kwi
sdom)
me
dic
i me
ne( c
hani
cal
) mag
i hol
c( is
ti
c)
c
las
sic
almu
sic&d
anc
e po
pul
armus
ic&da
nce
pr
intc
ult
ur l
e(i
fel
ess
) or
alc
ult
ur l
e(i
vel
y)
r
ese
rve
d(up-
ti
ght
) s
av ‘
age(cool
’)
s
el asot
f( her
) ot
he ass
r( elf
)
c
ult
ural
ly‘
nor
mal
’ ‘
eth
nic
’
f
ami
li
ar e
xot
ic
i
nte
ll
ect
ualg
ame
s at
hle
tic
s
‘
Fir
st’
Wor
ld ‘
Thi
rd’
Wor
ld
‘
Ric
hNo
rth
’ ‘
PoorSo
uth’
c
omput
ing&hy
per
medi
a pr
intl
it
erac
y
de
vel
ope
d,i
nde
pen
dent un
der
dev
elo
ped,
depe
nde
nt
f
utur
e... pa
st...

Fi
gure4 Domi
nantp
ost
/co
lon
ialan
dne
o-c
olo
nia
lmi
nd-
set
s(ands
omemut
ed
al
ter
nat
ive
s)

formi ntopos tcoloniali

sm.Suc h*bi naryoppos it
ionsa rec ommonl yinvoke dor
i
mpl iedwhe npe opleadoptas i
mplist
icall
y‘black-and-white’approachtoe thnic
ity.
(Some‘ muted’mi nd-set
sandc ult
uralframesaresupplieditali
cise
dinbrackets.The s
e
pointt oa lt
ernativev i
ewst hatwereandar eav ail
able;thoughnot icet
hatt hesetoo
maye asil
ybe comepol arised.
)Thefirstpolarit
iesarechieflyidentifiedwit
ht hee ar
lie
r
stagesofe mpire.Thel ateronesar
emor er e
centandde mons trat
ejusthowremar kably
resi
li
e nta ndpe rvasiv
es uchmode softhinking,seei
nga nds ayingcanbe.
I
twasaf oundi ngaxi om ofEur opeanc oloniali
sm,and oneoft hede cl
ared
rati
onal esofi tscivil
isi
ngmi ssi
on,that‘theblackma ni sthewhi t
eman’ sbur den’.
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 150

Thedomi nantpol ariti

esf eaturedobvi ous l
yunde rwr i
tet hisview ofthec oloniseras
basicallyahe lper,nur turera ndgui def ort hec olonised.S uc hpol ar
it
iesalsoc learly
extendf rom t hec olonialt ot hepos tcoloni ala ndne o-colonialwor lds( i
n‘ Thi rd
Wor ld/De ve l
opme ntAi d’pr og ramme s,f ori ns tance ).Att hes amet i
mewemus t
recogni set hec ompl exr e
lationsbe twe ent he sebl ac k-and- whi t
eoppos i
ti
onsand
thosei dentifi
e dwi th,fori nstanc e,mas culineandf emi nine( seeGENDER STUDI ES,
pp.115–116)anduppe r(ormi ddle)c l
a s
sandwor kingc l
ass.Thuse veni ntermsof
crude l
ydomi nantdi scour ses,the rear ec ompl icati
onsi nt hewayswemus tf rame
notionsofr aceande thni c
ity.The sef r
a me smus tbes upe r
impos edont hoser elati
ng
tosexual ityandg ende r,classa ndr ank, aswe llase duc ation,r e
li
gion,region,a ndt he
l
ike. I
ns hor t,evenl eavingas idet hemat t
erofa ctual ti
me s,placesandname s,i
tmake s
ahugedi ffer
e ncewhe therwet hinkofawhi teorabl ackpe rsonas ,say,fe male,
middl e-cl
as sandMus lim orma le
,wor king -clas sandChr i
s t
ian.Andofc our sethe
compl icationsmul tiply pr odigious l
yonc ewea dd i n‘ mut ed’and ‘alternative’
dime nsionsofa llthe ses uperimpos eda nd,i nr e ali
ty,ce asel
e ss
lyshift
ingf r
ame s(for
rel
ate dwor konot herki ndsofmul ti
cul t
ur al,pol it
icalandphi l
osophicaldiff
e rence,
seeMARXI SM, FEMI NISMa ndPOSTSTRUCTURALI SM) .

Ho
wtop
rac
tis
ePos
tcol
oni
alap
pro
ach
esi
namul
ti
cul
tur
alwo
rld

Ge
ner
alf
rame
s
Beginbyputtingyour
sel
f‘onthemap’,bot hgeographic
a l
lyandhist
ori
call
y.Whe re
i
nt hewor l
dar eyou?Whe redidyourf amilyandpe opleyouknow c omef r
om –
whe n,wher
ea ndwhy?What ,f
orins
tance,wasthe i
rli
kelyrel
ationt
othe‘s
lave-
tra
de
tri
angle’be
twe enBri
tai
n,Af r
icaandt heCar ibbean/
Ame r
icas?(
Seethemapsi n
Appe ndixA andAc t
ivi
ty(b)in1.4f orde t
ail
e dsuggest
ions.)Morepartic
ularl
y,
consider
:

♦ thev ar i
ousphasesofpos t/
c ol
oniali
sm( i
ncl
udingne o-col
onialism)inwhi chyouar e
directlyorindir
ectlyimplicated.Howf ardoy ouidentif
yy ourselfwithc olonise
rsor
wi t
hc oloni
sed?wi t
hin orbe yond theBr iti
shI s
les,We s
tern Eur ope ,Ame r
ica,
Aus t
r ali
a?withinorbe yondwhat everc e
ntre(s
)youi denti
fyas‘ home ’?
♦ theki ndsandde greesofmul ti
culturali
smi nwhi chyouar edir e
ctlyori ndir
ectly
implic at
edbecauseyoul i
vewhe re
,whe nandhow y oudo.Re pr
e s
entativesofwhat
ethnica ndotherculturalgr
oupsdoyour outinel
y(orr are
ly)comei ntoc ont actwit
h?
Whi chdoy ouonl yknow thr ought heme dia(TV,films ,news papers,ma gaz i
nes)?

Goont oreflectupontheki
ndsofLANGUAGEyouus
eandthekindsofLI
TERATURE
you arestudyi
ngwi t
hane y
eand eartothei
rpost
/col
oni
alandmul t
icul
tur
al
impl
icat
ions:

♦ Whatv ari
eti
esofEng l
ish(incl
udingaccentsanddialect
s)doyouus e?Whats t
andard
doyoui dent
ifywith–Br iti
sh,Ame r
ican,Indian,Caribbean,et
c.?
♦ Wouldy oucategori
sethet ext
syouarec urre
nt l
ystudyingnati
onally
,int
ernat
ional
ly
orinsomeothe rway(e.g.asEngl
ishorAme ri
canorAus t
ral
ianLite
ratur
e;Lit
erat
ure
inEngli
sh;Englis
hS t
udi e
s;Compar ati
ve(Commonwe alt
h,Postcol
onial
)Liter
atur
e;
Wome n’sWriti
ng;Lite
raryorTe xtualStudies
)?
Pos
tcol
oni
ali
sm andmul
tic
ult
ural
ism 151

Sp
eci
fict
ext
Noti
cethattheseque s
tionscanbeputt oanytext
,whe
the
rornotitha
sanobvi
ousl
y
post
/col
onial,ethnicormul tic
ulturaldi
me ns
iontoi
t.(Re
vis
ingviewsofwhati
s
obvi
ousisits
e l
fpa r
toft heproje
ct.)

Whe reint hewor l

ddid–a nddoe s–thetextcomefrom?Whowr oteorproduc e
di t–
forwhom,whe re,whe n,whya ndhow?I sitnoti
ceablyethnocentri
c(e.g.Anglo-,
Euro-,Af rocentri
c)inthepeopleandpl acesitr
epresents
,orint hecommuni cat
ive
andme diacir
clesinwhichitmove s
?
(Allthef ol
lowi ngquest
ionsmayf ocusiniti
all
yone t
hnici
ty;buttheys houldbe
extende da ndcompl ic
atedsoast oac knowledgeothe rdif
fer
e ncesofclass,rank,
gender,sexualit
y,ageande duca
tion,etc.
):

♦ Whi chpe rs
onsorpe opl esar ec e nt r
ed,mar g i
nal i
sedori gnor ed–ge ogr aphi c all
ya nd
socially?Doyouf eelthatanygr oupi sov e
r -
,unde r
-,mi s-orun- repr es ent ed?( What
ifroleswe r
er eversed,s ay,orbac kgroundfig ureswe remov edt ot hef or eground? )
♦ Arer a cialore thnics te reoty pe sr e i
nforcedorc hal l
eng ed?Fori ns tanc e ,how f ardo
phys i
ol og ic
albui ldandphy s ical appe arance( compl exion,ha ir
,bones truc tur e,dress,
bodyl ang uage)s uppor tapa rticul arcultural‘placing’and,pe rha ps,mor al evaluat i
on?
Whoa rer e
alisedas‘ selve s’–ne ara ndknown,f amiliara ndpe rhaps‘ nor ma l’?And
whoar er eal
isedas‘ othe rs ’–f a randf or e
ign,unf ami liarandpe rhapse xot icor
grotesque ?
♦ How f a rdoe st het exts eemt oas sumeoras sertsomeoft hedomi nant‘ bl ack-and-
whi te
’pol a
r i
ti
espr esent edabov e( e.
g.c ult
ur ev .na t
ur e;r e
as onv .f eeling ;s ciencev .
supe r
s tition;Chr istianv .he at he n)?Andhow f ardoe si ts eemt oof fer‘ mut ed’
positions ,ore xplor ege nui ne lyal ter
na tivepos si
bilities( perha psbys hi f
tingor
compl e telys witchingt het ermsoft hear gume nt)?
♦ Aret he reanyge nr esorc ultur alf r amesofr e f
er e
nc ewhi chareunf ami lia rtoyou?For
instanc e,ar et he reanydi s tinc tionsbe twe enorc onf usionsof ,say ,l iterat ureand
performanc e,storyandhi stor y,orfic ti
onandf act,whi chyoufinds triki ng ?Anda re
theres tor i
es,my ths ,l
e gends , religi ousimag ery,wor ld-viewsy ou’vene ve re nc ount er
e d
before?
♦ How mi ghtyoui nte rpre t( andpe r
hapse ve nr ewrite )thet e
xts oast omakei ts
post/col onialandmul ti/cultur aldi me nsionsmor e–ordi f
ferently–‘ obvi ous ’?Be caus e
everyt exti salwa ysal readyi ns omes ensebot hpos t/
col onialandmul ti/cul t
ur al,this
isquitepr operlyama tternotonl yoft hei ni
t i
alwr iti
ngbuta l
soofs ubs e que ntr eading
andr e wr iti
ng.

Ex
amp
le

ReadBil
lyMa rs
hal
l-
Stoneki
ng’s‘
Pass
age’
(5.
1.6b)wi
ththeacc
ompanyingnote
sa nd
aboveques
tionsandsuggest
ionsinmind.Thencompareyourr
esponsestothose
bel
ow.

‘
In’butnot‘of
’Engli
sh.Thefirstthi
ngt hats
tri
kesmea boutthiste
xtist
hatEngl
is
h
i
sbeingtal
kedaboutasanoptionalme dium.Theactofusingitiscomment
edupon
e
xplici
tl
yandt he
rebyfore
grounded:‘Theoldestman...s peakstomei nEngl
is
h’;
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 152

‘Wes pe akt oeac hot he rinEng l

is h’.I mpl icitly,some whe rei nt heba c
kg round,i st he
sens et hatanot herl ang uagemi ghtbeus e d,onet hatt hatwoul dnotpr ompts uch
surpr ise,onet hatwoul dpe rhapss uit‘ theol destmani nt hewor ld’andt heoc cas ion
bette r
.And y e t,be caus et hist exti swr itteni n Engl ish,wear er eading and
unde rstandi ngi t.I ti ss tillpr ovi ngs er viceabl e.Engl i
s hbr ingsyoua ndIa ndt he
narr atorandt heol de s tmani ntoc ont ac t
.Weunde rs t
a ndt he m –af t
eraf ashion.But
perhapsonl ya fteraf a shion.Fort hes trongi mpl ica t
ionoft hepoe m,r einfor cedby
thenot e s,istha tthe‘ ot her ’,unme ntione dye tpot e ntiallymor ee xpected,l angua gei s
‘Abor iginal ’
.That ,c learly,i st hec ult ureofwhi cht heol de stmans peaks ,al be it
throught hev erba lme dium ofa not he r.
Butt he rear eot he rs ignsofa ni nter playofc ul tures :appa rent l
yslightye ts ubt le
inti
mat ionsofs ight sands ensa tions .Fr om t hev eryfir stl ineourat tentioni sdr awn
tothes eemi nglyune xc eptionalf ac ttha t‘Theol de stma ni nt hewor l
dwe arss hoe s’.
Toyouandme ,whopr obabl ywe a rthe m mos toft het ime ,t hisi snot hings trang e.
Yeta gai n,a swi tht hei nsistentpr e senc eof‘ Engl is h’,t hef oregr oundi ngof‘ shoe s’
prese nc ei mpl iesas igni ficanta bs enc e.Ot he rfoot we armaybe ?Orpe rhapsr at her,
againt a kingourc uef rom t henot esa nda nyot he rc ultur alknowl edg ewehaveof
theset radi t
iona llyf ar -roami ng ,f ast-movi ngpe opl e s,thef ac tt hatwemi ghte xpe ct
nos hoe sa tall.Thei mpl iedabs e nc eismos tlikelyba ref ee t.Thes amepr es
umabl y
goesf ort hef actt ha t‘ Her i
de sinmot orc a rs’.Not icet hati tdoe s
n’tsayhe‘ dr i
ve s’
or‘ ha s’( i.e.owns )ac ar,butt ha the‘ r
ide s ’int he m,a st houg ht he r
ei sac ertain
distanc ebe twe enhi m andt hemac hine .( Thi sdi stanc ei sc onfir me dbyt heus eoft he
mor ef or ma l,now a rc ha i
cphr a se‘ mot orc ar ’
.)Theol de stman’ srel
a ti
ont omot or
carse vi de ntlyinvol ve sne itherc ont rolnorpos sess i
on–s impl yus e.Pr esumabl yi t’s
thepoe t’
sc ar.Att hes amet ime ,t heol de stmans eemspe rfe ctlyc apableofhandl ing
itall.Hee ven,inhi sownwa y,s eemst obet ot al
lyi nha rmonywi t
ht hema chi ne ;or
atleas twe l
labl etor e sista ndr espondt oi t:‘ Her ide si nmot orc ars./Hi sbody:flui d,
capa bl e–ape rfec ts hoc ka bs orbe r’.
Re -mappi nghi /
s tor y.Me anwhi le,wet ooa rei nf ors omes hoc ksas ,
int hec ompany
ofthi spai r
,‘webounc eove rthedi r
tt rac ki nt hebac k/ofaf our -whe eldr i
v e’.For
thisma ynotj us tbea‘ dirtt rac k’t hatt hef our-whe eldr ivei sbounc i
ng‘ over’.The
olde stmanha sal r eadybe gunt o‘ name...Name s’.Pe rha pst he reiss ome thingwe
aremi ss i
ng–orme ssingup.
‘Thattreeisad iggi
n gsti
ck
lef
tb ytheg i
antwoma nwhowasl ooki
ngforhoneyan
ts;
Thatr ock,adingo’snose;
There,onthemo untain,
isth
efootpri
nt
lef
tb yTjangarao nh i
swaytoUl amburr
a;
Heret herockholeo fWa r
nampi–v er
ydanger
o us–’
Ands ohe‘name sName s’and,i nef f
ect
,re-mapst helands capef orhi slistenerint he
car.Andi ncidentall
yf orust oo.Pe rhapsitiswewhoa rethel uckyone sbe causethis
isnoti nanAbor i
ginallang uagebuti nEngl i
sh.Thiswaywec anfollowt he‘Pa ss
ag e’
.
Itleadsusthr oughl egendsot he r
wis eal
mos tcert
ainlyinac cessi
blet ous ;andi tleads
ust oavi si
onoft helands cape,bot hphysicalandmy thical,wec ouldnotot he rwise
hav e.Becausef ormec ertainly,andf oryouqui tepr obably ,noneoft he s
e‘Name s
’
andnoneoft heses t
or i
esi sfami l
iar.Wet here
foreha vet opi eceme aning stoge t
he r
,
toma kesomec oherents enseofpl ants(‘
Tha ttree’
);mi nerals(‘Tha tr oc k’)
;a ni
mal s
(‘adi ngo’
snos e’
);pe ople( ‘thegi antwoman’ ,‘Tjang ara’);place s( ‘Ulambur ra’
,
Pos
tcol
oni
ali
sm andmul
tic
ult
ural
ism 153

‘War nampi ’–orar et he sepe rsona lname stoo?).Touss uc ht rac esmaybeba rel
y
de ciphe rable.Wehav enof rameofs har edstoryorhi stor yi nwhi c ht opl ac et hem.
Wedonote venknowhowma ny, i
fany ,ofthe s
ele gendsar ebas e donwha twewoul d
dis ti
ngui sha ss tory( ant hr opomor phi cmyt h,fol ktale,fabl e )orhi s
tor y( theor al
rec ord,a lbeitrefas hione d, ofs omeac tual s
ettle
me nt ,someac tual ev ents).Inde ed, we
ca nnotatal lbes urewhe t herorhow we l
lourc onv entionalWe s ter
ndi stinct i
ons
be twe en‘ story’and‘ histor y’wi llhol dupi nthiswor ld.Fort hisi saki ndof*or al
nar rative ,andpe rhapsami xof‘ hi /story’We s
te rnersa renotnow f ami liarwi t
h
(thoug hi tspr i
nc ipleswoul dpr oba bl yhavebe enfa mi l
iarenought ot heAng lo-Saxons
andt heNat iveAme ri
c anI ndi answhos angandl istenedt ot heirownl e g
e nds ,historie
s
andl ore ).Mor e ov er
,t hos ec asuallyas sume dc ategor i
es‘ mi ne ral’,‘plant ’,‘anima l
’,
‘pla ce’
,‘pe rson’,maya l
sot urnoutt obei mpos i
ti
onsofal ien, ora tle astinappr opr i
ate,
mi nd- setsandc ul tural f
rame s.Fort hege neraldrif
ta ndc ont inuousflowoft hehi /st
ory
wear ebe i
ngt ol da ndt hewhol es hapeands hiftoft hel ands capewear ehav i
ng
fashi one dforusmays ugg e stsomequi tediff
erentwor ld-sens e:onei nwhi chi tisthe
intui te
dwhol ene ss–nott heana lyt i
caldi screte
ne s
s–t hati sbe ingr ehe arse dand
real i
sed.
Te ll
-tales i
ngs ong.I nf ac t,itist hr ought hisv erbalr ehear salt hatal lthi s–andt his
sens eof‘ a l
lness’–i sbe ingr ealis
e d.Thewor ldisbe ingg ivenc ohe rents ha pe,me aning
andpur pos ebyt heve ryac toft e ll
ingt het ale.Thel andscapei sbe ing ,ine ver ys ense,
‘ani ma t
e d’byt het e
ller–e venast hef e at
uresoft hatlands capeac taspr ompt sfor
himi nt het ell
ing :
‘
ThisisthepoweroftheSong
.
Throughthesi
ngi
ngwek eepeve
ryth
ingal
ive
;
thr
o ughthes
ongsthespi
ri
tskeepusal
ive
.’
Thi sis,t hen,ar eciproc al,s ymbi oticr el
ati
ons hip.TheSongke e pse veryt hinga li
ve;
whi lethes inge r(andbye xte ns i
ons i
ng ers
-alonga ndl is
te ners)ar eallpar toft he‘ us’
that‘ thes pirits’t hrought hes ongs‘ keepal i
ve ’.I tisamode loft hewor l
danda
func ti
onofs i
ngi ngmanype opl ei nt heWe sta renotnow ve ryf ami liarwi th.I tis
ahi /
s t
or ywi t
hi napoe m –a ndpe rha psas ci
enc ewi thinanar t–t ha twema yt he refore
l
e arnal otf rom.
Ol dwor ldsf orne w.Butofc our s
et hereisnotone‘ we ’butatl eastt wo.The re’
s
the‘ we ’wi thint hepoe m( theol de stmanandhi si nterl
oc utor,thepoe t-nar rator )a nd
there ’
sy oua ndIandot he rpe opl eout s
ideit.Ce rtainly,inac r uci
al imagi na tives ens e
,
fort hedur ationofourr eadi ngoft hepoe m,weal lbobal ongasaki ndofc apa cious,
collecti
ve‘ we ’:‘ Webumpal ongt oge t
herint hebac koft het r
uc k....Wes pea kt o
eachot he ri nEngl ish’.‘We ’a lldoi ns omes ens ec ommuni cate,wes ha ret hings .At
thes amet ime ,‘we ’ar ea llofusi ns omec rucialr espe c
tsdi fferent.Int hepoe m,f or
i
ns tanc e,‘Theol destmani nt hewor l
d’isdi st
ing uishedf rom ‘ t
hene we s tmani nt he
wor ld’.Andt hel att
e rac knowl edg esthat‘mypl a ce[ i
s]lesse xac tthanhi s’.Pe rha ps
thene we stmani sl i
terallyonunf ami li
arterrain,l ostev en.Butpe r
ha ps,t oo,hef eel
s
hims elftobemor elos tint hewor ld–ora tleastle sssureofhi s‘place’int heonet hey
arec urr entlyin–t hanhi sol de rc ompani on.Andhe reag aint hes upple me nt arynot es
,
i
nc ludingav er ybr i
e fbi ogr aphy ,mi ghthe l
p usr efi
ne ,poi ntand ‘ loc ate’our
i
nt erpre t
ation. Bill
yMar shal l
- Stone kingisanAme r i
canwhohasa dopteda nda da pted
Aus tralian, espe ciallyAbor igi na l
,ways .Perhaps ,the n,whathei smaki nguspr ivyt o
i
shi sowns ens eofdi sl
oc at ion,i nade quac ye ven,whe nc onf ronte dbyan‘ olde r
’
me mbe rofoneoft hee t
hni cgr oupshei sbeginningt oide ntif
ywi th.Af t
e ral l,i
ts eems
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 154

thatt
hepoe t-
li
stener
,li
keus,nee dstobet ol
dt hesethingsabouttheland/spir
it
-scape
heisin.Ma ybeheknowsmor eoft hemy ths,l
e ge
ndsandhi /
stor
iesthanyouorIdo.
Buthee vi
dentl
yknowsmuc hlessthan‘theoldestma n’helist
enst
o. Wemayt heref
ore
belef
twonde ringav ar
iet
yofthingsbyt hee ndoft hepoe m.Forbynowt helastli
nes
havebuiltupas t
rongerpres
surebe hindthem,anda cquir
edamor esubtlya mbiguous
res
onanc ethanthefir s
tti
meweme tvers
ionsoft hem nea rt
hebe gi
nning:
Wes peaktoeac
ho t
heri
nEngli
sh
ov
e rth
er umb
leofengi
ne,
ove
rtheroaroft
hewh
eel
s.
Hisbody:aperf
ects
hockabs
orber
.
Maybet heolde s
tma nha sane f
fect
iv ewayofde al
ingnotonlywi ththerumbl eand
roarofthecar,butalsowiththe‘rumbl e’and‘roar’ofmode rnWe st
ernlif
e.Wehav e
alr
eadybe entoldexplic
itl
ybyhi mt ha t‘
theDr eamingdoe snotend;iti
snotl i
kethe
whiteman’sway .
’Sove ryli
kelythes hockhi sbodyi sabletoabsorbisthe‘shockof
thenew’(tous eTof fler
’sphrase)aswe l
last helit
eralbumpandbounc eofmot or
cars
.Andve r
yl i
kelyitisthi
squal i
tyofr e
sil
ienceaswe llasthesenseofbe i
ngsure
ofthewor ldandone ’
splaceini tt
ha tthepoe t
-l
istene
ra dmiresandpe rhapseven
wishestoemul at
e.

Ac
tiv
iti
es
(
a) Comparethewaysinwhichethni
cdi f
ferencesarecompli
catedandc ompounde dby
t
hoseofgender
,cl
assa
nda g
einac oupl
eoft hefoll
owingpost/
coloni
altext
s:Nichol
s’
s
‘
Tropi
calDe a
th’(
5.4.
6d);Shakes
pe ar
e’sTheTe mpest(5.
3.2b);Chur c
hil
l’
sCloud9
(
5.3.
3e);Conrad’
sHeartofDarkness(5.2.5b);Achebe
’sThingsFallApart(
5.2.5e)
.

(
b) Drawontheque st
ionsandsugge
sti
onsi
n‘Howtopract
isepostc
olonialapproache
s
i
namul t
icul
turalcontext
’tohel
pframeare
sponset
oanyt extwhichintere
stsyou
i
nt he
ser
espect
s.(Kipli
ng’
sMuhamme dDin(5.
2.5d)of
fersathoroughwor k-out.
)

(
c) Rewritetheextractf
rom Defoe’
sRobinsonCrusoe(‘
ICa l
lHim Friday
’–5. 2.
3b)so
astoexplorealt
ernat
ivesubj
ectposi
ti
onsandper
spect
ives.Consi
derchangesofge
nre
,
medium andpe ri
od,t oo,i
fyouwi sh.Addac omme ntar
yont hepr oblemsand
possi
bili
tie
se ncountered.(
Later
,seeHoldsworth(5.2.3c)forave rsi
ondoneby
someonee l
se.
)

Di
scu
ssi
on

(
i) Engl
is
hthesubj
ecti
stheplacewher
eafunda
mentalqu
est
ionabouti
nte
rcul
tural
re
lat
ionsi
sb e
ingaddres
sed.
Col
inEvans,Engl
ishPeopl
e:TheExper
ienc
eofTeachi
ngandLe arni
ng
Engl
is
hinBriti
shUni
versi
ti
es(1993:213)

(
ii
) Pos
t-c
olo
nia
li
sm[ i
s]analway
spres
entte
nd en
cyinanyli
ter
atur
eofsubju
ga t
ion
marke
dbyas ys
temati
cproces
sofcul
turaldominat
ionthr
oughtheimposit
ion
ofi
mperi
alst
ruct
uresofpower
.
Vi
yayMishraa
ndBobHo dge,
‘WhatisPost-
col
onial
ism’in
Wi l
li
amsa ndChri
sman(1993:284)
Pos
tcol
oni
ali
sm andmul
tic
ult
ural
ism 155

(
ii
i) Thec hal
len
g eofpos
tcoloni
alli
ter
atur
eisthatbyexposi
nga ndatt
a c
kingangl
o-
centricassumpti
onsdi r
ectl
y,itcanrepl
ac e‘Engli
shlit
erature’with‘
wo r
ld
li
teratur
einEng l
is
h’.
JohnDo cker
,‘
TheNe ocol
onialAss
umpti
o ninUn i
vers
it
yT eachi
ngo fEngl
is
h’
(1978)inAs hcro
fte tal
.(1995:445)

(
iv) Al
lofus,
inso
mes ens
e,be
longtothedias
pora;
ever
ynati
oni
shybri
d,be
coming
moresoasmigr
ati
onincr
eases
.
Denn
isWalde,Pos
r t
-Coloni
alLit
erat
ure
sinEngl
is
h(1998:199)

READI NG:Int r
oductor
y: Appi
aha ndSoll
ersinLe n
tric
chiaandMc Laugh l
in1995: 274–305;
Sel
denetal.1997: 221–42;Bha bhainGre
en blat
tandGun n1992:437– 65;Lo wandWo l
fre
ys
i
nWo lfre
ys2001:200– 23;As h
c r
oftetal.2000;Fulle
rs t
udi
es:Boehme r1995;Sai d1978,
1993;Brathwa i
te1984;As hcr
oftetal.
1989, 2000;Spivak1987,1994; Gates1986; Bhabha
1990,1994;Wa lder1998;You ng2001;Moo re2001;Skinner1998;Lo omb a1998;T al
ib
2002.Anthologies:Walder1990:9–16,171– 202,233–303;Will
iamsa ndCh ris
man1993;
Ashcr
oftetal .1995;Sc hwarz1996;Childs1999; Thi
eme1996;Ga te sandMc Kay1997;
Mo or
e-Gil
berte tal
.1997;Pr octer2000.

2.
10 TOWARDSANEW ECLECTI
CISM:ETHI
CS,
AESTHETI
CS,
ECOLOGY...
?
Thea im oft hisfinals ec ti
oni snott ohavet hel astwor dont he ory.Buti tist oput
inawor d( fouroft he m,i nf ac t)f orc e
rtainway sofgoi nga boutt hings .Itisof f ered
asac ont ribut i
ont oac ont inui ngc onv ersationonwha tt he or i
singt hes ubj ect( and
beingas ubj ectwhoac tivelyt he or i
se s)isandmayye tbe .I tal sos eeksi nv ariouswa ys
to‘ s
eet hrough’t hec ur r
e ntPos t-pos it
ions( Pos ts truc tur alism,Pos t mode r nism,
Postcolonia li
sm.Pos t-the ory)wi tht heirpr edomi nants e ns eofbe l
atedne ss,ofbe ing
‘af
ter’rathe rthan‘ dur ing’ or‘ be fore ’thee vent( seePr olog ue ,pp.6– 7) .Abov ea llthis
isaninvi t
at i
ont or eade rst or e vie wa ndr econfigur et heopt ionsf ort hems elves, whi l
e
als
oc ue i
ngs omeoft heke yt e rmsa ndt opicsi nPar tThr e e.
Theki ndofe c
le cticismr eferre dt ohe reisnotr eallyanot her‘ -ism’.Itisnotadi stinct
move me nt,mode lore ve nme thod.Ra ther,iti sthepr ag mat ica cti
vityofga the ring
ands electi
ng,r efini ngandadapt i
ng,wha teve rt ool sa ndt ec hnique swor kwi tht he
mat e
rialsandt aski nhand. Ther ooti sGr eeke kleigin, me ani ng‘ t
os elect
’or‘ toe lect’
,
whi c
ha ret heLa t inf ormst hatc amei ntoEng lish.‘ Ec lectics’wast henamef oral oos e
associ
a t
ionofe a
r lyGr ee kphi los ophe rs(seconda ndfir stc ent ur ie
sBCE)di stingui she d
byt heira ttempt st os ynt he siseav arie t
yofi de alis tandmat e
r i
alistphi losophi es
(Aris
totelian, Pla
t oni c,S toic,Epi curean) ;andt he ywe repr aise dorc ensure dde pe ndi ng
whe t
he rthee ff
or twasj udg e dwor thwhi l
e.‘ Be inge clectic ’
,i ts houldbeobs er
v e d,is
sti
llcons i
de redag oodoraba dt hing.Agai ni ta l
lde pe ndswhe thert her esul tsa re
reckoneds ignifica ntands atisfyi ng.Byde fini tion,t he re for e,t hepr e s
entEc lectic i
sm
isonly‘ne w’i ns of ara si the l
psdr aw at t
ent iont oe xi stingpr a cti
cest hatar er e adi l
y
recognisedbutus ual l
yunac knowl e dged.Fort hef acti st hatv i
rtua l
lya l
lt hemos t
powe rfuland pe rsua s i
vec ont empor ary appr oac he st ur n outt o bemi xt ure s
,
compoundsorhy bridsand, howe verpr inciple d, ins omeme as ur e‘impur e ’–inawor d
eclect
ic.Exampl e sa r et hec onve rge nceofps ychoanal yt i
c ,pos tmode r nandpos t
-
str
uc t
ur alpe r s
pe c ti
v esi nanomi nal l
y‘ pos tc oloni al ’c ritics uchasBhabha,wi th
feminista ndMar xisti nf l
ec tionsi nanot he rnomi nal ly‘ pos tcoloni al
’c riti
cs uc ha s
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 156

Spiv ak;ort hec apac ioust he or eticalr es our c eandni mbl er he toricofs uc hoppone nts
andpr opone ntsofPos tmode r nismas ,say , Ea gletonandJ ame son( avowe dl yMa rxis t
)
andHut che onandWe e don( avowe dl yFe mi nist).Al lt he sewr it
e rsa ree clec tici nt ha t
theyc ont i
nuet or efinea ndde ve lop–t he ydonots impl yi mpos e–t he irpar ticul ar
synt he ses.Thepr esentr e ade ri se nj oine dt odot hes a me .
Et hi csi saha ndy ,hol d- allt ermf ors ys tema tica tt entiont oma tte rsofr ightand
wr ong ,r espons ibi l
ity,jus ti
c e,and,bye xte ns i
on,a l
lki ndsofval ue .Ati tsbr oa de st
ethic se mbr ac esmor a la ndc ultur al‘ at mos phe re’or‘ e t
hos ’( whe nc ee thic s).Al l
appr oac he stot hes ubj ec tar ei ne vitabl ye thical ins of arast heirpr actitione rspr opos e
orpr e suppos eabe tterr at he rt hanawor sewa yofl ooki ngata nddoi ngt hings .I n
thec as eofove rtlys oc ial-hi stor icalappr oac he ss uc hasMar xis m,Fe mi nism and
Pos tc oloni alism,t hee thi ca li mpe rativei sl inke dt omor eorl esse xpl icitpol itical
age nda sas sociate dwi t
hc las s,g ende r, s
e xual it
y, racea nde thni ci
t y.Int hec a seofmor e
nar rowl yt ext-bas e d appr oac he ss uc h asNe w Cr iticism,For ma lism and Pos t
-
struc tur alism( es pec i
a l
lyde cons truc tion) ,thee thi caldi me ns i
oni sus ua llyi mpl iciti n
attitude st ov erba lde v i
c esandt ext ual s
t ruc tur e
s :whatc ount sasc ohe re ntanduni fie d,
orasac cept ablydi scont inuousandhe te rog ene ous .Me anwhi l
e ,themos tpe rsiste nt
gene r alr ationa lef ort her eadi ngands tudyofLI TERATUREi sf undame nt allye thi cal
aswe lla sa esthe ti
c :thati tc ul ti
v ate sas e nseofi magi na tivet ole ranc e ,ac apac ityt o
seemanypoi nt sofvi ew; readi ng‘ ope nsuphor iz ons ’a nd‘ br oade nst hemi nd’ .Tobe
sure ,s ucha nar g ume ntha si tspr obl ems :notal ls t
ude ntsandt eac he rsofEng lishar e
automa ticallyful lofs we etne ssandl ight .(Thec omma ndant soft heNaz ide a thc amps ,
wes houl dr ecal l
,s til
le nj oye dhi ghar t
.)Nonet hel ess,i tisawi de lyhe ldc onvi ction
tha tt heve rypr oc essofs er ious lye ng agi ngwi thc ompl exa ndde mandi ngwor ki s
inhe re ntlyg oodf oryou.Bakht in,f ore xampl e ,a rgue st ha tthec apa cityt obef ul ly
respons iv etoawor k( i.e.‘ res pons e -abl e’)a lsohe lpsr e ade rss ha rpe nt he i
rs ens eof
‘respons ibi l
ity’( seep.261) ,and r elat eda rgume ntsa remadebyma nyc ritics
commi ttedt oRe ade rRe spons ea ndRe c ept ionAe sthe tics( seewr iti
nga ndr eadi ng ,
respons eandr e wr iti
ng ).Somes uc hpos i
t i
onsar ehe ldbyde fende r sandpr opone nts
ofl i
be ral–andl ibe rating–e duc ationa sva riousa sRi coe ur,Nus sbaum Hi llisMi ller
,
Ke ar ne ya ndLe vina s(s eeRe adingp.166) .
Me anwhi l
e ,inpr agmat icappr oac he st oLANGUAGE t he rei sal ong- standi ng
enga ge me ntwi thi ssue sofpowe ra ndr espons ibi l
ity.Thet eac hingofRHETORI C, f or
instanc e,whe the ra nc ientormode rn,di rec tly addr e ssest her e lation be t we en
infor mat iona ndpe rsuas ion.I nanc ientGr e eceandRomet hiswa sint hec ont extof
orat or yandanol i
ga rc hy ,whi che xc l
ude dwome na ndde pende dons lav el abour .
Todayi ti smor el i
ke lyt obei nt hec ont e xtofabr oade r-
bas e dde moc rac ywi th
communi cationsdomi nat edbyt hemul ti-
me di a.Butbot hki ndsofRhe tor icar e
expr e sslyc onc erne dwi thwhati tme ans , int hef ull
e sts ens e,tous el anguag e‘ we ll’or
‘badl y ’
:i nt hee t hicals er viceofwhati st rueandgoodandnotj ustf orae sthe t i
c ally
plea singe ffec t
sandpol itical lye xpe di ente nds .Si mi larc onc ernsar ee xpr ess edi n
cur rentmove me nt ss uc h asCr iti
c a lDi s cour seAnal ys isand Cr itica lLa nguage
Awa re nes s(Hodg ea ndKr ess ,Fai rclough, Ta nne n,Ca me rona ndot he rs)and,l at ter ly
,
Ethi calLi ngui stics( espe ciallyWa les ).The r ear et woma inar easofat tention:

♦ Crit
icalawarene
ssoft heide
ologi
calimplic
ationsofusi
ngc e
rtai
nwor ds
,str
uctures
and variet
iesofl anguage.Thisi ncl
udes( a)s e
nsit
ivi
tytos exualand racial
dis
criminat
ioninlanguage,andrecogni
tionoft hel
oadednatureofsuchchoic
esas
‘t
errori
st/
fre
edom-fighte
r’,‘
fanat
ic/
beli
ever/
infi
del’
,‘we/t
hey’
,‘t
hem/us’
,etc.
;(b)a
Towar
dsanew e
cle
cti
cis
m:Et
hic
s,Ae
sthe
tics
,Ecol
ogy...
? 157

graspoft hei mpl icationsofg ramma ti

ca lstruc tur ewhe ni de ntifyingc aus e s
,a ttribut ing
age ncyandas signingr espons ibili
tyf orac tionsande ve nts( not ablyt hedi ff ere nces
among *ac ti
ve /
pa ssive,*t rans iti
ve/ i
nt r
ans itive,*nomi nal ised and *v e rbal ised
structur es ;se e5.2. 7a) ;a nd( c)a war ene sst hats ome time ssimpl yus ingat e
c hni ca ll
y
spe ci
alistva r i
etyofl angua ge–e venapar ticularl anguag e( Engl ish,s ay )–mays erve
toe xc ludes omei nte res
t edpar ti
eswhi lec ons olidat ingt hepowe rofot he rs.I nt his
respe cttr ans lati
on, bothbr oadl yandnar r
owl yc onc eive d,be twe ens pe cialistva rie ti
es
aswe llasbe twe enwhol el anguag es,isac ruc ia lissue .Asi tisi n...
♦ Conduc tofi ntervi ews ,c ons ul tati
onsandne got iations ;t hedr afti
ngofc ont rac ts,
agr eeme nt s,re c
or dsa ndot herof ficialdoc ume nts.Suc hac tiviti
esar epa rticul ar l
y
significanti nl egal ,me dic al,e duc ationala ndot he rpr ofess i
onalorbur eauc ra ti
c
enc ount e rs( ge t
tingaj oboradvi ce,r ece i
vi ngt re atme nt,be i
ngl eg al lys ent enc ed,
resolvingadi sput e,etc.);butt he ya ri
s eina nydi scour ses it
ua tionwhe rei nfor mat i
on
andopi nionne edt obee l
ic ited,f a
c t
se stabl ishe da ndac tiont a ken.Ins uc hc a sesi tis
acut elyobv ioust ha ts pee chac ts:ithasr ea l,s eriousa nds ome time sl ife-threa teni ng
or- savingc ons eque nc es.Thec rucialc ons i
de r ationi showf art heCOMMUNI CATI ON
isone -,t wo-orma ny-wa y( i.e.ba seduponmonol ogueordi a logue )
, andwhe the rt he
cont rollingdynami ci sc onc eived as‘ t
op- down’ ,‘ bot tom- up’or‘ acros s’( e .g.,
expe rt–l ay ,doc tor– patient ,pol ice–sus pe ct,l e cture r–s tude nt,pr ovi de r–c ust ome r,
citizen–c itiz en,pe r son–pe rson) .Wi thwr itte nandpr inteddoc ume ntst herei st he
adde dma tterofs pe cialised*l iteracys kil
ls( le gal ,financ i
al ,me dic al,e tc .
)andt he
technol ogyus edi nr ecor dinga ndr et
r i
e vi
ngi nf or mat i
on.Me anwhi le ,unde rpi nni ng
alloft he se ac tivitiesar e pr oce ss
e s ofof fic i
alc ertifi
c ation and pr ofe ssiona l
accr edita tion. Ling uistically, t
he seha veapal pa bl y*pe rfor ma tivedime ns iont ot hem:
youc an’ tbeanof fic iall
yr e cogni s
e ddoc tor,l awye r,t eac herorwhat eve runl essy ou
havet heappr opriat e‘bitofpa per’.Doc ume nt ss uc ha spas sports,vi sasandwor k-
pe rmitsc ani nsomec ircums t
a ncesbee ss
e ntialt os urviv ala swe llase mpl oy me nt.

Inallthe seways ,l ang uagenotonl yr efle ctsandunde rwr itesbuti neffecte na ctsa nd
embodi espowe rr e l
at i
ons .Wor dsar etool sorwe aponsa ndmaybewi elde di nway s
thataremor eorl es sir/respons ibleandmor eorl e s
sun/ jus t.The ya reatthev eryhe ar t
ofproc e s
s e
sofl e gitimat iona ndva lidation,a nda rethe r
e fores ubje c
ttoc ove rtc ontr ol
andc onni v
anc e,aswe l
lasbe i
ngt heobj ectsofope nr e-ne got i
ationandr e-va luation.
Butval uesar es hi fti
nga ndc ompl ex,a ndoneki ndofv aluej udge me ntte ndst og et
mixedupwi tha not he r.Asar esult,a nya ppr oac htol ang uag eand/ orliteratur etends
toenta ilnotonl yapar ti
c ularethicsbutal soapa rtic
ulara esthetics.Thati s
,f orbe tte r
andwor se,thes e ns eofwhati sgoodorba dethically(mor al l
y,pol i
ti
c al
ly)t e ndst o
getmi xe dupwi thas enseofwhati sgoodorbada esthet
ic all
y( formal l
y,pe rcept uall
y) .
Therei st hereforeaf unda me nta l
,a ndof tenunde clared, ambi guityaboutvi rtua l
lya ll
tal
kof‘ good’or‘ bad’wr iti
ng,a sof‘ good’or‘ bad’ar t.Doe st hisme anwr itingt hat
ismor al l
ygoodorbadf ory ou?t e chni callygoodorba di ni t
se xecution?ag oodor
badr e pre s
ent ationori mageofs ome thingt hatal readye xistsint hewor ld( and
theref
or ei ns omes ens ei n/accurat eori n/ade quate )
?ag oodorba dpe r
for manc eor
wor kofi magi na ti
oni ni tsownr ight ,andt hereforeun/ suc cessfula tcreatingi tsown
wor l
d?orami xt ureofal lofthe s
e?Tobes ur e,casual talkof‘ good’ and‘ ba d’wr iting
orar tc an bec onf us ingand unpr oduc tive;i ts mac ksofdi lett
ant i
sm and i dl e
opiniona t i
ng.Howe ver,c arefulc ons ide rationoft hei nt errelationsamongva ri
ous
kindsofv aluei sabs olute l
ye ssentialift he reistobeanys e nseofa nintegrate ds ubje ct
aswe lla sanyc la i
mt oi ntegri
tyi ni tss tudy .
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 158

The rei saf ullerdi sc us si

onofae sthe ticsandpl e as ur e,a rta ndbe a ut yint hee nt ry
inPar tThr e e.The rei ti sc onfir me dt hat‘ ae sthe tic s’c anc ar ryi tsbr oadl ypl ur aland
ul ti
mat elyr adi cals e nseof‘ studyoft hec ondi t ionsofs e ns uouspe rcept ion’( t he
me ani ngf avour e dbyKa nt,f rom t heGr ee kr oota isthe te s,‘ thos ewhope rce ive
thr ought hes ens e s’).Conve rsely,‘ theAe sthe tic’ne e dnotbel imi tedt ot henar rowe r
,
es sent iallys i
ngul ars ens e of‘ the i de a oft he be aut i
f ul’t hatunde rwr ot et he
pr edomi nant l
ye litistande scapi st‘ar tforar t’ss ake ’move me ntoft hel ateni ne te ent h
ce ntur y .Al lt hatwi llbea dde dhe rei st hati ti st empt ingt ov entur es omeki ndof
compoundappr oa cht ov aluet hatwemi ghtc al l‘Ae s th-e thic s’.Thee mphas ist he ni s
upon t het ens ionswi thi n and be twe en var i
ousval ues yste ms ,t he i
rpoi nt sof
conve r genc ea swe llasdi ve r
ge nce .‘ Ae sth- ethi ca lly’s pe aki ng ,f ori ns tanc e,wemay
obs ervet ha tmanyoft hec rit
icalappr oa che sr e vie we di npr evi ouss e cti
onse nt aila
dis ti
nc tivea esthe tic sa swe l
lase thic s.( Putanot he rwa y ,e ac hhasadi s t
inc ti
v e*poe tics
aswe llaspol itics .)NEW CRI TICI SM, fori ns tanc e ,c e lebr at esc e rtainki ndsoft e xtual
‘whol e ne ss’and‘ uni ty’pr oduc edbyt hepar a doxi c alr esol ut ionof‘ tens ions ’and
‘ambi gui ties’.I tt endst o bene o- c lass i
c ala nd ‘ Hi gh’Mode rnisti nt empe rand
cons erv at ivei n pol itic s,and wor ksbe stwi thl yr i
cpoe tryand s hor terf iction.
Tr adi tionalf or msofMARXI SM
ar ede di c atedt o‘ tot alising ’and‘ wor ld- histor ical ’vi sionsofs oc i
alr e alitybui l
tal ong
line sofc las s-confli ct;the yt endt of av ourl ar ge -sca le ,e nc yc lope di cfic ti
oni nar ea lis
t
mode . Me anwhi le, mor ee xpe rime nt alf or ms of Ma rxi sm and CULTURAL
MATERI ALI SM ( re pre sent edbyBr ec htandBe nj ami n)ar ef armor ec ommi tte dt o
frag me nt eda nddi scont inuousdr ama ticandna r rat ivef or ms( e venwhe nnomi nal ly
‘epi c’)
;a ndt he ypr opos eamor edynami c allyr ev ol ut ionar yv i
s ionofpol i
tica lc hang e
thr ough‘ shoc k’a nd‘ maki ngs trange ’.FORMALI S TS , ont heot he rhand,ma yc onc e rn
the ms e lve sc hi eflywi t hpe rceptual*de fami l
ia risat ionandl ingui stic*de vi ation;but
the yr a relyt aket het ur nbac kfr om f or mt of unc tion,a ndt extt oc ont e xte njoi ne dby
the irFUNCTI ONALI S Ts uc cessors .POSTSTRUCTURALI STSa ndPOSTMODERNI S TS,
like wi se,mayi nva riousway sbepol i
tica l
lye lus ive ,s ubmi ssiveors ubve r si
v e.I tal l
de pe ndshow f art hei ns t
a bili
tyoft hes ubj ecti sc onc e ive dasani ndiv idual ,col lec tive
orc olla bor at i
vemat te randwhe the rt hepl ayofdi ffe renc ei nv e rba l,int ertext ua la nd
cros s -
me di as pac ei sme relys elf-refle xi veorpr ompt sc ritica lr efle ctionont hewor ld
be yond.Fi nal ly,FEMI NI STa ndPOSTCOLONI ALa ppr oa che sa repa r ti
c ularlynot abl e
fort hewi der a ngeofe thic al-
ae sthe tica ndpol itica l-poe ticage ndast he yaddr ess ;al so
thes he erv ar ietyoft he or iesanddi sc i
pl i
ne st he ydr aw uponandr e config ur e.The y
ar et he refor e‘ ec lectic’i nt hef ul l
es t,mos tfle xi bleandc ont ent iouss ens eoft hewor d.
Soi st heappr oa ch–andfinalke yt erm –f eatur e dne xt .
Ec ologyi sthes tudyoft hee vol vingi nte rrelationsamongna tur al–i nc ludi nghuman
–s yste ms ,al sot hes ys temst he ms elve s.The‘ e co- ’par tde r i
ve sfr om Gr ee koi kos ,
me aning‘ hous e hol d’or‘ home ’,ar ootwhi che col ogys ha reswi the conomi c s(inwhi ch
cas ea lle c onomi csi si ns omes ens e‘ homee conomi cs ’).Thedi ffer e
nc eist hate col ogy
de signat es‘ study’ ,‘ knowl edge ’or‘ unde rstandi ng’( from Gr e ekl ogos )whe re as
ec onomi csde signat es‘ cont rol’,‘manage me nt’or‘ di re ction’ (from Gr e eknomi a) .The
pe rsiste ntc hal l
e nge ,i nf act,ist obr ingt het wot oge the rt opr oduc eaki ndof
‘unde rs tandi ng- mana ge me nt’or‘ knowl e dg ea ble -c ont r ol’:e c onomi c sinf or me dby
ec ologi c alawar ene s s,anda ne col ogyt ha ti se c onomi c allyvi abl e.Cr uc ially ,t his
de pe ndsupont hede fini tionsof‘ hous ehol d’or‘ home ’,andar e cogni tiont ha tt he se
di fferf rom c ultur et oc ultureandva ryove rt ime .TheLa tinc ount e rpar tofGr e ek
oi koswa sha bi t
us ,whi chal soc ar riedar ang eofs e ns esf rom ‘ huma nhabi tat i
on’t o
Towar
dsanew e
cle
cti
cis
m:Et
hic
s,Ae
sthe
tics
,Ecol
ogy...
? 159

‘natur a lhabi ta t’.InDa rwi n’sTheOr i

ginofSpe cies( 1859) ,forins tanc e,‘inhabi tant s
’
isre gul ar l
yus edt or e fert oanyor ga nism –human,a ni malorpl ant–t ha toc cupi es
ac ommons pac e .Fort heGr eeks, oikoswasas imi lar l
yc apa ciousa ndfle xi blec onc ept.
Att heve ryl eas titc ov e rede veryone‘ unde rt hes amer oof ’a nd,s ot os pe ak,‘ heldby
thes amehous e ’( notj us tthehous e -hol derast henomi nalowne roft hepr ope rty).
Mor ege ne r ally,i te mbr ac ednotonl yt hei mme di ate,‘ nuc lear ’fami lyofpa rent sa nd
childr enandt hel ar ger,‘ ext ende d’f ami l
yofgr a ndpar e nts,unc les,aunt sandc ous ins
etc.,buta lsot hes erva nt sands lave saswe l
last hel ive stoc kandt hea ttac he dga rde ns
andfie lds .Al lbe longe dt oa ndwe rei de ntifie dwi tht heoi kos .Thi swa st he refor ea
mode lofc ommuni tybas e dnotj us tuponbl ooda ndf ami lyt iesbutonas ens eofpl ac e
ands ha reds pac e.Norwasi tlimi tedt ohumans ;thoughi twa sc ertainl yc ent redon
humans oc ialor gani sat ion.Thec ombi nedhuman– ani mal ,hous e –fie lds ens eoft he
archai cnot ionof‘ eco- ’/oikos( liket hatofLat inhabi tus)i swor ths tre ssing .Fori ti s
oftenc asual lya s sume dt hate cologyi ss impl yaf addi s hwor df orbi ol og yornat ur e
and,c onv er sely ,tha te conomi csi sapur elyhumana ffair.I nr ealit
y ,howe ve r
,t het wo
activit i
e sa r eint i
ma telya ndi ntricate l
yi nterc onne cted.The yar ede epl yc olour edby
thepol i
tic soft he i
rpa rtic ularhi stor icalmome nt,t oo.Asal readyme nt ione d,Gr ee k
‘hous ehol ds ’we reor ga nis e
dhi erarc hical lyi nt er msofme n,wome nands lave s
;j ust
asRoman‘ hous eholds ’we rec ircums c ribedbynot i
onsofc i
tizens hipande mpi re.
Mode rn‘ ec ology’mov e me nt smaybeal igne dwi tht he‘ g r
e en’pol i
ticsofaj us ta nd
sustai nabl egl obale c onomybas edon‘ fair ’r athe rt han‘ free’t rade .Buts imi lar
argume nt smaybea ppr opr iated,e spe ciallybya dve rtise rs,tounde r wr i
teame reba c k-
to-nat ur e‘ or ga ni c’l i
fes tylef ort her ichwhoc ons ume–nott hepoorwhopr oduc e .
Tha tsai d,t hei mpl icat ionsf oraf ul l
ye col og ical–e conomi cgr aspoft hes ubj ect( in
princ ipl ea nys ubj ect)ar epr odigi ous .Thec e ntra lf oc ust he nbe come sac ompl e x
phe nome nonwemi ghtc al l
huma nity -i
n- na tur ea ndnat ur e-i
n- huma nity( r athe rthan,
say,humannat ur ev ie
we dasas epa rat ea ndpr i
v il
e gede ntityi nanar r
owl yHuma nistic
sens e);andt hemai ni ss ue shav et odowi thki ndsofr ela ti
onandi nte rcha nge ,a nd
dynami cpr oc e sse sofe vol utionandbe c omi ng( ra the rt ha n,s ay,es se
nc e ,ide nt itya nd
fixe ds tate sofbe i
ng ).Ra di calEc olog yt he refor es har eswi thPOSTSTRUCTURALI SMa
conc e rnwi tht hei nterre lationsamongs tnot iona llywhol es ystemsi ns of arast he se
arepe rc eive dt obeope na ndi npr oc essa ndt oha vei nde te rmi nateormul tiplec entre s
.
Its har eswi th POSTMODERNI SM ac onc er n wi tht hehuman/ nat ur e/te chnol ogy
inter fac e;wi thFEMI NI SM a ndQue erSt udi esac onc e rnwi tht he‘ nat ur al ne ss’or
othe rwi seofc ur re ntmode lsofbot hGENDER andSEXUALI TY ( espe ciallyt hena tur e
oft hebody ,re pr oduc t i
onandc ont ra cept ion) ;a ndwi thPOSTCOLONI ALI SM ac onc e rn
withwha titi st obe‘ na tiv e’andha ve‘ root s’oras ens eof‘ be l
ongi ng’or ,c onv erse ly
,
whati tist obe‘ root l
e ss’ or‘ enr out e’ –di spl ace d,mi gr ator yornomadi c–move dby
as ens eof‘ longi ng ’.Thet hr eemai ns trandsoft hepr e sents ecti
onmayt he re forebe
wove nt oge the rt hus :

♦ Ethic
si sconcernedwithpr incipl
esofj ust
ice,r i
ghtandr esponsi
bili
tythatlayclai
m
tosomede greeofc ommona ndult
imat el
yuni versalappli
cabil
it
y–whe therbas
edon
sharedreason,huma ni
ty,thes anc
tit
yofl i
fe,humi lit
ybeforegodorde ath,orsci
enti
fic
laws.Cr uci
all
y,suc hprinciplesarealwayst estedandputt othepr oofbyc ontact
,
ofte
nc oll
isi
on,wi t
hva l
ue sandbe l
iefsyste
mst hatarerel
ativel
ylocalandhi s
tori
cal
ly
speci
ficbutwhi chthems el
ve soft
enc l
aimt obea bsolute
.

♦ Aes
thet
icsi
sconc
ernedwit
hthere
ali
sat
ionofki
ndsofwhol
enes
sandsa
tis
fac
tionin
pe
rcept
ionand expe
rie
nce,commonlyexpres
sedasatensi
onbetweengestur
es
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 160

towardssomeultimatet
otali
tyorinfini
tyont heonehandandimme diat
eimpulses
towardsfiniteyeti
ntens
elycharg
edpa r
tic
ular
sont heothe
r.Thismayalsoinvolv
e
thetens
ionbe t
we e
na*f ormalaest
heti
cthatc l
aimssomekindofidealpuri
tyand
unit
y,andv ari
ous*functi
onalaest
heti
csthatarefel
tinpract
icet
obei rre
ducibl
y
plur
alandc oncr
ete.

♦ Ecol
ogy,meanwhil
e,isconcer
ne dwithaninte
grate
d,noti
onal
lyholis
ticvi
ew of
human–nat
urals
yst
ems,eventhoughata nypoi
ntintimeorspa
c et
hesesyst
ems–
whet
hernominal
lyorgani
corme chanic
al–aresee
nt obeopenandevolvi
ng.They
arei
nproces
sofbecomingyetothersys
tems.

The rear et wot hings ,the n, thatc har a cteriseal l thesepr oje ct
s: (i)ac onc ernwi thki nds
ofwhol ene ssanduni versal i
tyandwi t hva lue st hatar eins omeme asur ehe ldi n
common;( i
i)ar ecog ni ti
ont hatv alue sdi ffera ndva ry,a ndar ear r
ive da tbypr oce ss
e s
ofv al uationt hati nvol vec onfli ctaswe llasc oope ra ti
on.He nc et hepe rsi
s tentne ed
forme t
hodst hatar ec apac iousandfle xibl e,g ene rousye tpr inc iple d.He nc e,he re,the
argume ntf oraki ndofe cl
e cti
c i
smt hede fini ngc ha racte risti
cofwhi chi spr ecis el
yt he
attemptt og at herawhol ehos tofdi ffere ntappr oa che sa nds ynt he siset he mi nwa ys
thatar es ignific anta nds atisfying.Thoug hi ts houl dbea dde dt hatt hisi sne ce ssari
l y
alwaysi ns omewayuni quet oe ac hpe rsonandoc cas ion.And,ofc our se,t hepr esent
reade rmayhav eobj ectionst oal loft hi s
.I sn’titl impl y‘ libera l’orme rely‘ pr ag mat ic’?
orpe rha psf art oo‘ radi ca l’
?ors impl y,mos tt e l
lingly–wi tht hee mphas isont he
negat ive–e cle ct
ic ?!Butt hat’sfinet oo.Foryouwi llt he nhavet os tat ec lear lyjus t
whatyourowng roundsf orga t he ring ,s e l
e ctinga nds ynt he sisingmat erial sand
me thodsandmode lsar e–andi fnote t hical l
y,ae sthe ticall
ya nde colog i
cal lyi nt he
prese nts e nse s,the ni not he rsyoupr e f
er.Andi fnott he sete rms ,t he nye tot he rsof
yourownfindi ngandf ashi oning.Fort he rea repl entyt oc hoos efr om i nt hepr evious
sections ,andpl ent ymor eint hene xtpa rtoft hebook. Equa llyi mpor tant ly,t he rear e
plent ynoti nt hisbooka nd,pe rha psmos ti mpor ta nt,s omenoty etina nybookor
essayordi scus sionatal l.Unl essorunt il,t ha ti s
,s ome onede cide st owr iteors a y
them.You,f ori ns tanc e.
Re turni ngt oEng l
ishSt udi esinpar t
icul ar,wes eet hatma nyoft he s eiss ue shav e
beenar oundi nonef or m oranot he rf oral ongt i
me .A f undame ntallye t
hi cal
commi tme ntt ot hec ul t
iva ti
onofdi scr imi nat ingj udge me ntandpowe rsofr i
ght
action,ove randabov eme remat ter soft asteandappr e ciation,i sape r si
s t
e nts train
inthes ubj ect.Thi sisapr oj ecttowhi c hfigur esasv ariousa sAr nol d, Ric har ds ,Le avis,
Wi ll
iams ,Eagl e t
on,Be lseyandSpi va kal lc ont ribut e,a l
be itwi thr a dicallydi fferent
aimsandag enda s.Me anwhi l
eabr oa dlye c ologi calc onc ernwi thhuman/ na tur eand
peopl e /
pl acer elationsi sade ep-root e dandpe re nnialf e atureoft hes ubj ect,i mpl icit
ins omeofi tsCl as sicalor i
ginsande xpl iciti nmuc hofi tsRomant icl egac y.Wha t
foll
ows , the refore ,isaki ndof‘ ecol ogi cal’c he cklistoft e rmsandt opi cs.I tisde dicated
towha tmi ghtbec all
e d( some wha tc umbe r
some l
y )re -
va luat i
onsa ndr e-pre sent ations
ofpe opl ei npl a cei nt ime .Butr eally ,likeal ltheot he rc heckl ists,ifi the lpspr ompt
somee xpl ora ti
onanda rgume ntitwi llha ves erv edi tstur n. (Not icet ha ttheque stions
ands ugge sti
onst hatf ollow c a n–a ndi ns omeway smus t–beaddr esse dt oy our self
andt oot he rsaswe llast ot het exti nhand.Fort hos ear epr ope rlye cologi c aland
eclecticmov e s,too. )

♦ Hous
ehol
d,fa
milyandcommuni
ty(oi
kosandhabi
tus
).Arethe‘
house
holds
’base
d
onpr
opert
y,l
and,rank,bl
oodt
ies
,fri
ends
hip,oc
cupat
ion?andarethe
ywi t
hor
Towar
dsanew e
cle
cti
cis
m:Et
hic
s,Ae
sthe
tics
,Ecol
ogy...
? 161

wit
houtser
vants
,animals,e
tc.
?Ar et
hefamili
esone-pare
nt,nuc
lear
,extende
d...?
Whatoftheotherover
lappi
ngc ommunit
iesbasedons t
reet
,nei
ghbourhood,fa
rm,
vi
ll
age,work,recr
eati
on,ne t
work,etc
.?Ov erall
,isthereasenseof‘ home’or

famouslyinJaneEyr eandWut heri

ngHe ig
hts,iti
sthel argerhous ehold,including
suchfiguresasadopt e
dr el
ativ
e s
,serva
ntsandg over
ne ss
es,thatisthepr i
ma rys ocia
l
unitandfocus;itisnot‘family’inanar rowlyblood-ba se
d,a ndstillle
s samode rn
‘
nuc l
ear’
,sense
.Thor nfieldHal l,t
heHe ightsandThr ushcrossGra ngear eallmor e
populousandvar i
ousthant helatt
eralone,anda ls
oe xtendt hroug
ht hebui ldi
ng sto
thelandsc
apesbe yond.)

♦ Identi
tyandi dentificati
on:‘roots’or‘ routes’
.I sthe r
eas ens eofroot les
snessorof
being‘enr out e’,perhapsasami grantornoma d–andi sthise xperiencedasag ood
orbadt hi ng?Re la
tedly,aretheres trongi dentificationsbe twe enac haract
era nda n
envir
onme nt,oramooda ndapl ace ?(Thel atteri ssome t
ime s,followingRus kin,
negati
ve l
yr e
fe r
redt oasthe‘pathe ti
cf allacy
’;itmaybemor epos i
ti
ve lyconceiveda s
the‘geniusors piri
tofpl ace’
,geniusl oc i)
.Alternat i
vely,aret herestronga ntipathies
andma rkeddi s
junc t
uresbetwe e
npe rsonsandpl ac es–pe rha psthes enseofahos til
e
envir
onme nt ,whe therthreateningna tureora li
ena ti
ngs oc i
e ty?Of ten,infa ct
,t he
dynami car is
e sfrom as e
nseofbe long ingto–a ndl ongingf or–di ffe
r entplac
e s,t
ime s
andsoc i
als pac es.(
Thes lavenarrativesi n5.2.3of ferparticularlypoig nantandve xed
imagesofbe /
longing ;butsuchs trainsc anbet racedi nvir t
ua ll
yal lauto/bi
og raphy
andtrav elwr iti
ng( see5.2.1and5. 2.2)andul timat elyinmos tprojecti
onsofpe ople
in–andoutof–pl aceandt i
me ;e .
g .Wor dswor thandCl are,5. 4.
2aand5. 3.4a. )

♦ Lif
eandde ath,timea ndc ha nge ,
pat ter
na ndr hythm. Howa rethef undame ntal cycle
s
ofbirt
h,l i
feandde athre alised?Andwhatoft hef undame ntala ctivit
iesofe ati
ng ,
dri
nking,s l
ee pi
nga nds ex?I sthepa ss
ag eoft imegaug edbys una nds tars,lighta nd
dark,chang esofs eaorr ive r,ther evolvings eas ons?Ori sittiedt owor ks chedul es,
thesocialandr el
igiousr ound,c lock-timeandc al
endar s
?(Of ten,i nf ac
t,t herei sa
mixtureof‘ na t
ural’and‘ artifici
al ’cyclesinpl ay.
)Goont oga ugehow f arthet ext
notonlyr epre s
entsbutac tuallye mbodi esande nactsac ert
ainr hyt hm orpat te rnof
li
fe(i
ni tsformalor g ani
sa tion,fori nstanc e);al s
oc onsiderhow f art hisiss i
mi larto
yourownwayofl i
fe.(Ane xt r
emee xampl ewoul dbet heSe minol ec hants,5. 1.6a ,
withtheirritualcelebrati
onandc omme mor at ionofhumanbi r
tha ndde athi nt erms
ofther egulart urningoft hehe avens ,thes e asonsandt hesoc ialr ound.Anot her,
equall
ye xtre
me ,i
sBe ckett’sNotI ,5.3.3d, inwhi chthereisradicalunc ertai
nt yabout
whats t
or yandhi st
or ythe‘ Mout h’t e
llsa ndhow i tstandsinr elationt ot her estof
it
sbodyandl if
e–ori nde edwhe theriti salrea dyde adordi sembodi ed.)

♦ Peopleapar tof–orapa rtfr

om –Nature?Howfarishuma ni
tyrepr e
sentedasapa r
t
oforapa rtfrom therestofnatur
e,inharmonyoratoddswi t
hi t
?Andi s‘Nature’
conc e
ivedasahos pita
bleorhos t
il
eforc
e ?Ei
the
rwa y,arenaturalforcesconcei
ved
as‘inter
nal’tohuma ni
tyandge ne
ratedf
rom wit
hin,or‘e
xternal
’a ndimpos edfrom
without?Al lthi
sc anbee xpre
sse
di nte
rmsofthreemaj orandr ecurre
ntt opi
csin
li
teraryandc ult
uralhis
tory:

1) Ver
sionsofpas
tora
l.St
ere
otypic
ally
,past
oralisagenrei
nwhic
hshepherdsi
n
par
ticul
ar(Lati
n pas
tor= s hepherd)orc ount
ry-dwe
lle
rsi
ng e
ne r
ala r
e
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 162

representedi na ni dyllic
a ll
yi deali
seds tateofs impl i
c i
tya ndi nnoc enc e,f arf rom
thecompl e xi llsande xc esse sofcour torc ity
.Some ti
me sthisge t
si nfle ctedi n
termsofpa radi salg ardens t
at e
s,beforet heFal l
.Alt e
rna tive
ly,c ount ryf ol kar e
presentedasbr utalandbac kward,c ount rybumpki nsorboor ishpe asant s.I n
bibli
calt ermst heyma yl ivei nawi lds tateofna tur e
,af terthee xpul sionf rom
theGar de nofEde n.I ns ocialterms,pas tor alima gesofa‘ back- to-na tur e’ki nd
oftenunde r
wr i
teas ens eofor ganicc ommuni tyandbe l
ongi ng :‘apl ac ef or
everyone... ’.Buts ome ti
me sthisi
mpr es si
oni soffsetbyc ount er-i
mage sofnat ure
redint oot ha ndc la w,ofpr i
mi ti
veli
f easnas ty,brutisha nds hor t,and,s ocially
,
byanoppr essiv esens eofol d- f
ashi
one d, se
mi -
feudal hier
ar chy:‘... ande v eryone
intheirpl ace’.Typi call
y,i nmanyapi eceiti sthemove me ntbe twe ent he ses tates
thatdriv e
st hepl otandi nformst hemai niss ues.(
InWr oth,5. 1.
2. b,fori ns tanc e
,
thefoundl i
ngUr ani astrug gleswithas e nseofnotqui t
ebe l
ongi ngandfindss he
isnotofs hephe rds tocki nt hecount rybutapr inc es
sf rom t hec our t.I nThe
Tempe st,5. 3. 2b,t hee ther ealArie
landt hee arthyCal iba nr epr esentt wov ery
diff
erentas pe ctsof‘ nat ure ’ t
he i
rma st
e r
,t hear i
s tocrat-mag i
c ian
Prosper o.Cont empor aryve rsi
onsofpas toralonTV i nc ludee verythi ngf r om
garden‘ make - overs’t otra velprogramme sand‘ castaway ’challeng es.)

2) Thec ityass ec ondna ture.He real t

ernative st endt obef rame dint er msoft he
de l
ightsanddi st
re ssesofur banl ivinga sawhol e,wi thoutr ecour set or ur al
compar isons .Aboveal li tist hec apitalcity,t heMe tropol is,thati ss ee nasan
interlockings ys t
em ofwor l
dswi thinwor lds, ani ntri
catene twor kofc ultur esand
sub-c ultures.Thus , asbot hmyt ha ndl ivedr eal i
ty ,
ac it
ys uc hasLondon( orPa ris
orNe w Yor korS ydne yorDe lhiorBombay )t endstof e aturea st hehe ro,t he
vill
ain,ort hec hor usoft hepi ecei nava r i
e tyofways .The rear et woe xt reme
viewsandahos tofi nt erme di atepe rmut at i
ons .Themos tpe rs
istents ce nar ioor
*sche mai sonei nwhi c ht hec it
yi shai ledf rom af arasapl ac eofi ndi vidual
oppor t
uni tyands oc ialmobi lity,‘thebr i
ghtc itylights’
,‘ whe reit’sat’.Ass uch,
itof fersane nticingl yc osmopol itanar r ayofhi ghar tandpopul arc ultur e,
cons picuousc ons umpt ion,a ndt hes e
e t
hingbus y-nessofamul ti
cultural me lting-
pot( thisisthewor ldi nwhi chBa ude lair
e’sandBe njamin’st ypicallyma le
move sasi nhi sna tural eleme nt–s treet-wande ringa ndpe opl e-wat ching ). Buton
furthe rac quai ntanc ea ndr eflectiont hec i
t yof t
ent urnsoutt obeapl ac eof
pe r
sonall one l i
ne ssands oc iala lienation,nake dac quisitivene ssandf inanc ial
vulne rabili
ty .I tsinhabi t
ant sa r
ee i
the rroot lessandr estlessorf ragme nt e di nto
ghe ttos,andt heyar edogge da smuc hbyt het hreatoft hel ow- l
ife( cr i
me ,
violenc e,dr ug s,v ag ranc y)a sbyt het awdr ypr omi seoft hehi gh-li
fe.( Fa mi l
iar
exampl esa ret heur banwor ldsofDi ckens ’
sBl eakHous e,Bat ma n’s‘ Got ham
Ci t
y’andI rv ingWe lsh’sTr ains potting.Mor eov e
r,aga in,iti st hec lash or
transitionbe twe ent he set wov i
sionsoft hec ity–t her ichpr omi seoff reedom
andoppor tuni t yandt hebl eakt hr eatofde ca de nceorde gr adat i
on–t hats erve s
to mot ivatet he pl ot,poi ntt het he me ,a nd t es
ta nd r evealc har ac ter.I n
Hol linghur st’sTheSwi mmi ng -PoolLi bra ry,5. 3.4c,fore xampl e,iti spr ecise ly
thet ensionbe twe en‘ thos ef ormat ivel ands cape s, t
heYor ks hiredal es
, thes treams
andwat erme adsofWi nc hes t
e r’and‘ thes exe di mme diacyofLondonl ife...t he
sex-shar plittlec i
rcuitsofdi sc osandpubs ’tha ts oundst heke y-noteofal ifet ha t
isexhi larating lyye tene rvating lydi vided–s upe rabunda nti ns omewa ys ,me an
inot her s.
)
Towar
dsanew e
cle
cti
cis
m:Et
hic
s,Ae
sthe
tics
,Ecol
ogy...
? 163

3) Scienc eFi ction:Ut opi asa ndDys topi as.Thege nreofSc ienc eFi c ti
onhasbe e n
par ticul arlyi nflue nt i
a linof feringr epr e sent ati
onsofi ma ginar ypl ac est hata re
va ri
ous lyut opi ana nddys topi an.‘ Utopi a’,f rom Gr eekou- t
opos ,iss trictly‘ no-
plac e’.Howe v er,f ollowi ngThomasMor e’sc oiningoft het ermf orhi simag ina ry
trave log ueoft hatname( 1516) ,ithasc omet ome anani mag inar yi de alpl a ce.
Dys t opi awa sat ermc oi ne dl atert ode signat ea ni mag inar yhor riblepl a ce.And
inf ac t,de pe ndi ngonone ’
spoi ntofvi e w,mos tUt opi ashaveapot ent ially
dys topi andi me ns i
ont ot he m.Thec ha l
le ngei stode c i
dewhi chi swhi c ha ndf or
whom.Phi lipK.Di ck’sDoAndr oidsDr eam ofEl ect ri
cShe e p? ,5. 2.6b,f or
ins t
anc e–f ilme dasBl adeRunne r–of f ersav isionofawor ldi nwhi c hi ti s
diffic ul ttot e llt hedi f
fe re nc ebe twe enhuma nsandmac hi nes.Huma nsma ybe
callous ,ca l
cul atinga ndl ac kingi nsympat hy–i nawor d‘ ma chi ne -li
ke ’;whe r eas
humanoi dr obot s,andr oi ds ,maybemor e‘ sensiti
ve ’toc ondi t
ionsa nds imul ate
humans ympat hya ndde sire .Inde ed,‘ andi es’
,ast heya ref ami l
iar lyc alled,hav e
respons i
bili
tie swi thoutr ight s,anddut ieswi thoutl eg i
tima tede sires;s ot he yt end
toe xc itet hes ympat hyofr eade rs.A s imi l
arpr obl emi sr ehe ar sedi nMar y
She lley ’sFr anke ns tein,5. 2. 6a,awor kc entrallyc onc ernedwi tht her e lation
be twe ent heobs esse da ndt hendi sgus teds cientistandt hewr etche dlyal ienat ed
‘creat ur e’hehasf ashione d.Mor eover,i nbot hShe ll
eya ndDi ckt hefing e rpoi nts
squar elyathuma ni t
y ’
si nhumani tytoot he rhumans( sla ves,s e
r vant s ,theunde r
-
class) ,whi lea lsoe xpos inghumani ty’
sul tima t
eflout ingofnat ura llawsa ndwas te
ofnat ur alre sour ces.Suc ha ret hec ons e que nc esofpowe rwi thoutr e spons ibi lity
,
economi cc ont rolwi thoute cologic alunde rstandi ng.A r elate de thic aland
ecol og icalis suei sbr oa c he di nLeGui n’sTheLe ftHandofDa rkne s s,5. 2. 6c .
The r ewear eof feredanappe alinglyUt opi anor–de pe ndi nghow yous eei t–
appal linglyDy s topi anvi s i
onofawor ldi nwhi chSEXUALI TY i sopt ionala nd
ne got iabl e,asi st her e spons ibilit
yf orac tuallybe ar ingand g ivingbi rtht o
chi l
dr en. Ont hepl ane tGe thint hisha ppe nsbe caus et her eisaphys iolog ic ala nd
ps ychol ogicals tat eof‘ Ke mme r’,whi c hc a nt i
pt omal eorf ema lef ore ithe rpar ty
de pendi ngont hepr ecises tageanddy nami coft her elations hip. Soe ithe rpa rtne r
canpr oduc eane gga ndbe come‘ fema l
e ’f orawhi le.Thi st ende nc yc ana lsobe
induc edbydr ug s.Forbe tte randwor set hi sisme dicale ng ineer i
ngandag ene tic
utopi a/dys t
opi ai noneofi tsmor ebe gui linggui s e
s .

Thef inalt wo topicsr el

atetoi ss
uesalreadyr aise
d unde rPOSTCOLONI ALISM,
part
icularlyinrelati
ont o(re-
)nami ngand( re-)
ma ppi
ng( seepp.146–8) .Herethey
arei
nfle c
tedinwa ysthataremor espe
cifical
lye c
ologicalandethi
cal,thoughinany
gi
vena ppl i
cati
onnol es
spolit
ic alandhist
orical
.Anda gainquest
ionsar eaddr
e s
sed
notonl ytothetextandt askinhandbuta ls
ot othepe rsonsdoi
ngt hehandling.For
,
asalways ,itisther e
sulti
ngdi alogueanddyna mi cbetwe e
ntexta ndr eade
rthatis
mostre veali
ng–notoneorot he rasafixeda ndi s
olatedpointofre f
erence.

♦ Loc alandg lobal.How fari sthetextc oncei

v e
d–anddoy ouc oncei
vey oursel
f–in
pointedlyloc alorbroadlygl obalterms ?Whe redoesi t–anddoyou–s eemt obe
speakingfrom a ndforinthefir stpla
ce ?andonf urt
herreflectioninthelastoranother
place?Fore ve nsuchapparentlyneutralandne atl
ybalancedte r
msa sl
oc alandglobal
arealway sloade d.Wha tisjudge d‘l
oc al’(
from Lati
nl oc
us ,place)c
anbea sbigor
smal l
,asinclusiveorexcl
usive,aswha teverandwhoe veryouc hooseto‘locate
’withi
n
it
.Thel oc a
li sthusalwaysal r
eadyi mpl i
cat
edi ntheglobal(i.e.
,theplanetatlarge
);
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 164

justastheglobalisalwaysconsti
tute
dbyamul tipl
ici
tyoflocal
iti
es.Thenot
ionof
global
,me anwhi l
e,l
ikethatof‘
thewor l
d’,ver
ymuc hde pe
ndsuponwhoi sdr
awing
the‘whole’thi
ng,f r
om whe rea
ndwhy .(
Thema psoftheBrit
ain,theUSAand‘the
wor l
d’i
nAppe ndixAarenoe xcept
ion.Re-vi
si
tthema ndconsi
de rwhichpl
ace
shave
beenputinorl e
ftoutandwhy .
)

♦ Nat i
ons tate sa ndi nte r
nat i
onalr e l
at i
ons .Ist hereamar kedlyors el
f-c ons ciously
‘nati
onal ’or‘ internationa l
’di mens i
ont ot het ext–ort ot hepr esentr eade r (
s)?For
‘nati
on’, t
oo,i sal oadedt erm. Itsharesar ootwi thnat ive, me aning‘ bor nsome whe re’
;
andye tnote ve ryonebor ninapl aceha se qua lclaimt obe ingac itiz
e n.Forna t i
onal i
ty
(i.
e.forma lcitizenship)maybeva ri
ous lyi nhe ri
tedora cqui red.Me a nwhi le, national
bordersa rewhe rescreeningt akesplac e;andna tional se cur itya ndt hena tional i
nt eres
t
canbei nvoke dt oc ove reverythingf rom i nte r
na ldisse ntt oe xternal threat, thepubl i
c
goodandof fic ials ecr
e t
s,freedom ofs pe echa nds uppr es sionofi nfor mat ion.Aga i
nst
and al ongs ide t he se‘ nationa l
’c onc e rnsa re br ac ed al lt hings‘ inte rnat i
ona l’
:
inter
na ti
ona ltrade ,mi li
tarya ndpol iticalagr eeme ntsofamor eorl essbindi ngki nd;
inter
na ti
ona lpr essure,unde rstandinga ndopi nionofamor eorl essinfor malnat ur e
.
Mor eove r,ev ennomi nallyinternationalor ganisations( from t heUni tedNat ionst o
theInternat iona lMone taryFund)i ncludeandpr i
v il
eges omenat ionswhi lee xc luding
andma rgi nalisingot he r
s.Asar es
ul t
,i nter /
nat i
onalr elat ionsal wa ystur noutt obe
mor epa rtiala ndl esscompr ehensivet ha nthe yma yi nitiallya ppea r
.Hi stor ically,they
arecont ing entont hede vel
opme ntoft hemode rnna tions tatefrom t hes ixt eentht o
thet we ntiethc ent uries;and l atterly,inc r e
as i
ngl yur ge ntly,t hede velopme ntof
suppleme ntaryorc ompe nsatoryint erna tiona lbodi e s.( Suc hi ssue sar eamat terof
constantc onc erni nt hear easofmi gration,c itizens hipa nde mpl oyme nt ;e .g.Tan,
5.2.2c.The ybe comehor ri
fic al
lya cutei nt hee ventofa ctsofi nte r
nat i
onalt e r
r oris
m
andwar ;s ee5. 2.7,e sp.Mc Ewa nandRoy ,5. 2.7d– e.)

Ho
wtop
rac
tis
eec
lec
tic
all
y...
?!
Byde finit
ionthereisnosinglewayof‘bei
ngeclec
tic
’.Butitisworthc onsi
deri
ngthat
yourpr esentpracti
ceisalreadylike
lytobeins omeme asureami xture(whether
deli
berateorac ci
denta
l).Itmake sse
nsetodevel
opamor et heor
eti
ca l
lyconsi
dered
andr es
our ce
fularrayofpr act
ice
s.Thefol
lowingadvicebui l
dsont hatgivenatthe
beginningofthispartofthebook,whe n‘Gett
ingsomei nit
ialbeari
ng s
’(pp.74–6).
♦ Draw onanyande
ver
yavai
labl
ere
sour
ce–butbes
ele
cti
vewhe
ndr
awi
ngt
hem
t
oget
he r
.
♦ Bepre
paredtoadapt,sy
nthesi
seandext
end–notjus
tadopt
,re
peatandexplai
n.
Rec
ogniseandt
os omeextentr
espec
texi
sti
ngdi
sci
pli
nar
yboundar
ies–butbeready
toc
rossandre-
draw the
m atneed.
♦ Knowt hateve
nthemostappar
entl
y‘pure’
theoryt
ur nsoutt
obe‘mixe
d’ i
npract
ice
;
andeventhemostappare
ntly‘
comprehensi
ve’pra
cticetur
nsoutt
obet heor
eti
cal
ly
‘par
ti
al’
.(Thepres
entpl
eaforecl
ect
ici
smisnoe xcepti
on.)
♦ Sometheor
iesa
ndpracti
cesar
ece
rta
inl
ybe
tte
rtha
not
her
s–i
fnotabs
olut
elyt
hen
forpar
ti
cul
arpurpos
es.
♦ The‘be
st’t
heori
si
ng,howeve
r–wi ththeemphasi
sondoi
ngit–issome
thingyou
hav
eahanda ndsayi
nputt
ingtoge
theryour
sel
f,wi
thot
her
saswel
lasonyourown.
Towar
dsanew e
cle
cti
cis
m:et
hic
s,ae
sthet
ics
,ec
ology... 165

Di
scu
ssi
on
(
i) (a)Onmyret
urnhome,itoccurr
e dt ome[...]thatsomet
hin
gmi ghtper
haps
bemadeoutonthisques
tionbyp at i
ent
lyacc
u mulat
ingandreflect
ingonall
sort
soff
act
swhichcoul
dpos si
blyh aveanybe
a r
ingonit.
Charl
esDa r
win ’
sIntroducti
ontoTheOr i
ginofSpeci
es(1859:1)

(b)TheOrigi
nofSpe ci
es,wi
thitspas s
ionat
eandin t
ensesympat
hies
,openand
inc
lusi
veapproachtoallphenome na,andit
ss e
emi n
g l
yine
xhaust
ibl
erangeof
appli
cati
onsandc oncer
ns,pro
vide samod elofthee col
ogic
alknowledgewe
cont
inuetoneed.
Jef
fWal l
ace’
sIntr
od ucti
ontoTh eOriginofSpeci
es(1998:xxi
ii
)

(
ii
) Youc oul
ds eeyourownh ouseasat i
nyflecko nane v
er-wi
deni
nglandscape,o
r
asthec e
nterofital
l fr
omwh ichtheci
rcl
esexpandedintoth
einfini
teunk no
wn.
[...]Att hecenterofwhat ?[ ...
]Be g
inthough,no twit
hac ontine
ntora
countryorah ouse,
b utwit
ht h
eg eogr
aphyclose
s ti
n–t hebody
.
Ad r
ienneRich,‘
Not e
sTowardsaPol i
ti
csofLocati
on ’
(1984)in
Riv
kinandRyan( 1998:638)

(
ii
i) [
W] ecannotstandasid
ef r
omt hepopulardi
scourseofv a l
ue.[
... ]Veryma ny
l
anguage-
usershol
dp ass
ionateconvi
cti
onsaboutwhati sr i
ghti
nl anguage,a
nd
c
onverse
lyaboutwha tiswr ongwithit.[
...]wemus ta cknowl e
dgepe opl
e ’
s
g
enuineconce
rnsaboutlangua
ge,unders
tandthedesi
resa ndfearsthatl
iebehind
t
hei
rc onc
e r
ns,andtrytoworkwi ththe
m nota g
ainstthe m.
DeborahCame r
on,VerbalHy gi
ene( 1995:235–6)

(
iv) Tofollo
wt hrou
ghtheq uesti
onofdemocr
aticagency
,weneedtomovet
o war
ds
ana nal
ysi
soft hecontradi
ctor
yident
ificat
ionsofwh i
chwearecapabl
e.Thi
s
meanst ur
ningthesear
c hforroot
s–thed e
s i
reforafixedcent
reofi
denti
ty–
int
oas earchforro
utesoutofthepris
on-houseofmargi
nal
it
y,
Kob e
naMe rcer,‘
BacktomyRo utes’
(1990)inProct
er(
2000:292)

(
v) Whatarepoet
sforinourb
ravenewmi
ll
enni
um?Coulditbet
oremindthene
xt
f
ewgenerat
ion
sthatiti
swewhohavet
hepowert
odeter
minewheth
ertheear
th
wi
lls
ingorbesil
ent?
Jonat
hanBate
,TheSongoftheEart
h(2001:282)

(
vi) Imagi
ni
ngwh ati
tisli
ketobesomeoneot herthanyo
urs
elfisatth
ecoreofour
humani
ty
.Itisth
ee s
senceofcompas
sion, anditi
sthebe
g i
nnin
gofmorali
ty
.
IanMc Ewan,f
rom TheGuardian,15Se pt
ember2001( se
e5.2.
7d)

(
vii
) Wear
eal
waysi
naz oneofint
ens
ityorfluxwh i
chiscommo nt
o[ ...
]avery
r
emot
egl
oba
lent
erpr
ise
,tover
ydistan
tgeogr
aphic
alenvi
ronment
s.
Gil
lesDel
euzeandCla
ireParnet
,Dial
ogue
s(1988:112)

(
vii
i) Amapoft
heworldt
hatdoesnoti
ncl
udeUt
opi
aisnotwort
he vengl
anci
nga t
,
f
ori
tle
ave
souttheonecount
ryatwhi
chHumani
tyi
salwayslandi
ng.
Os
carWil
de,‘
TheSoulofManunde
rSoci
ali
sm’,Int
enti
ons(1891)
THEORETI
CALPOSI
TIONS/
PRACTI
CALAPPROACHES 166

READI NG: Gi v ent hee cl

e cticnat ur eoft hep resen te nter pris e
, read i
ngs ho uldbewi de -ranging
an do pe nt oc han c easwe llas ,
wh erea pp ro priate,de epa ndde liber at
e .Sy s
te man ds erend i
pity
aret h ewa tc hwor ds.Re viewi ngt hev ari
o u sa pproac he sf eatu redi nPa rtT woan dwor kingo ut
you ro wnp refe rreds ynthe sisisag oo dp lac et osta rt.Ke epin go nr e adinga ndt h i
n king,talking
an dwr iti
ngi st heon lywa yt ot ak et hisf ur t
he r
.Butt her e alc hallenge , asal way s,i
st ob ring
qu estion st ob earo non eselfa ndot herst hr ought h et ext .Thef ollowin go ff
e rg uidan cewi than
ecolog ica lan d/o re thi
c ale mp has is.Fo rb as ict e
rmso fr efe rence,s ee‘ e t
hics’a nd‘ ec ology’in
Pay ne1996: 112– 4,153–9, 178– 82, andv ariouse n triesi nWi ll
iams1983: ‘
co unt ry’pp.81– 2,
‘
c ultur e’p p. 87–93, ‘ecolo gy’pp. 110–1, ‘na tive’pp. 213– 6, ‘nature ’pp. 219– 224, ‘or
g anic’pp.
227– 9,‘ r eg i
on alpp.264–6;al soWi l
liams1958 a nd1973.Ac ces si
b leandi n fl
ue nti
al
i
nt rodu ctionst oEc ologya ndEng lishl iterature ,c hie f
l yp oe try,ar eBat e1991and2001.
Ke rri
dg ean dSa mme lls1998t ake samor ec ap aciousv ie wofl iter
at ure ,env i
ro nme nt
al wr i
ting
ande co criticism; asd oesBue ll1995an d2001wi tha nAme r i
cane mph as i
s,an dMu r
ph y1995
withaFe mi n i
s te mp hasis.Spe cific allys oc i
a lis
ta nds oc i
al ist-femi nistpe rs
p ective sareo ffered
byPe p per1993a ndHa rawa yi nLe itch2001: 2266–98( an ds eea bov epp .122– 3) .
Ap ower fu
l
an di nflu e ntia lar gume ntf ort hei mpo rtanc eo ft heUt o piane leme nti nlitera turean dar tis
Blo ch1988. St imu latingEc ologyr e aders /
an t hol
og iesa reRos s1995a n dCou pe2000. Et h
ical
issuesar eb estap proac hedt h r
ou ghd ialogu e, s
oa pp rop riatep lacest op icku pc ur rentd ebates
aret hei nt e rviewsi nKe arne y1995:wi thNus sba um ont her e adin gpr oces sasaf or m of
neg otiat ede mp athya ndc r i
ticale nqui ry ,wh ats hec al ls‘ love ’
sk no wl edg e’,‘Et hicsof
Literat ur e’,pp .120–33;wi thLe vina so nt hea ppr ehe ns i
o nof‘ thef ac eoft heot he r’ast he
grou ndo fo ure thicalsens e,‘Eth i
c soft hei nfin it
e’, pp .177– 99;an dwi thLy otar dont hene ed
fora‘ n ewr e spo nsibil
ity’wi thint hep ostmod e
rndo ma in ,‘Wha ti sJ us t?’,pp .290– 304.Al so
seeNus sbaum andLe vinasi nRi ceandWaug h2001:‘ Criticisma ndEt hi cs’410– 30.A
sustai nedr e viewan dc ritiqu eoft hewo rkoft hel a tte r
, dra win gat tent iont ot hec ons t
itutive
,
truth- ma ki ngna tureofl an guagea sd ialog icpe rf
or ma n ce,isEa gles t
o ne1997. Cr i
tchley1992
i
nt errog at est hee thicsofde constru ction, wh ilePa lme r1992of fersr ef reshingp erspe cti
veson
thes e emi n glyd ullan dout -date dt opi co f‘ Literat urean dMor ality’.Ot herv oic esu rgingan
exp ande da ndf l
ex i
bles e nseofe th i
calj udg eme ntan dc ommun icat i
v er ational it
yi ncl
ud e
Wi ttge nst eina ndHab erma s( inCah oone1996:191– 9,589– 616)a ndRi coe ur( inKe arney
1995:33–6, 216–45) .As pecificp leaf or‘ e thi
cals tylistics’ i
ss ou nd edbyt hee ntryinWal es
2001;al sos eeCa me ron1995.Forf ur there xpl ora tionso ft hee thical–ae sthe ti
cand
po eti
c –p olitica ld i
me n si
on sofwha ti sh ere ,p l
ayfu ll
ybutqu it
es erious ly,called‘ Ae sth-ethics’
,
seeAr ms tron g2000, Jogh i
nan dMal pas2002, a ndt hee nt ryonae sthet i
c sinPar tThr ee.
COMMONTOPI
CS

PARTTHREE
PREVI
EW
Thi sconsist
sofs omet we nty-fivee nt
riesf eat
ur ingove rahundr ed
ke yterms.The sear e‘common’t opicsint hatthe yrecuri nc ri
ti
c al
discussionsofa l
lki ndsandar enott hee xclus i
vepr ope r
t yofa
singlemode lorme thod.Youwi llthereforefindt hemt hroug hout
thebookhi ghlightedi nbol d.I ndeed,wor dss uchasaut hor ,
char act
e r
,image ,poe try,s t
andar d(s)a ndt e xta r
ec entraland
significantpre c
iselybe causepe opleeitheras sumewhatt heyme an
orar gueaboutwhatt heyc anme an.Par adoxi call
y,the n,whati s
‘
c ommon’abouts ucht e r
msi spr eci
s el
yt he irdifference s:the
differe
ntr ole
st heya remadet opl ayinv ar i
ousc r
iti
caldi s
cour ses.
(Di f
ferenceanddi scour sear eal sos ucht e rms ,andt herefor e
i
nc ludedt oo.)Eac he ntryc ompr ises
:

♦ apr eliminarydefiniti
on,us uall
yi nthefir s
tse
ntence;
♦ an indi cati
on oft hear easofLANGUAGE,LI TERATURE and
CUL TURE,a nd thev ari
oust heoreti
calpositi
onsa nd cri
ti
cal
appr oachestowhi chitmos treadil
yre l
ates(
keyedtoPa r
tsOne
andTwo) ;
♦ furt
he rdi s
ti
ncti
onsa ndqual ificati
ons;
♦ il
lustrationsandac ti
vit
iesf rameds oast obeapplic
abletoany
text
,butal s
oke yedtotheant hologyofs amplet
extsinPartFi
ve;
♦ point sfordisc
us s
ionandf urtherreading.

Atthec
los
eofthispar
ty ouarei
nvit
edtogat
herf
urt
here
ntr
ies
andbui
ldacr
it
icaldi
cti
onaryofyourown.
COMMONTOPI
CS 168

ABSENCEANDPRESENCE,
GAPSANDSI
LENCES,
CENTRES
ANDMARGINS
Al lt hec onc eptsg athe r edhe reha vet odowi tht hef unda me nt alma tterofunde r
-
standi ngwhati st he rei nt er msofwha ti sn’t :g augi ngt he‘ t his ne ss’ofs ome thi ng
ag ains tal lthe‘ that ne sse s’whi c hi tisnot .I ndi a lec t
ic al terms ,thi si scalledt heac tivi t
y
ofne ga t ion.Ar guabl y,al lt houghti nv ol vess omes uc hpr oc e ssor gani se dr ound
thedoubl e-edge dque stion‘ Wha ti s /
n’ ti t?’Howe ve r,t hec onc e ptsf ea tur edhe r
e
havebe c omee spe c iallypr omi ne nti nPOSTSTRUCTURALI SM a ndt hea c tivityof
de cons tr uc ti
oni npa rti
c ula r.
De rridaha sa r
g ue dt ha tWe ste rnt houghts ys temsar edomi na te dbyt henot ionof
ultima t e‘ pr esence ’and‘ ess enc e’. Thati s,‘trut h’a nd‘ fac ts ’ar et r ea teda sphe nome na
tha tc anbepos itiv elyi de nt ifiedandar eul timat e lyknowa ble .Thi sc ont r ast swi th
Ea st ernt houghts ys tems( ands omeWe sternphi los ophi ca landmy sticalt radi ti
ons )
whe r et he rei sgr ea tere mphas isonwha tc annotbei de ntifie dandi sul timat el
y
unknowabl e.De r
r i
dai llustr atest hi sWe sternpr eoc cupa tionwi t
hpr ese ncebyobs er ving
thatmos tWe sternphi los ophe rsofl ang uag e, andi nde edmos tling ui sts,tendt opr ivilege
spe e chbe forewr iting,ast houghs pe echi sapr imar ya nd wr itingas e condar y
mani f est at i
on.The yi mpl yt hats pe e chi smor eobv ious lyt i
e dt oa na ut he nt ica ting
sour ceandpal pabl epr esenc e( thes pe ake r),whe re aswr itingc anmor er ea dilye xi s
t
wi thoutt hewr i
terpr es ent.De rridac ha ll
e ng est hi sc onv ent iona lwi sdom byi ns isting
thati ti swr it
ing–nots pee ch–whi c hi st hemor ec ha ra cte ristical lyl i
ngui s ti
cmode .
For ,hear gue s,allwor dsar eal wa ysbyde fini tionnott het hi ngst heyr efert o,but
subs ti
t ut esf ort hem.Thewor d‘ tree ’isnotat ree ,buts tandsi nf ori t.La ngua gei snot
pr ima rilyaboutpr ese nc esa ta ll,buta bouta bs enc e s.Mor eov e r,a smanywr iter son
COMMUNI CATI ON a requi ckt oa dd, the reisnos uc ht hi ngasapur eunme diate de ve nt,
‘
t hee ve nti ni tself’.Theappa rent lys impl ema tterofbe ingpr es enta tane ve nti sno
gua rant e et ha tapa rticipa ntwi llha veaf ul l
,l eta l
oneani mpar ti
a l,g raspofwha tis
goi ngon.Gi v ent he irpe r sonal hi stor iesa ndt empe ra me nt s ,aswe l
la sthe irimme di at
e
aimsa nde xpe ctations ,par ticipant sa rene ve rs trictlypr es enti nt hes a mewa y.
InPSYCHOLOGI CALt e rms ,t oo,t heabs enc eofourunc ons ciousf rom ourc ons c ious
selve se ns ure sthatwear ene ve rc ompl e tely‘ s elf-evi de nt ’.Wear emor et ha nand
diffe rentf rom whatweknow.Wi tht hisi nmi nd,t henot ionofga psands ilenc eswa s
de ve lope dbyMac he reyi nhi sAThe or yofLi ter aryPr oduc tion( 1966) .ForMa che rey
thepr ima r yfoc usoft ext uals tudyi swhatt het e xtdoe snotorc annots ay( thenon-
dit).Tha ti s,ev eryt e xtc anbec har a cte risednotonl ybyi tse xpr esse dsubj ectmat te
r
(itspr ese nc es)buta lsobywha titr e pr essesps y chol og ic allyands uppr e
ss espol itical l
y
(itsa bs enc e s)
.Ther oleoft hec ritica lr eade r,t he ref ore ,ist os e ar chf ort he‘ ga psand
silenc e s’:r e adingbe twe e nt hel ine sandfil lingt hee mba rras s edorpr egnants ile nc es.
Whatfig ur esa nde ve nt sha vebe enqui cklypa s sedov erori gnor ed?Whatot he rs tor ie
s
andhi stor iesha vebe e npa rt i
al lydi spl ac edorut te rl
yr epl ac edbyt heve rya ctoft elling
thiss tor y( orhi st
or y)t hisway ?Ma c he reye xpl or est he‘ uns aid’or‘ uns ayabl e’i n,f or
ins tanc e,Robi nsonCr us oe( see5. 2. 3b–c ),tyi ngt hiswor ki nwi tht hec ons tr uc tion
ofawhi tec oloni sings elf( Cr us oe )e sta blishe da tt hee xpe ns eofaabl ac kc oloni sed
ot he r( Fr ida y).Heal so ge stur e st owa rdshi /stor iesofe mpi r eands lav ese ither
i
ne vitabl yunwr ittenorde libe rate lyi gnor ed. Ja me s onde ve lopsr e latedi ns ight si nThe
Pol itic alUnc ons cious( 1981) .
Thec onc eptofc e ntre sandmar g ins ,a longwi tht heac tivit i
e sofde c entr i
ngand
rec ent ring ,canbeus eful lyi ntr oduc edatt hispoi nt . MARXI S TS ,FEMI NISTSa ndot he r
s
Abs
enc
eandpr
esenc
e,gapsands
ilenc
es,c
ent
resandmar
gins 169

havel ongt alke dabout‘ mar ginalised’a soppos e dt o‘ domi nant’gr oups.Howe ver,it
istoPOSTSTRUCTURALI STwr iterssuc hasDe rridat hatwec hieflyowea ni nte r
estin
thea cti
v i
tiesknownasde centringand,bye xtens ion,r ecent r
ing.Theba sicpr inci
pl e
s
ares i
mpl eandf oll
ow f rom t hepr e
viouse xpl icationofabs encesandpr es
e ncesa nd
gapsands i
lenc es.Byc entringweme ant heac tofpl a
cingc e r
tainpe rsons ,pl ac
e s,
time s,is s
ue sandpe r
c eptionsa tthec entreofa tte ntion–a ndt here bymar ginali
sing
ori gnor ingot her s
. Byde centringat ext ,cri
ticalr eade rsandwr i
tersa ct
ivelydi sl
ocate
whatwa sas sume dt obeatt hec entreofat t
e ntiona nddr aw attentiont os ome thing
insideorout s
idet het extwhi c hthe yfe elthrowsar evealinglighta crossit.InHaml e
t
ani ns tanc eofs uc h‘ interna l’de centringmi ghtme andr awi ngat tentiont ot hego-
be twe ensRos enc r
a ntza ndGui l
de nster n(asS toppa r
ddoe sinhi splay)ort oOphe li
a
andGe rtrude( asdoma nyFEMI NISTS ).‘Exte rna l
’de centringmi ghtme ant urningt o
criticalr ece ptionsoft hepl ayor ,say,i nvestiga ting,t her oleofac tualgr avedigge r
s
(featuredt he at
r i
callyinAc tVs c.i)int hee arlys eve nteenthc entury–ore vena nalysing
as e ri
e sofTV adsf ors omec igarsc all
ed‘ Ha ml et’
.Anot heri nstanc eofde -a nd
rece ntringi sJ eanRhys ’sWi deSar gass oSe a.Thi sc entresa tt
entionont hee ar l
ierlif
e
J
aneEyr e(see
5.2.4c –d) .
Thet he or e
ticalt ermi nolog yofde -andr ec entr ing,liket hatofde construc ti
oni n
gene ral, canbef or biddi nglyde ns e.Butt hepr a cticec anbebot hsimpl eandpowe rful.
He re ’
sas ugg es t
e dpr oc edure :

DE-ANDRECENTRI
NGTEXTS(
cf.
dis
cour
sequ
est
ions
,p.203)

1I de
ntifythepresume dcentr eofthet ext:theonet heauthors eemst obepr eoccup
ied
wit
h,ort heonec r
iti
csinvit
ey outoc o
nce ntrateon.
2 DEc entreitso ast odr aw at tenti
on t o mar ginalori gnored figures ,e vent
sand
mater
ials.Trydecent
ri
ngi nt wod i
me nsi
ons ,internallyande xter
nally,drawin gat t
ent
ion
tooth
e rpos s
ibi
l
iti
eswi t
hinan doutsideth ete xtinhan d.
3 Recognisethatyouhav ethe rebyREc entredt het e
xt.Weight heimplicationso fwhat
youhavedo neforanu nderstan di
ngo fthet extasy oufir stf
oun dit.Alson oticethatyou
haveprod ucedanoth
erc onfig u r
ati
onwh ichc ani tselfbechallengedandc ha nged,and
fur
therd e-andrecent
redint urn.

Thereis,st
rict
ly
,nos ingle‘
end’orulti
ma te‘poi
nt’totheproces
sofde -andrecent
ring:
the
rea r
eal waysmul tipleabs
enceswhi chwi l
lhelpusr eal
is
eapr es
ence.Nori sther
e
jus
tonega pors i
le
nc ewhi chcanbede t
e ct
edwi t
hint henois
yfabricofat ext.The
val
ueofs ucha nactivity
,howe v
er,isthatitencouragesustograsptextscre
ati
ve l
yas
wellasc r
iti
call
y.Wewe ighwhatt heyareors eemt osayinrel
ati
ont owha ttheya r
e
notormi ghthav esaiddi f
fer
entl
y.Wegr asptexts
,s otospeak,notonl yas‘wholes’
butalsoasc onfigurationsof‘holes’
.

Ac
tiv
ity
Cons
ide
rhowfaratextwhic
hint
ere
stsy
ouisi
nsomesens
eaboutt
hetens
ionbe
twe
en
‘
abse
nce’and ‘
pre
sence’
.Goon t oappl
ythethre
e-partpr
ocedur
ef orde
-and
COMMONTOPI
CS 170

re
centr
ing.(Sugges
tedfoc
use
sinPartFi
ve:‘
The
yfle
efr
om me
’(5.
1.1f
);Howl
atei
t
was,how lat
e( 5.
3.3f)
;NotI(5.
3.3d).
)

Di
scu
ssi
on
(
i)Pl
ayisthedis
rupt
ionofpre
se n
ce.[...]Pl
ayisal
waysplayofabsenc
eand
pr
ese
nce.
Ja
cquesDer
ri
da,‘
Sig
n,Structurea
ndPlayi
ntheDis
cours
eoftheHuma n
Sciences
’ (
1978)i
nLodgeandWood(2000:101–2)

(
ii
)Th
ing
sfa
llapart
;thecent
recannothol
d;
Will
iam But
lerYeat
s,‘
TheSecondCo
min
g’(1921);al
sointhet
it
leof
Ac
h eb
e’snove
l(se
e5.2.5e
)
Al
sos
ee:POSTSTRUCTURALI
SM;f
ore
ground,bac
kgr
ound;di
ff
ere
ncea
nds
imi
lar
it
y.

READING:Introduct
ory
:Hawthor
n2000:
2– 3;
Mo o
n1992:30–3,
152–5;
Pope1995:14–
30,
162–80.Advanced:Machere
y1966;Der
ridainLodgea
ndWo od2000:88–103;J
ameson
1981;Spi
vak1987;Bh abha1994.

ACCENTANDDI
ALECT
Ac c entanddi alecta r
eas pe c
tsofl ang uagevar iety. The yt he ref orevar yf rom pl ac et o
plac e,ov e rtime ,accor dingtos oc ial cont exta ndde pendi ngonme dium ( s ee1. 2. 1– 4).
Spe aki ng‘ wi thanac cent’me anspr onounc ingwor dsi nawa ywhi chi sna tional ly
,
regi ona ll
yors ociallydis t
inctive ;he nces peaki ngEngl ishwi thaS out he rn,Rus sian,
Irish, Ne wYor koruppe r-cla
s sa c cent .I
nt hisr espe ctev eryonehasana cc ent.Spe a king
orwr i
t i
ng‘ indi alect’
, howe ve r,ismor et hanama t
terofac cental one .Ital soi nvol ve s
choi cesandc ombi nat i
onsofwor dswhi char edi sti
nc t
ive ,i fnotpe c uliar,t ot he
voc abul arya ndg rammarofapar t i
cul arr e gionors oc ialgr oup.Thuss peake rsof
Eng li
shwi llpr onounc ethes amewor ds( ‘Howar ey ou? ’,f ori ns tanc e)wi thavar iety
ofac c ents.Howe ve r
,onl ywhe nt he yus edi stinctivec hoi cesandc ombi nat ionsof
wor dswoul dwede s c
ribet hema sus ingdi alec talforms( stere otypi c all
y,s uc hgr e etings
as‘ G’ day ’inAus tr
a l
ia;‘Wot c ha! ’inpar tsofLondon) .Foraf ullers ens eofdi a l
e ctal
va riationi nEngl isha crosst hewhol er ang eofwor dc hoi cea ndwor dc ombi na tion,
aswe llasac cent/pronunc iation( he rer epr ese nte dbyva riationsi ns pe l
ling) ,s eeΠo,
Me ngandCol li
ns( 5.1.5),Hur ston,Tut uolaandAc he be( 5. 2.5)andSy nge ,Fug ar d
andKe l
man( 5.3.3).
Ac c entsanddi alectssome time sge tr anke dhi er
a rchic allyi nr elationt oas oc ially
pr ivilegeds tandar d.I nBr i
tai ni ti sc ommont opl ac eac ce ntsagai ns t‘Re c eive d
Pr onunc iation’( RP)a ndt opl ac ethel angua gea sawhol e( inc l
udi ngdi al ects)a ga inst
‘BBCEng l
ish’or ,mor ear chai ca ll
y ,‘theQue en’sEng lish’.I nt heUS AandAus tralia,
howe ver,t herei sf arl esside nt ificationofas pecificr eg iona lac centwi t
hpowe r
,
priv il
e geands tatus.Noones tatet endst odomi na t
et hev arious‘ ne twor k’ (i.
e .me di a)
standar dswhi chope rate.Wha t’
smor e,its houl dbeobs erv edt ha tpe opl ee ver ywhe re
rout i
ne lys witchf rom onev ar ie tyt oa not her,de pendi ngont hes oc i
a lsitua tionand
topi c. The‘ loca l
’va ri
e t
yt endst obeus edi ni nf orma lc onve rsationa ndi mpl i
esas ens e
ofs olidarity.Me anwhi l
ethe‘ s tandar d’var i
e tyt endst obeus edwhe neve rt he rei san
Ac
centanddi
ale
ct 171

incr ea sei nf or mal ity,whe repr int eddoc ume ntsar ei nv ol vedandwhe ret he r ei sa
stronge rs ens eofpowe r
.I nt hisre spe c t,mos tspe ake rsofEng lisha ndot herl ang uag es
areatl e astdi -glossic,r out inelys hi ftingbe twe ent wovar ieties:l oc alandnat ional .
Inde e d,mos ts pe ake rsar emul ti-glos s i
ci nt hatt he yr eadi lys wi tc hamong stmany
var ieties, de pe ndi ngona ge ,educ a tion, pe e rgr oup, ge nde r,c l
as sa nde thni city, aswe l
l
asonr e gion.Thet erm *s oc i
olecti ss ome time sus edt ot or efert oal lthe seot herki nds
ofs oc ia llang uagev ar iety,thet er m di a l
e ctbe i
ngr ese rve df orpur elyr e gionalv ar ie ty
.
Se lecte dv ersionsofac cents,di ale cts ,s oc iol ectsand e ve ni ns tanc esofot he r
languag e sa r eof tenus edi nnove ls,pl a ys ,films ,a dve rtsands ongs .The ys ig nala
spe cificr e giona l
,c lass,na tiona lore thni ci de ntity.Pe r hapst hemos tpe rsistenta nd
pre dic tabl ei ns tanc esoc c uri nTV andr adi oadve rts.OnBr i
t i
s hTV andr adi o,f or
instanc e ,uppe r
-c l
as sand mar ke dl y‘ Que en’sEngl ish’ac ce ntsa reus e dt os el
l
insur anc e ,banki ng,l eanc uisineande xpe nsivec ar s;‘ regional ’andwor king- c lass
acc ent sa reus edt os e l
lbe ers(Aus tral ianmat ine ssanopt ionale xtra) ,j unkf ooda nd
was hingpowde rs(thoughe vent he nt hes al espi tc hi sof tenc linc he dbyafinalv oi ce-
ove ri nvoki ngt heaut hor ityofanot he r
,mor e‘ standar d’va ri
e ty ).Pl ay s,nov e l
sa nd
stor i
e s,t oo,of tengi v eatl eastapa ssingflavour ,a nds ome time saf ul lt aste,ofpe opl e
spe aki ngandwr i
tingi nwa yswhi cha re‘ ot her-tha n-sta ndar d’ (thoughe v ent he nt he y
areus ual l
ybr ac edag ains tas tanda rdpr int edors poke nf or m whi c hi sas s
ume dt obe
thenor m) .Cl as si
ce xa mpl esinc l
ude :S hake spe ar e’sHe nr yV( for‘ stage ’We lsh,S c ot s
,
Iri
s ha ndFr enc h);Gas kell’sNor tha ndSout h, Di c ke ns’sHa rdTi me s, Lawr enc e’sS ons
andLov ers( forNor the rnEng lishwor ki ngc lass );Har dy’s‘ We sse x’nov els( f
orr ur al
We stCount ry);al soFaul kne r
’sAsILa yDyi ng,Hur ston’ sThe irEy esWe r
eWat c hing
God( 5.2. 5c ),Wal ke r’sTheCol orPur plea ndMor r ison’ sBe love d( 5.2.3e )( f or
var ietie sofEngl is
hf rom t heAme ric anSout he rnS ta tes.Syng e ’
sPl ayboyoft he
We sternWor l
da ndThomas ’
sUnde rMi lkWoodha vebe ene s
pe c iallyinflue ntial stag e
andr adi opl ayve rsi
onsofr es
pe ctiv ely ,Ir i
s handWe l
shv ar ietiesofEng li
sh( see5. 3. 3
a–b) .Forc ur rentI risha ndSc ot sv ar iet i
e s,s eeDoyl e(5. 2. 7c ),Le ona rd( 5.2. 7b)a nd
Ke lma n( 5.3. 3f ).
Inc ont e mpor a ryBr itain,nov els ,pl aysandfil msbyRoddyDoy le,J a me sKe lma n,
Mi keLe igha ndHa nifKur ei
shiha vedonemuc ht oputc ont empor a ryur banI rish,
Scot tish, London- baseda ndAs ianva r i
e tiesont hel iterar ya ndme diama p. Soa pope ra s
,
come dypr ogr amme sa ndot he rTV s erie ss uc hasCor ona t
ionS t
r ee t,Br ooks i
de ,
Eas tEnde r s,Ral phNe sbittandTheBi llhavedones ome things imi lar,t houghwi th
differ entde gre esofs tereot yping .Me a nwhi le,theac c ent sofNe ighbour sa ndHome
andAwa yv irtua ll
ya r eAus trali
anEngl i
s hf orl egi onsofTV- wa tchi ngnon- Aus tralia n
Eng lish- spe a ke rsthewor ldove r.Bandss uc ha sSi mpl yRe da ndt heCr a nbe rriesa swe l
l
asc ome di anss uc hasBi llyConnol ly ,Vi c tor i
aWood,J a spe rCar rot t,MaxBoy c ea nd
Be nEl tonal lhav e( orhav ehad)not ice abl y‘ r egional ’a ccent sandi ma ge s.Ma ny
Hol ly woodfil msa l
soi ncludevoi c esot he rt ha nt hos eofwhi teAng lo-S axonAme rica ns,
not abl ybl ac k,Hi spani ca ndNa tiveAme r icanI ndi an.Re ma rkabl yf ew,howe ve r,ge t
beyonds te reot ype dr olesa ndma rginalort oke npr e senc es.
Fina l
ly ,its houl dbenot e dtha te ac honeofusha sapar ticular*i diol ec t.Ani diol ect
ist hedi stinc tivea ndt os omee xt e ntuni quec onf igur at ionofl ang uagevar ieties
pe cul i
a rt oe ac hpe rson.I ti sourpe r sonalr epe rt oire–aki ndofve rba lfing e r
pr i
nt–
wi tht hedi f
f erenc ethatourv erba lr esour c esnotonl ygr owbuta l
s oc ha ngei npat te rn
ove rt hec our seofourl i
ve s.
(Fort hes pe ciali
se dme ani ngof‘ ac ce nt’ast heac ce ntuals tressi nve rs e,s ee
ver sific ation. )
COMMONTOPI
CS 172

Ac
tiv
ity
Cons ide rhow r egionalac centsanddi al
ects(
ors oc i
olec
ts)arerepresente
dandwhat
theys igni f
yinanov el,poe m,play,film,TVpr ogr ammeoradve rtwi t
hwhi chyou
arefami l
iar.Alternatively,concentr
a t
eononeoft hoseref
erredtoa boveorf eat
ured
inPar tFi ve:e.
g.,Le ona rd’
s‘Thisisthi...news’ (5.2.
7b) ;Nichols
’s‘Tropic
alDe at
h’
(5.
4.6d) ;‘Πo’s‘ 7dai z’(5.1.5a).How f araret
hef ormaldiff
erencessimplymat te
rs
ofpr onunc ia
tion/s pe
llingorofwor dchoiceandc ombination?Goont oc onsi
der
wha tki ndsofs ocialandc ul
turali
de nti
tyarebeingpr oject
ed,againstwhatki ndsof
assume dora sse r
tedbac kground.

Di
scu
ssi
on
MrsDurbeyfieldhabitual
lys
pokethedial
ect[Dorse
t];herda ught
er,whohadpassed
t
heSixt
hSt andardintheNati
onalSch
oolunderaLon do
n-trainedmistr
e s
s,s
poketwo
l
angua
ges:thed i
ale
c tathome,moreorle
ss;ord
inaryEng l
ishab r
oada ndtopers
ons
ofq
uali
ty.
ThomasHar dy
,Tessofthed’Ur berv
ill
es(1891:Ch.3)
Al
sos
ee:1.
2.1–
4;1.
8.1;di
scour
se;s
tanda
rdsa
nd...v
ari
eti
es.

READI NG:Intr
oduct
ory:Mo ntgo
me ryetal
.2000:43–54;Cart
er1995:1–4,37;McCrum
etal
.1992:21–36;Free
b ornetal.1993:1–75;Cr
yst
al1995:298–363;WrightinGr
addol
etal
.1996:259–300.
O’Do n
ne l
landTodd1992.Adv
anced:
Trudg
il
l1990;T
rudgi
llandHann
ah

ADDRESSER,
ADDRESS,
ADDRESSEE
Thi si sahandywa yofdi st
ingui s hingt het hreemai nc ompone ntsi nanyac tof
communi cation:s ome one(addr esser )communi catessome thing( addr es s)tosome one
else( addr es
se e).Int ermsofs ubj ectpos itionsa ndpe rsonal*pr onouns ,wemays ay
the r
ei st he‘ spe akings ubject
’( firstpe rson‘ I/we’);the‘ spoke n-a bouts ubje c
t’( third
pe rs
on‘ s he/he /
the y/
it’)andt he‘ spoke n- tos ubject’(secondpe rson‘ you’ ).Wemay
alsor e-expr esst headdr e
sser–a ddr ess–addr ess
e edi s
tinctionsi nav ar ietyofways ,
de pendi ngont heme dium: spea ker–s pe ec h–audi ence(fors pe ech);wr i
te r–text–rea der
(forwr i
tingandpr int );performe r–pl ay –audi enc eorpr oduc er–pr og ramme /f
ilm–
viewe r( fort he atre,fil m andTV) .Butwhat evertermsweus e,t headv ant ageofa n
addr e sser–addr e s
s–addr ess
eemode li st hati tinsistswes ees peeche s,t extsandot her
artefac tsasi nt erme dia r
ypr oduc tsc aughti nt hepr ocessofc ommuni c ationbe twe en
apr oduc e randr eceive r
.Wea ret he rebydi scouragedf rom c onc e ntratinge xc lusively
on‘ thewor dsont hepage ’(i
nNEW CRI TICALf ashion)ort hef or ma nds t
ruc tureof
thet e xti ni tself(inFORMALI STf ashi on) ,ast hought hes ecoul dbef ull
ygr aspe d
inde pe nde ntlyoft her elat
ionshi pbe twe e nt hepa rtici
pa nts.Wea ret huse ncour ag ed
toa doptaFUNCTI ONALI STandc ont ext ua lappr oacht oCOMMUNI CATI ON.
Thel inguis tRomanJ akobs onde ve lope dani nflue ntialv ersionoft hisa ddr esser–
addr e ss–a ddr essee mode lby dr awi ng at tention t o ot he rc ompone nts oft he
communi cativee vent .The sear ere pr esent eddi agra mmat i
callyi nFi gur e5.
Addr
ess
er,addr
ess
,addr
ess
ee 173

c
ont
ext(
ref
ere
nti
al)
c
ont
act(
phat
ic)
add
res
ser ad
dre
ss ad
dre
sse
e
(
exp
res
siv
e) me
ssage(
poe
tic
) (
dir
ect
ive
)
c
ode(
met
ali
ngui
st
ic)

Fi
gur
e5 J
akob
son
’smo
delo
fcommun
ica
tion

Thi
scanbee
xpl
aine
dasf
oll
ows
.Theaddr
essa
sawhol
e:

♦ ta
kesplaceinsomegeneralc
ontext(e.
g.,1960sNiger
ia,Ame ri
calas
twe ek);
♦ i
nvolvesaspeci
ficmome ntofcontact(e
.g.,achancee
nc ounte
rinapartic
ularbar);
♦ ta
kestheform ofaspe
cificmessage(e.
g.,aparti
cul
arsequenceofwordsorima ges
);
♦ drawsonapar ti
cul
ar*code(e.
g.,spokenorwr i
tte
nEngl i
sh,phot
ography,film).

Jakobsona
lsoarg
uestha
te v
eryc
ommuni
cat
iveac
tte
ndst
oempha
sis
eoneormor
e
ofitsc
onst
it
uentdime
nsions
:

Addresser-
centr
edc ommuni c
a tionisexpr es
sive(e.g.
,‘IfeelIne e
dt otellsome one’)
.
Addressee-
centre
dc ommuni c
at ionisdirecti
ve( e
.g.,‘
You,t ellhim!’)
.
Context-ce
ntredcommuni cat
ioni sre
ferenti
al(e.g.,‘
Thati swhats hes aid’
).
Contact-c
entredcommuni cat
ioni s*pha t
icandc hec
kst hatc hannelsareke ptope n
(e.
g.,‘Youknow s hesaidthat ,OK? ’
).
Message-centr
edc ommunicationi s*poe t
icandpl aysaroundwi ththemat eri
alit
yof
theme ssage(e.
g.,‘
Tell
ing-
s chme l
li
ng!I ’
mt e
ll
ingy ooouuuuu! ’).
Code-centredcommuni c
ationi sme ta
linguist
ic,ac omme ntonl a
nguag einlangua ge
(e.
g.,‘I
’mt el
li
ngy ouinhe rv erywor ds’
).

Thismode lhasbe enus edt ofra meawi der ang eofa na l

ytical andt heoreticalprojects
.
Itispar ticular lyus e
f ulwhe nt ryingt obr eakdownac ommuni c
a t
ivea ctintoi t
s
consti
tue ntl ay ersorl e ve l
sandt he nr el
atingt heset ofunc tions.Abi gdi sadvanta ge
,
howe ver,i st ha tt hisi se ss
e ntiallyamonol ogic( one -wa yandl i
ne ar)mode l.It
empha sisesauni di
r e
c tionalflow ofi nfor mat i
onf rom addr e s
sert oaddr esse
e.Asa
resul
ti ttendst oi gnor eormi sre presentdial ogic(two-andma ny-way )mode l
sof
communi cat ion.I nf ac t,in mos tac t
ualc ommuni cativee ve ntsaddr essersand
addressee sa rec ons tant lyc hangi ngpl aces.The rei sapr ocessofe xc hangea nd
inter
ac ti
on,nots i
mpl yt r
ans mi s si
on ofunc hange di nfor mation.Wemus tt hus
acknowl edget heki ndofflui ds wappi ngofr olesa nds witc hesoft opicf oundi nbot h
spontane ousc onve rsat ionandpl aysc ri
pts.Wea lsone e dt odi sti
ngui shbe twe en
‘act
ual’and‘ impl ied’addr ess
er sandaddr e
ssees:whoac tuallyt el
lsoristol ds omething
asdistinctf rom whoi tappe ar st obede li
vere dbya ndf or( s
eenar rative).Wea lso
needtobec are ful t
os pe c i
fyva riousmome ntsofa ddr ess;fort hereisinvar iablymor e
thanonemome ntofpr oduc tion,r e
pr oduct i
onandr eceptioni nvolve d( see2. 2)
.
None theless,i fwebe aral lthe set hingsinmi nd,t hemode lofaddr ess
er,addr essa nd
addresseepr ove st ober emarka bl ydur ablea nds erviceable .
COMMONTOPI
CS 174

Ac
tiv
ity
Addr e
ssingt hete xt Appl ythea bovemode lofaddr e
sser
,addressandaddr es
seet
o
atextyoua rest
udy ingoronef rom Par tFive(compa ri
sonoft hefirstthre
et e
xtsi
n
the‘Versionsofage ’cl
ust
er(5.4.5a–c )i
se s
pecial
lyfasci
nati
ng).How us ef
uldoyou
findJ akobs on’sfur therdi
st
incti
ons( contact
,code,expressi
ve,dir
ect
ive,etc
.)?Goon
toconside rthefac tthatyou,there ader,arebothbeingaddressedbyandi nyourtur
n
addressi
ngt hetext .How doe sthisc ompl i
catetheanalysi
s?

Di
scu
ssi
on

Al
ett
erd
oesn
otal
way
sre
achi
tsde
sti
nati
on...
Edga
rAllanPo
e,‘
ThePur
loi
nedLe
tte
r’(
1848)
Als
os ee
:COMMUNI ON;mo
CATI deloft
extin2.
2;FORMALISM INTO F ON-
UNCTI
ALIM ;s
S pe
echandc
onve
rsat
ion,monol
ogueanddi
alog
ue;narrati
ve;wri
ti
ngand
re
ading

READI NG:Int
roductor
y:Wal
es2001:7–8;Hawke
s1977:82–6;Selde
nandWi ddo
wson
1997:3–5.Adv
anced:Jako
bso
ninLodgeandWood2000:30–
60;Fis
ke1990:6–42.

AESTHETI
CSANDPLEASURE,
ARTANDBEAUTY
Ae stheticsde r
i ve sf rom aGr eekwor dme aning‘ thing spe rcept i
bl et ot hes ens e’,
‘sensor yimpr es sions ’.Ati tsbr oa dest,a nyt hi ngc ouldhav eana esthe ti
ce ffectsimpl y
byv i
rtueofbe ings e nse dandpe r
ceive d.Fr om t hel atee ight eenthc entur y,howe ver,
ae s
the ti
c sbe camenar rowe dt o me a n notj us ts ensepe r ception i n ge ner a
lbut
‘percept ionoft hebe aut i
f ul’i n par ti
c ula r.Thusbyt hel ateni ne te enthc ent ur y
ae s
thet i
c swa sc hie flyi de ntifie dwi tht hec ul ti
vationof‘ goodt a ste’inanyt hingand
every t
hi ngf rom finewi neandc lothe stol iterature,pai nt i
ngandmus ic.Ass uc h,i t
me ldedwi thhi ghl yi de alisedandof tens oc iall
ye lit
istnot i
onsof‘ thes ublime ’and
‘thebe aut iful’.Ati tsc rude st,a nae sthe t
ics ens ewa ss i
mpl yas ignofgoodbr eeding.
Art,me anwhi le, wasunde rgoingac or res pondi ngpr oc essofnar r
owi ngi nme ani ng
ande l
e vationi ns oc ial status .Initi
ally,thet erm‘ art
’hadde rivedt hroug hFr enchf rom
aLat i
nwor d( ar s/artis)me a ning‘ skill
’,‘ tec hnique ’or‘ craft ’
.Att hiss tageany thing
requi r
ingpr actic alknowl e dg eandt echni c ale xpe rti
sec oul dbeanar t,fr om thear ts
ofhus bandr y( i.
e .f armi nga ndhous eke epi ng)t ot hea rtsofwr it
ingandbui lding.
Mor eove r,the‘ se vena rts’oft heme diev aluni versiti
es( l
at erc alledt heS e venLi be ral
Ar ts
)di dnotr e cog ni semode r
ndi stinc tionsbe t
we ens c i
e nc esont heonehandand
ar t
sandhuma ni tiesont heot he r
.Thes eve na rtsthusc ompr isedGr amma r,Log i
cand
RHETORI C( thet r i
vi um)al ongwi thAr ithme ti
c,Mus ic,Ge ome tryandAs tronomy
(thequa dr ivium) .Butal lwe re‘arts’int hatt heyr equi redt echnicalknowl edge .By
themi d-ni netee nt hc entur y,howe ve r
,‘ Ar t’wasi nc reasingl ybe ingus eda sas i
ng ular
andwi thac api ta lletter.Ar twasa lsobe ingus edasanumbr ellater mf orwhatwe r e
now be ingc alledt hefine( asdi sti
nc tfrom t hea pplied)ar ts:a rchi t
e cture( asdistinc t
from bui lding) ;s c ulptur e( a sdi st
inctf rom c arving),c ha mbe randor che str
almus ic
(asdi sti
nc tf rom popul ars ingi ngandpl ay ing) ,ballet(notj usta nydanc e)
,pai nting
onc anv as( rathe rt ha n,s ay ,hous e-
pai nting) ;poe t
ry( asdi stinctf rom ve rs eands ong)
Ae
sthe
tic
sandpl
eas
ure
,ar
tandbe
aut
y 175

andLI TERATUREi nt hes ens eof‘ be l

le sle ttres’( a sdi stinc tf rom wr i
tingi ng ene ral).
Signi fic ant l
y, att hes amet ime ,t hes cienc eswe real sot endi ngt obes pliti ntopur eand
appl ied( e.g.
,phy sicsasdi st i
nc tf rom e ng i
ne e ring ).
Theove rallr e sultwast ha the nc e for thAr twasi nc reas ing lydi stingui she df rom
othe rf ormsofr epr ese nta t
iona nds igni ficat ion.Byt hes amege sture,a rtists(whowe r
e
suppos edlypr eoc cupi e dwi tht hes ubl ime )we rec ar eful lydi stingui she df rom t he i
r
mor ehumbl eandpr a cticalc ount erpar ts
,ar tisans .Thef or me r,itwasa rgue d,made
be autifult hi ngs ;t hel attermadeus efult hi ng s.( Inc ident a lly,itwa spr e ciselyaga ins t
thisdi v isi
ves tat eofa ffairst ha tWi l
lia m Mor risandCompanyandt her elated‘ Ar t
s
andCr afts’mov e me nt sc amei nt obe ing.The yr es istedt hes plitbe twe enf inea nd
appl iedar t,a swe l
la st hatbe twe enar tistanda rtisan. )Atanyr at e
,not wi thstandi ng
thee f fortsofMor risandCo,f rom t hel at eni ne tee nthc ent ur yt ot hepr e
senti tha s
be enc ommont oas sumet hata rti sul timat elyama tterof‘ artf orar t’
ss a ke ’
,andt hat
itise ithe rfineandpur eori mpr ac tica landus eless,de pe ndi ngony ourpoi ntofvi ew.
Att hes amet i
me‘ theae st
he ti
c ’isc as ual lyas sume dt obenot hingmor enorl esstha n
as ens iti
vityt ot hes ubl i
meandt hebe aut i
ful andana ve rsiont ot heor dina ryandug ly.
ForEngl i
s hSt udi e s,e spe cial l
yf ort hes tudyofLi te rat ure ,thel e gac yofs uc ha
division hasbe en pr ofound.Ma ny t radi tionalEngl ish Li teratur ec our sess ti
ll
conc ent ra t
es ubs tant i
a llyonj us tones ideoft hedi vide :onac anonofl i
te raturet reated
ashi ghar t( poe ms ,pl ay sa ndnov elsr eve re dasc las sics),asdi sti
nc tf r om popul ar
wr iti
nga ndmas sme di apr oduc tioni nge ne ral( mag azine s ,ne wss tories ,songs ,soa p
ope ras ,adv erts,e tc.
) .Al lthel attert e
ndt obet r eate dasar tisanal ,appl ied, comme rcial
ande phe me ral ,a ndt he refor el eftt oc our s esi nCULTURAL,COMMUNI CATI ON, AND
MEDI AS tudi es( se e1. 5. 11) .Thef or me r,me anwhi le ,stillte ndt obet reate dasar t
istic,
finea ndi ns omes e ns et ime les s,a ndpr ivilege dasc erta i
nki ndsofae s theticliterary
obj ect.Thenar rowe ds e nseofae st he tic,me ani ngt as t
e f
ul , refine danddi scrimina ting
(rathe rt han‘ sens epe rc eptioni nge ne ral ’
)ha spl a ye dac ruc i
al rol einma intainingt he
boundar ies.Soha sawi llingne sst opl a ydownt hef ac tt hatma nywor ksc urrent l
y
canoni seda st i
me lessc lassic s(e .
g .,S hake spe are ’sandDi cke ns ’s)we rehi ghlypopul ar
andc omme rcialandde signe dl ye phe me rali nt he irownday .
Butc ont empor ar yunde r standi ngsofbot ha es the ti
c sandar ta ref armor eva rious
andc ont ent i
oust ha nonemi ghtc asual lye xpe ct.The ya lsot endt obemat erialist
ine mphas isandhavear adi calpol iticale dg e .I nEngl ishandLi terar ySt udi es,
fori ns tanc e,t het wodomi na ntae sthe ti
c soft hefir s
thal foft het we nt i
ethc ent ury
havebe ene ffe ctive lyc hal lenge d.NEW CRI TI CS h ad appr oac hedt e xtsass emi -
sac redar tobj e cts( ‘ve rbali cons ’)andhadas serte dana e sthe ti
cswhi c
hr esolves
tens i
onsa nda mbi gui tiesa ndc elebr at esor gani cuni ty ,bal anc eandhar mony( see2. 3).
FORMALI STS h ad c onc ent rat ed on l iterar ine ssa nd *poe ticsi ns of arast he s
e
*de fami li
ar i
s er out inel ang uagea nds ha rpe ndul le dpe rce ptions( see2. 4) .Bot ht he s
e
criticalmove me nt s,f oral lt he i
rdi fferenc e s,we ret he r efor euphol di ngpos itions
cons ist entwi thl ateni ne tee nth- ce nt ur yv e rsionsofae sthe tic sa nda rt.Nowaday s,
howe ve r,s uchpos itionsa remuc hhar dert omai nt ainandi nmanya re ashav ebe en
subs tant iallys upe rsede d.FUNCTI ONALI STSa ndr eade r
-r ece ptionc rit
ics ,fori nstanc e,
arg uet ha te ve rype riodorc ultur ede ve lopsi tsowna e st
he ticpr inc i
ple s,of tende fine d
agai ns tt hos ewhi c hpr ece deors ur roundi t.The ypoi ntoutt ha tt heRomant ics
chal l
e nge dane a rli
ere ighte ent h-c ent ur yne o-c l
a ssica lae sthe ticba se
dupons ymme try,
var ietywi thi nuni t
yandt her ea sone ds ubs e rvienc eofpar tst owhol e .Ini tspl ace
Roma nt icar tistsand wr itersde ve lope da n ae st hetic sba sed upon di sl
oc ation,
mul tipl ici
tyasi te xc ee dsuni ty,andt hee mot ionalpowe rofpar tstos hat t
erwhol es.
COMMONTOPI
CS 176

Inas imilarway ,Mode rnismt he nPOSTMODERNI SM c hal le nge dandc hang edt he
domi nantt ene tsofr eal ism.Wear et husl eftwi thc ompe tingae s
thetics( plur al)
,not
justone .
Manymode rnvi ewsofa e sthetic sar epol iticallyc harg ed,t he refore,a ndr ej
e ctt he
viewt ha tarti ss ome howa boveort oones ideofs oc i
als trug gle.MARXI ST, FEMI NIS T
and POSTCOLONI AL wr iters,e s pe cially,al li ns i
sti nt he irva ri
ouswa yst hata
tradi tionala esthe ticsofhar mony ,bal anc eanduni t
yi sof tenmai nt ai ne donl yby
ignor ingorpl ay ingdownpot entiallydi srupt ivei ssuesofc la ss,g ende randr ac e.The y
poi ntt ot hee xi stenc eofoppos edandal t ernat i
veae sthe t icsbas edupondi ffere nt
ver si
onsofbe aut yandv i
sionsofpl ea sur e( e.g.,re presentat ionsofl abour ers ,wome n,
pe opl eofc olourandt hef ami lythatr es i
s torr eplac estereot ype sbas eduponWe ste rn
Eur ope ana ristocr ati
c ,bour g eoisa ndpa tria rchal value s)
. Of ten,t oo,t he rei sar adi cal
revisionofwhatweunde r
sta ndbypl ea sur e.De sire,fori ns tanc e,maybepe rceiv ed
asapowe rwhi chbl as tsapar tst ales oc i
alf orms ,nots impl yass ome thingt obe
restraine dbyr eas onorr eli
gi on.Pl ea sur e,me anwhi le,ma ye ntailpa rtic i
pa tionand
col l
abor ation( ini t
se xtremef or m Bar the s’se c s
t at
ic‘ joui s sance’)r a the rt hana
sens ationde rivedf rom me res pect atinga ndv oye urism.
Itisal sonow c ommonl yins ist
e dt hat‘ thea esthe ti
c’isnotani nhe rentpr ope rtyof
obj ectsata ll–a rti
sticorot he r
wi s e.Ra the r,iti sar gue d,anae st
hetice xpe ri
enc ei s
wha ti sg ener atedi nt hee nc ount erbe twe ens pec i
ficar te fac tsands pe cificr eade r s
,
audi enc esandvi e we rsi ns pe c i
ficc ondi tions .Di fferentae s the ticsaret husc onc eiv ed
asdy nami cr elations hi psnoti ntrins ice sse nce s:ongoi ngdi a logue sande xc hange si n
spe cificmat erialc ondi tions ,nott heobs erva nc eoffixe dc ode s.POSTMODERNI S TS,
mor eove r,poi ntt ot hec ommodi f icationandgl obal i
s ationofal lcul t
ur alpr oduc ts
and pr oces ses.The y obs er ve t hatmode rnt echnol ogi es ofr epr oduc t i
on and
communi cationar ee ffe ctivelya bol i
s hinganyfinaldi v is
ionbe twe en‘hi gh’a nd‘ low’ ,
‘elite’and‘ popul a r’ar ts.I nf actt hedomi nantc har ac te risticofpos tmode rni s
t
aes t
he ticsisi tshybr idityandc hange abi l
ity.Suc ha na esthe ticsma ybet re atedasa
commonc ur renc yandhav enot hi ngt odowi thar ti nanar row s ens eatal l.The
compl e xmat terofva luepe rs i
sts,howe ver,de pendi ngupont henot ionsofc ultur al
propr ietyande conomi cpr ope rtyi npl a y.(Forf ur t
he rdi sc us sions ee2. 10. )

Ac
tiv
ity

Aesthetics( plural) I dentif

yt wo ormor etextswhi c hse e
mt o bec onstructed
accordingt odi f
fe rentae sthet
icprinc i
ples:pe r
hapsonewhi chappe arstocelebr ate
orderandwhol eness ,harmony ,balanceandv arie
tywi thinunity;a
nda notherwhi c
h
appearst oc el
ebr atedi sorderandf ragme ntati
on,c acophony ,imbalanceandvar iety
beyonduni ty.Alsoc ons i
derthepos si
bili
tythatt he
seca t
e gori
esarethems e
lves–a long
withnot ionsof‘ be auty’–par tlyint heey e,earandmi ndoft hereade r
,audienceor
viewer.(Te xtswhi chha vewor kedwe l
lhe r
e,s i
nglyori nc ombi nati
on,i nclude
the‘Da ff
odi ls
’ma terials(5.4.
2),epitaphs( 5.4.6a )
,Que en’
s‘Bohe mianRha psody’
(5.
1.6c ),Aus ten( 5.2.4b) ,Beckett(5.3.3d) .)
Ae
sthe
tic
sandpl
eas
ure
,ar
tandbe
aut
y 177

Di
scu
ssi
on
(
i)I
nanype
riodi
tisuponav e
rysmal
lmino
rit
ythatt
hedis
cer
nin
gappre
c i
ati
onof
ar
tandl
it
erat
uredepends
.
F
.R.Leav
is,MassCiv
il
is
ati
onandMinori
tyCul
tur
e(1930)(1979:3)

(
ii
) Iwouldreg
ardwithdi
smayapo l
iti
cswh ichsubtra
ctstheaesthe
ticandrefus
es
i
tcult
uralmeani
ngandpossi
bil
it
y.[...]Bu tthebestanswertothi
sc a
semi g
ht
wel
lbetoret
heor
izeaflag
rantl
yeman ci
pa t
ory,una
pologet
ica
llyra
dica
l aes
thet
ic.
Isobe
lArms trong,TheRadicalAesthet
ic(2000:30)
Alsose
e:AESTHETICS;LI
TERATURE;CULTURE;FORMALISMINTO FUNCTI
ONALISM;
canonandclas
sic
;creati
vit
y;poe
tryandword-
play;di
ff
erenc
e...r e-
val
uat
ion.
READI NG:Intr
oductor
y:Cuddon1999:10–13;Wil
li
ams1983:31–3,366–417;O’Sul
li
van
etal
.1994:6–7.Advance
d:Mu kar
ovs
ky1936;Garvi
n1964;Benj
ami
n1970; Bourd
ieu1984;
Eagl
eton1990:1– 30,366–417;Regan1992;Armstr
ong2000.Reade
rs:Sin
gerandDun n
2000;Cazeaux2000.

AUTHORANDAUTHORI
TY
‘Author ’isnow c ommonl yus edt orefert oani ndiv idualwr iterwhoi ss uppos e dto
bet heul t
ima t
ec r
eatorofs omee s
peciallyvalue dte xt,of tenofaLI TERARY k ind.A
mor eal l
-pur poseandl esspr esti
giouster miswr it
er .Ge ne ral
lys peaking,‘a uthor ’is
to‘wr iter
’asa r
tis
tisto‘ artis
an’:author sandar t
istsa reas sume dt obes upr emeand
sublimei ndi vi
dualist
s;wr itersanda rti
sanst obepr actical,humdr um andge ne rally
serviceable( seepre vi
ouse ntry).Suchavi ew oft hea ut hor/artis
tispr obl emat i
c,
howe ver
.I tisals
oar el
at i
ve l
ymode rna ndins omer espec tspredomi nantlyWe st
e r
n
vie
w.I nea rli
erperiods,asi nmanyot he rculturest oday ,wefindt hatt hec once ptof
author shipwasa ndi sf armor et i
edupwi thnot ionsofc ollecti
vea uthor i
tyand
receivedwi s
dom.I nChauc er,fori nstance,‘ auct ors’( author s)we ret hos ewho
fol
lowe dandi nlargeme asuretranslate
dpr e
vious‘ auc toritees’(authoriti
es,sour ce s
).
Me a nwhile ,manyc onte mpor aryAf ri
can,Ca r i
bbe anandAus tralasi
anwr iter
sdr aw
uponc orrespondingt radit
ionsandr olesvoicingpubl icrat herthanpr ivatec onc erns.
Thedomi nantmode rnWe ster
nvi ew oft heauthormus tt he r
eforebes e e
nr el
ative l
y,
bothhi stor i
call
yandc ross-cult
urally
.Iti scharac t
er is
edbyfivema inas s
umpt i
ons :

1 theassumedp ri
mac yoftheind i
vi
dualan dofherorh i
sexperi
enceasagua rant
eeof
authenti
cit
y( hencethep opularbeli
efthatauthorswor kinsplendi
do rmi s
erable
isol
ati
on);
2 ane mphasisont hewr i
ttenwor d,aswe llasage neral
ly‘
logocentr
ic’vi
ewoft he
creat
iveprocessofcompos it
ion;
3 thebel
iefthatauthorsmak ethingsups pont
aneouslyoutofthei
ro wnh ea
ds;
4 therel
atedbelie
fthatauthorsa r
everyspecia
lpeopleandinextr
emec ases‘
geniuse
s ’
;
5 thevie
wt hatallreader
shav et odoisber ecep
tiv
eandr evere
nti
a l
.

Somepe opl
e,however,holdqui
tediff
erentvi
ewsoft henatur
eandf uncti
onof
authors
hipi
npart
icul
ar,andoft
heprocess
esofcr
eati
vit
ya ndc
ult
uralpr
oductioni
n
general
.The
ywouldc ounte
reachoftheaboveass
umptionsbyemphasi
sing:
COMMONTOPI
CS 178

1a theprimaril
ys ocialroleoft hea uthor/arti
stinr epresenti
ngc ommo na ndc ol
lecti
ve
experi
ences,oftenapp ealingt opr ecedentandt rad it
ion;alsothef actt hatwrit
e rs
,
perf
orme rsandar t
istsof tenwor ki nc l
oseass oc i
a t
ionwi thotherp eople;
2a thepe rvasi
vei nterpe ne t
r ati
onofc ul tur
ala ctiviti
esac rossmanyme di
a( e.g.
,
i
llust
ratedboo k,performanc epieces,the at
re,film) ,withthewr i
ttenwo rds ometi
me s
playi
ngami norrole;
3a thefactthatauthor sar er eproducersandal way sins omes ensetransformpr evi
ous l
y
exi
sti
ngmat er
ials(i.
e .thec u
rrentresour c
esofl ang uag e,
li
teratu
r eandc ulture
);they
donotc reateoutofn ot hingors imply‘ outoft heirhe ads’;
4a thebeli
eft h
ate veryonec ons t
antlycommun ic
at e sthingsofs i
gnificanc ea ndworth–
theydonotne edtob es pec i
altodot h i
s;
5a aninsist
encet hatr e
ade rs,audiencesandv i
ewe r salsohav eac rucialrolet opla
yi n
thenegotiati
onandc ons t
r uct
ionofme a n
ingsandv al
ue s.

POSTSTRUCTURALI STS ,mor eover,woul dar guet ha tt hereisne ve rafixe d,ul t

imat ely
ident i
fia bles our ceor‘ or i
gin’fora nyt hing.The reist herefor enos ingl e‘ aut hor’or
abs olute‘ aut hor i
ty’ .POSTMODERNI STS ,me anwhi le,woul daddt hatt heve rynot i
on
of‘ author shi p’ hasana rrowlyl i
terar yaswe lla squai ntlya rchaicr ingt oi t:mos tme dia
produc ti
onnow i spa l
pabl ycollabor at i
v eandde creas i
ng l
yde pe nde ntont hewr i
tten
orpr i
nt edwor d.‘ Aut hentici
ty’(i
.e .g enui nene ss
) ,theywoul df urthe rc la i
m,hasbe en
dissolve di ntoas uc cessionofc ompe tingi mage sa ndpe rsi
stentlypl ur alpoi ntsofvi ew.
Fora l
lt heabov er eas ons,theque stionofwhe the rthea ut hor( i.e
.,t hec onc eptof
theaut hor)i s‘ dead’or‘ ali
ve’isfr
e que nt l
yr aisedi nc onte mpor a ryl i
tera rya ndc ultural
studi es,mos tf amous lybyBar thesa ndFouc a ult.Vi ewi ngt hema tterhi st
or ically,we
area l
s oobl i
ge dt ot hinka boutsuc hmat t
ersast hei mpa ctofl iter aryc opyr ightand
thenomi nalowne rshipofpr intedwor ksf rom t hes event eent hc ent uryonwar ds.
Be foret hat ,wr it
e rsdi dnot‘ own’t he i
rpr int edwor dsandc ons eque nt l
yc ouldnot
de rivedi rec tpr ofitf rom t hem.Mor er ecently,wema ywonde rwhatpl ace‘ author s
-
as-indi vidual -creator s’havei nt hec ol labor ativewor (l
)dsoft heI nte rne tandt he
hype rme dia.Thi si nt ur nmaypr omptust or eva luet radi tional ,a nony mousor
colle c
tivec ultur alpr acticessuchasf olkt al
es,or alhi s t
or i
esa nda ne cdot es.I ns ocial
andpol i
tica lt erms ,wema yas khow f arwes eewr itersasi solabl eands e lf-creati
ng
indi vidual sora ss ocialr olesandi de ologi calide nt i
tiesint erac tingwi thot hers.I n
PSYCHOLOGI CALt erms ,wemayas khowf arwes e ewr ite
rsass our cesofe xpr essi
on
ors it
esofr epr ession.Re late
dque stionsar i seaboutLANGUAGE i npar tic ularand
CUL TUREi nge neral. Howf ara r
ewet heac ti
veus ers(the‘ author s’
)ofourownwor ds
andwor lds ,andhow f ardot heyus ea ndi ne ff
e ct‘author ’us ?

Ac
tiv
ity
Aut hors,Writ
ers,Pr oducer
s,Di r
e ct
ors,Perf
ormers,Prac t
it
ioners...? Whi chof
thef ol
lowingarec ommonl ythoug httobepr oduc
edby‘ anauthor’:
(a)clas
sicnovel
;(b)pul pfict
ion;(c)computermanual;(
d)s onnet;(
e)ma gazineadvert
;
(f)TVs oapope r
a ;(g)theat
ric
alpe rf
ormanc e
;(h)movi e;(i
)newss tory;(
j)greet
ings
cardme ss
age;(k)yourl as
te s
say?I ne ac
hc aseconsidere ve
ryonewhomi ghtbe
i
nvol vedintheproc e
ssesof(re
)producti
ona ndwhatot hertermsmi ghtbesubstit
uted
oradde d.
Aut
horandaut
hor
ity 179

Goont oselectoneanonymousworkandoneworkwithaknownaut horand

consi
derhow importa
ntiti
stoknow pr
eci
sel
ywhowroteorperf
ormedit
.Doy ou
putdif
fer
entquesti
onstoworkbyA.Nonymous?(
Compari
sonbetwee
n‘Ma i
denin
themorl a
y’(5.1.
1b)andWor dswor
th’
s‘Iwande
redl
onely...’
,(5.
4.2a)works
wellher
e.)

Di
scu
ssi
on

t
hebi
rtho
fther
eade
rmu s
tbeatthecostoft
hede
athofth
ea ut
hor.
Ro
landBart
hes,TheDeat
hoftheAut
hor(1968)(
1977:148)
Als
os e
e:2.
2;PSYCHOLOGI CAL;POSTSTRUCTURALI
STandPOSTMODERNI
ST;a
rt;
aut
o/bi
ogra
phy;canon;c
reati
vewrit
ing;subj
ect
;wri
ti
ng.

READING:Intr
oductor
y:Benne
ttandRoyl
e1999:19–27;Fowle
r1987:15–17;Hawt horn
2000:23–
5;GraddolandBoyd-Ba
rret
t1994:161–99;Hopki
ns2001:96–131.Advanced:
Bart
hes1977:142–8;Bart
hesandFouca
ulti
nLo dgeandWood2000:145– 87;Parr
inder
1991.

AUTO/
BIOGRAPHYANDTRAVELWRI
TING:SELFANDOTHER
Itisc onv entiona ltodi s ting uis hbe twe ena ut obi ogr aphy( alifeoft hes e l
f)a nd
biography( al i
feofanot he r) .Conv e ntiona l,too, ist hee xpe ctationt hata ut obiogr aphy
willbewr i
tteni nt hefir stpe rsons ingul arbya n‘ I’whoi sbot hs ubj ecta ndobj ectof
thena rrative ,whi lebiog raphywi l
lbewr i
ttenaboutat hi r
dpe rson‘ she’or‘ he ’who
isqui t
edi stinctf rom amor eorl essi nvisibl enar rat or.Of tens uchc onv entiona l
dist
inctionshol d:t hea utobi ogr aphyandbi ogr aphys ectionsofl ar gebooks t
or esa r
e
fullofe xa mpl es.Howe ve r,the rear eal sopl entyofi nstanc eswhe r ewr i
tersc hoos eto
wr i
teaboutt hems e l
ve sasort hr oug ht hi r
dpe rs ons( Jame sJ oy ce’sAPor traitoft he
Ar t
istandGe r
trudeSt e i
n’ sTheAut obiog raphyofAl iceB. Tokl asa ref amousmode rn
exampl es).I tist here forei mpor tantt or ec og niset hatt he rei sac ontinuousand
compl exr elati
ons hipbe twe enwr i
tingaboutone selfandwr itingaboutanot her.The
proc es
s esa reclos el
yanal ogous ,e ve ni fnoti de ntical.Bot ha utobi ogr aphe rsand
biographe rss el
ecta ndc ombi nee l
e me ntsast he ys eefit .Ther esulti nbot hc asesis‘a
li
fe’(i.
e .,oneofmanypos siblel ive s)not‘ t
hel ife’( i
.e.,t heonea ndonl yde fini ti
ve
li
fe).Mor eov er,itisv irtua llyi mpos si
bl etowr i
teone ’
sownl i
fe,aut obi ogr aphica l
ly,
withouti ns omeme asur ewr itingaboutt helive sofot he rs,biog raphi ca l
ly.(Tryabr ief
run-down ofyourown l i
f e-storyt o dat et o de mons tratet hispoi nt .
)Nori s
autobiogr a phyne cessar i
lya nymor e‘subj ective’andbi og raphya nymor e‘objec t
ive’:
bothc anbee qual l
y( un) r eliabl ea nd( im) par ti
al .The rei st husnone cess a
r ylink–
thoug honei softenas sume d–be twe e nl i
terar yfic t i
onanda utobi og raphyont heone
handa ndhi storicalfac tandbi og raphyont heot he rhand.I ta llde pe ndsuponwhat
kindof‘ truth’t her eade ri spr epa re dtoa ccept .
Mor eg ene ral
ly,italsode pe ndsupont henot i
onofs el
fa ndot he rinpl ay .I
nPSYCHO-
LOGI CAL t e rms,f ori ns t
a nc e ,thes elfi sspliti nt oav arietyofr ol es:c ons c
iousand
uncons cious ,expr essiveandr epr essive .Inl at erFr eudi ant ermst he rei sc easeles
s
negotationbe t
we ent he‘ I’,t he‘ a bove -I’andt he‘ t
hat( ot he r
)’(e go,s upe r-
e goa ndi d).
La c
anc ha racteris
e stheps y chea sas i
teof‘ l
a ck’ ,Kr ist
e vas ee sitasapl ac eofde sire.
COMMONTOPI
CS 180

Me anwhi le,ins oc io-pol itical t

e rmst hepe rsonc anbes ee nnotasafixe de nt itybutas
ac hang i
ngandc ha nge abl ei de ntit
y( sees ubj ec t).Who‘ Ia m’ , ‘wea r e’a nd‘ s/hei s ’the n
de pe ndsasmuc hupons oc ial-histor icalc ondi tionsasuponps yc hol ogi c alpr edi s-
pos itions .Mos tpoi ntedl y,i na‘ them andus ’ situa tion, thisc ome sdownt owhoc ount s
asoneofus( ide ntifiedwi ths elf)a ndwhoc ount sa soneoft he m( ide nt i
fie da sot he r).
Fora lltheabov er ea sons ,ma nyc ont empor ar yt he oristsandpr ac titione r spr efe r
tot alkmor ec apa cious lyofl ife-wr itingorus et hes las hedf orm‘ aut o/ bi og r aphy’ . Bot h
leaveope nt hemat terofpr e ci
s el
ywhoi swr itingwhos el i
f e.( Formuc ht hes a me
reas ons ,somePOSTMODERNI S T wr i
te r
sa nddi s cour seana lys tspr e f
e rt ot al kofal l
wr itingasf ac tionr athe rt ha ns omeas‘ fic tion’ands omeas‘ fac t’(s eer ea lism) ;orof
hi/st or ys oast os ug ge stt her adi calc ont inui tybe twe enf ormsof‘ stor y’a nd‘ his tor y’
(seena rrative ).)Thet e rml ife-wr itingal soha st headva nt ageofal lve r balnounsi n
tha ti ti mpl ie sa na cti
vi tyaswe l
la sat hing:l ive si nt hewr itingaswe lla sa lready
wr itten.Ane mphas ison‘ live s’ast hing sweac tive lyc ons t
r uc tanddonotj us thav e
cons t ruc tedf orusi se spe cial l
yi mpor tanti nt hei nc re asingnumbe r sofc r itica l-cre ativ e
cour sesi nl ife -wr i
ting.The see nc our ag epar ticipant st owr itet he irowna ndot he r
pe opl e’sl i
v ese ve nwhi let he ya nalys epr evi ousat tempt sata ut o/bi og raphy . Thel atte r
mayr a ngef r om S tAugus tine ’
sorRous se au’ sConf es sionst omagaz ine‘ Tr ueLi f e
Conf es sions ’,andf rom J ohns on’sLi ve soft hePoe tst hr oug hPe pys ’sDi ar y( 5. 2. 1b)
toFr ame ’
sTot heI s-land( se e5. 2.1d) .Le t tersandpos tcar ds ,ande v enpe rs onala ds ,
c.v.sandi nt er vie wsmaya lsobegr istt ot heaut o/ bi ogr aphi c almi ll.
Tr av elwr itingi sac los elyr elateda reai nc rea singl yr ecog ni sedt obeofc ruc ia lc ros s-
cul t
ur als i
gni fic anc e.I nt hi sc as et he‘ live s’and‘ pe opl e(s)’inque stiona ref ra me di n
termsofac ompa rison,ands ome time sac lash,ofc ul tur es.Andof tent heac tiv ityof
trave lwr iting i si ncide nt a lt os ome ot he rpur pos e– a dmi ni st rati ve ,mi litar y,
comme rc i
a lors cientific :Ral eigh’smi li
ta rye xpe ditiont oGui anai ns e ar chofgol d;
Da rwi n’ stript oSout hAme r i
cat oobs er vet heg eol og yandflor aa ndf auna( 5. 2.2
a– b). Some time st het rav el isa ne ndi ni tse lf,aswi thmode rnpr ofes siona lt rave lwr i
te rs
andj our na li
s ts( e.g.Br yson5. 2. 2e )a nd,mor ege ne rally,t our ists.Butwha te ve rt he
aim oroc cas ion,a swi tha l
ll ife-wr iting,t her esul twi llbei ns omeme a s urefic tional
aswe llasf ac tual ,as tor yaswe llasahi stor y.The rewi llal sobea ni ne sc apabl e
tende nc yt oc ons truc t‘ot he r ’cul t
ur e si nr e lationt oone ’
sown,andv i
c eve rs a.Thi si s
compar abl et ot hes elf–ot he rdy na mi ci na ut o/bi ogr a phy . Wi tht rav el wr iting , ty pic ally,
thos e‘ ot he rs’ar ei nitiallys ee nonas caleof‘ mor eorl e ss’r elativet ot heobs e rv er’s
own c ul t
ur e:mor e or l esse xot ic/expe c ted,s avage /civilised,nat ur al/a rtific ial,
rea sona ble/emot i
onal , etc.( se ethePOSTCOLONI ALmi nd- setsonp. 149) . Subs eque nt ly,
howe ver, eva lua tionst endt obemor es ubt leandc ompl ex.Ot he rpe opl emayg radua lly
bes e eni nandont he i
rownt erms–a ndt he re for enots t ri
c tl
ya s‘ ot he r’atal l.
Ine v itablyt r ave linvol ve st hena mi ngandmappi ngofpl ac es( se epp.146–8) .
Inde e d,s ome t ime st hati st hepr imepur pos eoft hej our ne y:t omakema ps( ge ne ral ly
fort hos ef rom e l
sewhe re)a ndpe rhapst or e -nameora tl east‘ sta ndar di se ’thename s
acc or dingl y.Thi sist hec e nt ralboneofc ont e nt ioni nFr iel’
sTr ans lations( 5. 4. 4c ),a
playwhi chr e-c reate stheBr i
tishmi li
tar y ’
sOr dnanc eSur v eymappi ngofni ne teent h-
cent ur yI r
e l
and,Ang licisingI rishpl ac e-na me si nt hepr oc ess.Thi sr e mi ndsust ha t
trans la tioni savi rtual lyi ne vitabl ec ons eque nc eoft rave l.Iti sal so,s ot os pe ak,how
lang uage st rav el:how s pe ec horat exti nonel ang uagebe c ome ss pe e c horat e xti n
anot he r–t he‘ samet hi ng ’mades ubs tant iallyofdi ffere nc es.
Hi st or i
ca lly,t r avelwr itingt endst obeas soc iate dwi thar angeofc ol oni aland
impe ria lpr oje ctsandt he irc ha rac te ristic allynat ional ,c omme rc i
ala ndr e ligious
Aut
o/bi
ogr
aphyandt
rave
lwr
iti
ng:s
elfandot
her 181

pe r
s pe ctives.Buts omes ens eof‘ tr ave l
ling’ ins pac ea ndt imei se nt ailedbyj ustabout
anyac tofwr it
ingandr e pre se ntat i
on,andul timat el
yt hi se xt endst ot hei mag i
nat ive
trave lsa ndmi nd- sc ape sofSc i
e nc eandUt opi anorDy stopi anFi c ti
on( see5. 2.6).
Me anwhi l
e,i nt hemode rnme dia ,c urre ntc ount erpa rtsinc ludeTV andfil mt ravel
doc ume ntaries,whe the rf orbr oadl ye duc ationa lors pe cific allyt our i
s ticpur pos e s
.
Ma nyoft he set endt obene o- col oni ali nt he irc ons t ructionof‘ abr oa d’a sar ichly
appe aling–a nd,i fthi ng sgowr ong ,wr etche dl yappa lling–pl ac e .I tisac ommodi ty
,
too, mos tpalpabl yi nt he‘ pa ckagehol iday’ wi t ht heal l-inpr icet ag .Tobes ure,af ew
progr amme s,booksandne ws pa pe ra rticless ee kt os ett her ecor ds tr aight ,drawi ng
onava rietyof‘ nat i
ve ’pe rspe ctives .Bute ve nt he nt hea uthor ialordi re ctorialvoi ce
cont r olst hepe r spec tiveandof tent heque stions ;asdot henat ur eandne edsof
dome sticv iewe rsandr eade rsaspr os pe ctivec ons ume rs.Conve rs ely,and pa ra-
doxi c ally,whe nt ra ve lwr i
t ingi ns omes e ns e‘ g oesna t
ive ’bys y mpa thisi
ngand
ident ifyingwi t
hi t sobj ec ts,i tc eas est obet r a velwr itinga ss uc h.Oneoft hemos t
fascinat i
nga ndpr ess i
ngt opi csi nwha tisvar ious l
yc allede thnobi ogr a phyor‘ c ross-
cultur a llif
e-wr iting’f oc us e sont hepr oc essofr eciproc a lrepr es ent ationwhe npe opl e
from di fferentc ul tur esme et.Tha ti s,whe the rnomi na llytheobj e c tsort hesubj ects
oftheot hers’ gaze ,repr e sent ative sofe achgr oupof fert he ms elve supi ns uita bl
yhos til
e
orhos pitabl epos e s,de pe ndi nghow t he yt hi nkt he ya rese ena ndhow t heywi s ht o
bes e en.Suc hc ompl e xr e fle ctionsandr e frac tionsa rewha tPr at t(s eeRe adi ngbe low)
influe ntiallyr eferst oas‘ thear tsoft hec ont ac tz one ’.
Thei mpl icationsofaut o/ biogr aphyandt ra ve lwr i
tingf orEngl ish,Li teraryand
Cul tur alSt udi esar epr of ound.Whe rease a rl
ie rPRACTI CAL a nd NEW CRI TICS
assiduous l
yr ejectedbot ht hea ut obi ogr aphi cal andbi ogr aphi cal dime nsionsofawor k
asi rre levant( i
ns tanc esofa n‘ inte ntionalf al lacy ’;se ep.84) ,ma nymode r
nc r i
tics
insistont hec ompl exi nt erc onne c t
e dne ssoft hel ivesandwor ksofbot hwr it
ersa nd
reade rs.FEMI NI STa ndPOSTCOLONI AL wr it ers,inpar tic ular,ar ec ommi ttedt o
redis cove r
ing,r ec ove ringand,i fne c essar y,r e-v i
sioni ngorr e -
me mbe ringpr evious ly
ne glec t
e dormar ginal isedl ive s.I nt hist he ya reof teni nde bt edt oPSYCHOLOGY f or
interior isedi mage sofs e lve swhi c hl ayc laimt oki ndsofa nthr opol ogi ca la ndhi storical
truth,e venwhe reanac tua lpe rsonhasbe en‘ hidde nf rom hi stor y ’.Thec ur rent
resur ge nc eofnov elss t yledonj our na ls,let t
e rsandt ravelogue si sones ympt om of
this.I nc reas ed at te ntion t os lave nar rativ e si sa not he r( se e 5. 2. 3) .Inf ac t
,
auto/ bi ogra phya ndt rav elwr i
t i
ngar ecur rent lya mongt hemos tl ive ly( andl ucrative)
ofc ont empor aryg enr es ,ins ideandout sideac ade mi cc i
rcles .

Ac
tiv
ity
Whos e‘li
fe’isitany way ? I tispossi
bletol ookf orandfind( oravoida ndi gnor e
)
the‘auto/
biogr aphical’a nd‘travel
’dime nsi
onsofanywr it
e r
’swr it
ing–orf ort hat
matteranyr eader’
sr eading. Wi t
hthispropos i
ti
oni nmind,t ackleatextthati nterest
s
you.Thel atterneednotbeat extovertl
yde dic
a t
edt olif
e-writingort r
a vel;buty ou
mayfindi tiniti
all
ymos thelpfultofocusononet hatis.Whoi swr i
tingandr eading
whom?( Suggestedf ocus esi
nPa r
tFiveinclude:Clare(5.3.4a) ;Dickinson( 5.4.6c )
;
let
tersand di aries( 5.2.1);travell
ers’tales(5.2.2);slavena rr
ati
ve s( 5.2.3)and
‘I
’denti
tie
si nplay( 5.3.4).
Goont or eflectupont hevar i
ousc onst
ruc t
ionsofyourown‘ s
elves’for‘ others’
whe nwr i
tingi nge nress uchasdi ary,let
ter
,pos tc
ardandac a demice s
say ,orwhe n
COMMONTOPI
CS 182

t
alkingovercof
feewi
thf
ri
ends
,ins
emi
narori
nte
rvi
ew.Whoi
sitt
hatwr
ite
sand
s
pe aksyour‘
li
ves
’?

Di
scu
ssi
on

Ani n
divi
dual
’sori
gi
ni so
fgre
atrel
evanc
etothewayh eorsheexper
iencest
hesubje
ct
[Engli
sh][...]butformanythefor
ma t
iveexpe
rie
nc eisofdis
cover
ingident
ityby
cross
ingboundar
ies
.
Col
inEvans,Engl
ishPeopl
e:TheExperi
enceofTeachingandLearningEngli
shin
Briti
shUniver
sit
ies(1993:194)

Alsosee:1. 5.
7;PSYCHOLOGICAL;POSTCOLONIALISM;addres
ser...addr
ess
ee;
author
;na r
rativeinstor
yandhi
stor
y...;rea
lis
m andrepres
entat
ion;s
ubje
ct...
ide
ntit
ies
;translat
ion.

READI NG:Int
roduct
ory:Cuddon1999:63–7,83–7;Anderson2001;We l
lekandWarren
1963:75–93.Ad v
anced:Evans1999;Benstock1988;Wa r
dJ ouve1991;Marcus1994;
Plas
aa ndRi
ng1994.Travelwri
tingi
npart
icul
ar:Prat
tinBarth
olomaeandPetro
sky1999:
582–602;Prat
t1992;Gikandi1996.Al
soseePOSTCOLONI
ALISM and5.2.
1–3.

BI
BLES,
HOL
YBOOKSANDMYTHS

Thewor dbi blede riv esf rom Gr e e

kbi bli
a,me ani ng‘ l
it t
lebooks ’
.TheBi ble( de fini te
articl
e ,capit ali
se dands i
ng ular)ist hena meofapa rticular–t hought os omee xt ent
variable–c ollectionofbooksbe aringwi tnesstoJ ewis h( OldTe stame nt)a ndChr istian
(Ne w Te st
ame nt )hi stor yandbe lief.Bothpar t
soft heBi bleha ves uppl iedmyt hs ,
stories,t opi cs,t he me sandal lusionst hatpe rvadeWe stern,Eas te r
na nd gl obal
li
teratur eandt hear ts. The yha vebe e nusedast hepr imar yt extsf ort eachi ng*l it
e rac y
and,i nde ed,haveof tenbe enitsma i
nobj ect.The yhavebe ent ra nslat edf r om and
intomor elangua ge st hana nyot he rbooksi nt hewor ld.Andt he yhavebe enus edt o
unde rpi nandaut hor i
s eawi devar i
e t
yofbe l
iefs ystemsands oc ialor de rs,notal lof
whi cha recons istentwi thoneanot he r
.(Forins t
a nce,J ewss eeJ esusChr ista ss impl y
anot he rpr ophe tnott hes on ofGod;whi leCat hol ics,Pr ote stants ,Li be r
at i
on
The olog ists,J ehov ah’ sWi tnessesand as sortedt ele-evang el
is tsc itet hes ameor
differentpar tsoft heNe w Te s
tame nttov eryva ri
ouss oc iala nds pir i
tuale nds .)At
anyr ate,t heJ ewi shandChr i
stianf aithshavebe ens oc ultur allype rvas iveand
pol i
ticallyc onte ntioust hati tisa lmos timpos siblet or e
adanyt hingi nEng lishf rom
beforet hemi d-
twe nt i
e thc entury(andmuc haf terit),whe therf rom Br itain, Ame r
ic a,
Af ri
ca,t heCar ibbe anorAus tral
a s
ia ,withoute ncount e ri
ngdi rectori ndi recte v i
denc e
ofbi blicali nflue nc e .Fr om t hee a
r lyseventh-cent ur y‘ Dre am oft heRood’a ndt he
fourtee nth-ce ntur y‘ Mai deni nthemorl ay’(5.1.1b–as onga boutMar y ?),thr ough
Chauc er,Shake spe are ,Mi l
ton,Be hn,De f
oe,Aus ten,Byr on,Di cke nsandT. S.El iot ,
upt oandbe yondQue en’s‘Bohe mi anRha psody’ (5.1.6c–‘ Bee lzebubhasade vils et
asidef orme...’ ),t hes tr
ainsa nds tres
sesoft wooft hewor l
d’ smaj orr e li
gi onsand
theirfoundi ngbooksc anbehe ard.
Thei mpl ic ati
onsf ors tude ntsofEng l
ishLANGUAGE,LI TERATURE a ndCULTURE
arepr odi gious .Iti sne cessary
Bi
ble
s,hol
ybooksandmy
ths 183

♦ tobeatl e astacqua i
nte dwi ths uchbi blicalstoriesast hecreati
onoft hewor l
da nd
ofAdam a ndEve ,Caina ndAbe l,Abr aham andI saac,Noa h’sFlood( e
.g.,5.
3.2a) ,
theNa ti
v i
ty,Cr ucifixi
onandRe surre ctionofChr i
st,allt
hewayt hroughtot heLast
Judgeme nt( ‘
Dooms day’ )
;
♦ torecogni s
et hatmy riadphr as essuc has‘ Lett herebe...’ ,‘Int hebeginningwa s
...’andbe i
ng‘ worthone ’
ss alt’
,a swe llaswhol es t
ylesofspeech,de r
ivefrom the
Bibl
e(oftenf rom specifict ransl
ationss uc hast heTynda l
lorthe‘Aut hori
sed’versi
ons);
♦ tobeawar ethatmanyoft hedomi na ntmode lsofoppos it
ionsbetwe engoodande vi
l,
heavena ndhe l
l,bodyands oul,li
ghtandda r
k–aswe l
lasdomi nantr e
presentati
ons
ofme na ndwome n,be l
ieversandpa gans /
he athens–ar ebaseduponappe alsto
bibl
icalaut horityandJ udaeo-Chr i
stiandoc t
rine.

Att hes amet imei tisi mpor t

antnott oc onc entr atee xc l
us ive l
yont heBi ble .The re
aremanyot he r‘ holybooks ’aswe llaswhol eor alandar ti
s ti
ct radi ti
onswhi c h
celebrat eot he rr e li
gi ouss ys t
emsa nds oc i
almor al i
ties.Myt hs,s tor ies,r itualsand
repr esent ationsmayal sobei de ntified wi ths pe cifi
c allyGr eek,Roman,Ce ltic,
Ge rma ni c,Hi ndu,Mus l
im,Buddhi st,Af ri
c ana ndAbor iginalbe li
efs ys tems .The se
toohavei mpi ng e duponandhe l
pe dc onfigur ethel ang uag es,l i
te rature sandc ultur es
wec all‘ Engl is h’,ast he yha vemanyot he r
s .So t he set oo atl eas tne e dt o be
acknowl e dge da sr el
e vantf oral lofuse ngag edinEng lishSt udi e s.Suc hadj us tme nt s
aree spe ciall
yi mpor tanti nt hatt hes ubj e
c tisstillsome time sc asual lya ssume dt ohav e
aChr istianisingmi ssiona swe lla sapa rtl
yChr istianhi st
or y.Af tera ll,Eng lishasa n
educ ationals ubj ectc ultiva te
dbyChur c hands tatepar t l
ygr e w outofChr istia n
theolog yandS undayandMi ssions chool sa swe l
lasDi s se
nt inga cade mi es.I thast hus
oftenbe eni de ntif i
edwi thvar iousf ormsofChr isti
anhumani sm,f rom Mat the w
Ar noldt ot heNEW CRI TI CS( see1. 5. 1a nd1. 5. 5) .Asf arast heBi blea ndEngl i
sh
Studie sar ec onc erne d,anumbe roff ur therdi stinc ti
onsandqual i
fic ationst he refor e
nee dtobemade .
‘TheBi ble ’i si tse lfnotonebutmany l ang uage s,l ite r
at ur esand c ultur es.
(Re me mbe rbi bl ia=‘ books ’.)TheOl dTe stame nt,i niti
al l
ywr itteni nHe brew,c ons ists
ofawi der angeofg enr esr epre sent i
ngt hehi stor icmi s si
onoft heJ ews :myt hicand
epicnar r ative s( Ge ne sist oExodus );c hr onicles( King s);l aws ,mor alc ode sa nd
prove rbs( Le vi ticus ,Ec clesiasticus ,Pr ove rbs )
;pr aye rsandl oves ongs ,s ac redand
erotic( Ps alms ,SongofS ol omon) ;andl iv esofi ndi vidua lhe roe sa ndpr ophe t
s( Job,
Jonah,Rut h) .TheNe w Te sta
me nt ,initiall
ywr itteni nGr eek,a lsoc ons istsofmany
differentge nr es:mul tiplena rrativesoft hel ifeofChr ist(thef ourGos pe ls);e xtende d
let
te r
s( thee pis tlesofStPault ot hee arlyc hur ches ),andamys t
ic ala ndhi ghl ypoe tic
visionofapoc al y pse( theBookofRe v el
a t
ions )
.Mor eove r,v ar i
ousot he rbooksha ve
bee nhai le dase ithe raut he nticor‘ a poc ryphal ’bydi ffe r
e nts ec tsatdi fferentt ime s.
The yha veac c or dingl ybe enc ount edi noroutofva ri
ousc anonsofhol ybooks .The
so-calledGos pe lofNi code mus ,fori nstanc e,wasa cce ptedasaf aithf ulac countof
Chr ist’
shar rowi ngofhe lldur ingt hee ar l
yMi ddl eAge s,onl yt obedr oppe dl ater.
Roma n Cat hol icss tillac ceptmor e booksasc anoni c alt han do Pr ot estant s.
Me anwhi le,t heChur chofJ esusChr i
standLat terDaySai nt shasi t
sowns pec ial
Bible-size de xt rabook,t heBookofMor mon( 1830) .
Bi bleshav ee xi stedi nmanydi ffe rentt ranslationsa ndada ptat i
onsandhaves e rved
manydi ff e
re ntf unc tions .TheBi blee xistspr i
mar il
ya s‘hol ys criptur e’( i.
e .sa cred
wr iti
ng) .Cons e que nt ly,formuc hofi tshi story,mos tpe opl ehavenota ctual lyr ead
theBi bl ea ta ll.Thei llitera temaj or ityhaveha ds electionsf r om i tr eadt ot he m,a nd
COMMONTOPI
CS 184

repr e se ntedf ort he m byc l

e ricsandar ti
stsi ns e rmons ,pr a ye rs,hymns ,pa int i
ngs ,
staine dg las sa ndc ar ving s .Theme die va lMys t eryPl ayswe r eones uc hhi g hlydr ama ti
c
andvi sualr epres ent a t
ion( se e5. 3. 2a) .I nde e d,t hes toryoft heBi bl e’st r
ans mi ssion
isge ne rallyoneofat ens ionbe twe enal itera tepr iest lyc as teandamor e–gr adual l
y
less–i llitera tepopul a ce .Thec hie fBi bl eoft heMi ddl eAge s ,fori ns tanc e,wasc al
led
theVul gate( i
.e.Common)Bi bl eofS tJ erome( AD 4 05) .Howe ve r,t hiswa si nLa ti
n
andonl y‘ common’t ot hos ee duc ate di nr eadi ngt ha tla ngua ge .The re a ft
e rBi bl esin
theva riousEur ope anve rna c ular sbe gant oappe a r:inEng land, not abl y,t heWyc lif
fite
ver sion( c.1380) ; Ty ndal e ’sandCov e rdal e’s( 1526,1535) ; the‘ Ge ne v a’Bi ble( 1560) ;
thes o-c alled‘ a uthor ised’Ki ngJ ame sve rsion( 1611)l ar ge lyba sedont het hr eef or mer
ver sionsandi ts e
lfr e vise d1881– 5;a ndt heNe wEngl ish, GoodNe ws( Ame rican)and
Ne wI nt ernat i
ona lv e rsions( 1970,1976,1979) .Par tsoft heGos pe lsi npar ticular
hav eal sobe ent ra ns l
at edi nt ovar iet iesr angi ngf r om Gl as we gi andi a lec ttoJ amai can
*c reol e.Mus ical,s tageandfil m ada pt ationsr angef r om Hande l’sMe ss iah( 1742)t o
the1960s ’r oc kmus ical sJ os ephandhi sAma zingTe c hni col orDr e amc oata nd
Gods pe ll,a ndMont yPy thon’ spar odi cLi f
eofBr ia n( 1979) .( Fort r ans lat i
onsand
ver sionsofPs alm 137,s e e5. 4.1. )
The r ea remanyot her‘ hol ybooks ’,myt hsandbe lie fs yste mst ha tweal sone edt o
acknowl edg e .Eng li
s hLi te ratur e–ande ve nmor es oLi terat ur ei nEngl ish–i sf arf rom
exc lus ive l
yChr istiani ni tsr e l
igiousr oot sa nde mpha s es.Iti smor epr ope r l
yc onc eived
asac ros s-
c ultur al,ands pe cific a l
lyc r oss-r e
lig ious ,hybr id.Ea rlie rEngl isht ext sare
teemi ngwi t hCLASSI CAL g odsandhe roe sandt he iras soc i
at edmyt hs ,l eg endsand
stor ies,f rom Mar sa ndVe nust oZe usandLe da( e .g.,5. 1.4) .Thec hi efs our ce sare
Ovi d’sMe ta mor phos es ,Home r ’
sI liadandOdy sse ya ndVi r gil’sAe ne id.Ge r mani c
andCe l
ticg odsa ndhe r oe sal sohaveal arg epar tt opl ay ,not a blyi nAngl o-Sa xon
poe try( e.g.,t hee picBe owul f)andi nl ate rme di evalAr thur ianl ege nds .Fr om a
nar rowl yChr isti
anpoi ntofvi ew al lt he sema te rialsar epaganorhe at he n.None -
the less ,the yf reelybl enda nds ome time sc ont endwi tht heof fic ialr eligionofc our t,
chur chands tate .Evi de nt l
yt he ys uppl iedpe opl ewi thi magi nar yr esour c esf or
expl or ingot he rwor l
d- v iewsa ndot he rmor alf ra me s. Af ewi ns ta nc esf r om Par tFive
wi llhe lpc onfir m how v ar i
oust he sear e.Chauc ers howshi ms e l
fwe lla war eoft he
pr ese nc eandobvi ous l
yf eltt het hr eatof‘ he t he n’r eligi onst ot hee ast( 5.1. 1c ).
Shake spe ar ea ttempt st or e pr ese ntan e nc ount e rbe twe en aWe ste rn Eur ope an
Chr istiang e ntleman- cum- ma gic i
an( Pr os pe ro)andv ar iousbe nigna ndma lignna ture
spir itsf rom t heAme r i
c as( Ar ielandCal i
ba n;5. 3. 2b) .De foea ndBe hnbe arwi tne s
s
tot hec ollisionsandc oal es cenc esofWe sternEur ope an,Af r i
c anandAme rican
cul tur es ,r eligionsandi l/literac ies( 5. 2.3a–b) .By ronbl ithe lymi mi csandmoc ks
religi ousf or mst hatMi ltont ooks os e rious l
y–y ethi ms elfas s i
duous lybl e nde dwi th
eleme nt sofc las s
ic almy thol og y( 5.1. 3aa nde ).Ki plings howshi ms elft obef asc inated
by ,ye te xc lude df r om,Mus limf une ralpr a ctices( 5.2. 5a) .Conr adi sbot hat tr acted
anda ppal ledbyt hei mageofAf r i
c anr iteshec onj ur esupatt he‘ he a rtofdar kne ss’
(5.2. 5b)–ani mag ewhi chi sg rote sque l
yi nv ert eda ndi nfla tedbyCa rylChur chill
somet i
mel ater( 5. 3.3e ).Mor er ece nt ly,wema yr ea di lyt ur nt oawi de ninga rrayof
wr itingswhi chope nlyc e lebr ateandr e valuer e l
igi onsandbe l
ie fs ys temswhi c ht he
col oni a li mpos ition ofChr i
s tiani ty ha d obs cur e d ordowngr ade d.Exampl e
s
repr e sent edhe rei nc lude :S emi nol ec hant s( 5.1. 6a );Ni ge rianI gboa ndCar ibbe an
fune ralr i
te s( Ac he beandNi chol s ,5. 2.5eand5. 4. 6d) ;myt hsandl ege ndsf rom
Aus tr alianAbor igi ne /Koor i( Mar s hal l-Stone ki ng,5. 1.6b) ;Ne w Ze alandMaor i
(Fr ame ,5. 2. 1d) ;t heCar ibbe an( Scot t,5. 4. 5d)andNi ge rianYor uba( Tut uol a,5. 2.5
Bi
ble
s,hol
ybooksandmy
ths 185

d).Thepal pabl y*or ala ndpe rformanc eas pe ctsofma nyoft he sepi e c
e sa lsor e mind
ust ha tmos toft he ser eli
gionsandc ul tur eshav enotde pende dupons cri
pt ur esa nd
‘bi
bl es/books ’atal l
.
Ther eli
g iousbe liefsandi de ologi c alpos itionsofr eade rsa ndc rit
icsne c essarily
affectwhatbookst he yva lue–‘ hol y’ orot he rwi se. Manyoft hefir stNe wCr iticswe re
Chr istiansbas edi nt heAme rican Sout he rnSt ate s.The yt ende dt o as sumet he
centra li
tyoft heBi bl eal ongwi tht hea ut hor ityofi t sul timat e‘ aut hor ’,God.Al lthis
isinl inewi t ht he i
rde v otiont ol i
te rar yt e xtsas‘ ver bali c ons ’andt he ircommi tme nt
toat raditionalc anon.Manyl ate rc riticst akei s suewi tht hem,howe ve r
.POST-
STRUCTURALI S TSc ont estt hea bs ol ut eaut hor it
yofa l
lbooksa ndwoul dt endt o
cel
e br atethes he erpl ur ali
t yofmat erialsandt hepl e thor aofdi scont inuoushi storical
mome ntswhi chmaket heBi blenotonebutmany .MARXI S TSma ys eet heBi blea s
anins trume ntofs oc ialc ont rol wielde dbyapr ivilege dc asteofl i
tera t
ec lergyc ompl ici
t
inthemai nt ena nceofs oc ialhi era rchy .Butt he ymayal sor ec ogni sei tspot e ntialf or
cons truc ti
vedi s s
enta nde manc i
pat i
on,e spe cial lyasi nvoke dbypol iti
c alr adi cals
outs i
dea swe llaswi thint her anksoft hec l
e rg y.FEMI NI STSwo ul daddt ha tmos tof
thec lergywe remal ea ndt hes ocial hie rar c hywaspat ria rchal ,ev enwhi ler ecogni si
ng
thatt heChur chof tenof feredoneoft hef ewoppor tuni t i
esf orwome nt oge tfor mal ly
educ at eda ndor ga ni s ed.Fe mi nis tr e adi ngsoft heBi bl et he reforet endt odr aw
attentiont ot heway sinwhi chf ema les te reot ype sa re,f orbe t
te ra ndwor se,re infor ced
orr evi sed:Eve ,De li
lahandJ eze be last empt resse sandde ceive rs;Noah’ swi fea s
shrewi shg os siporf a i
thf ulfe ma lec ompani on( s ee5. 3. 2a) ;Mar yaspat ientlys uf feri
ng
mot he r;Mar thaa sag oodhous ewi fe;Rut ha spa tients e rvanta ndwi fe;e t
c .Fe mi nists
alsol ookt oot he rr eligioust raditionsandmyt hsf ormor epowe rfulr olemode l
s, e.
g .
,
Lili
th,whoac c ordi ngt otheTa lmudwast hes t rong -wi ll
e dwi feofAda m be for eEv e,
orCas sa ndra,t hef emal epr ophe te ssofTr oy .POSTCOLONI ALc ri
ticsa lsohavet he i
r
say.The yof tenobs erv et he‘ whi temas k’r out inelypl acedbyWe sternEur ope a n
wr i
ter sa ndar tist
supont hef acesofChr ista ndhi spa re nts,not wi t
hs tandi ngt hef act
thatt hehol yf ami lywe rePal estini anJ e ws ,pr e suma bl yda rk- skinne dandpe rha ps
Africa nbyba c kg round.Buts uc hc ri
t icsma yal sodr aw at tent i
ont ot hepot entially
produc ti
v ea nde ma nc ipator yas pe ctsoft heChr istiani singmi ssion:i tsre sistanc et o
aswe llasc ompl icitywi ths lave ry;a ndi tsdoubl e -edge dl egac yof*l iteracy, spr eading
thepowe rofapr i
nt edwor dt ha twasnotal wa yswi elde dbyt hebl a ckr ea de ri nhe r
orhi sownr ight /wr ite.Mor er e cent ly ,t hec aseofSa lmanRus hdi ewasas t
a rk
remi nde rtha tnoneoft hisi sas impl emat terofbl ac kandwhi te.Theaut horofThe
Satani cVe rsesl i
ve df ors e ver aly e arsunde rs e nte nc eofde athbyMus limf unda -
me nt alis
tsbe caus eofal l
eg edbl as phe myaga i nstt hewor dands pir i
toft he irhol y
books( theKor ana ndas s
oc i
a teda poc r ypha) .Tha tt oowa sar eli
giousdi me ns i
onof
wr i
tingi nEngl ish.

Ac
tiv
iti
es

(
a) SamePsalm?Comparet
hevari
oustr
ansl
ati
onsandadaptat
ionsoft
heope
ningof
Psal
m 137(5.
4.1)
.Addave
rsi
onofyourownifyouwish.

(
b) TheBi
blea
sLit
erat
ure
.Se
lec
tapas
sagef
romtheOldorNe
wTe s
tament
sandana
lys
e
i
tinte
rmsofl
anguage
,genr
eandnar
rat
iveordr
amati
cst
ruc
ture
s.
COMMONTOPI
CS 186

(
c) Un/author
ise
dv e
rs i
ons.I
nvest
igat
ethepre
cisehandli
ngofthemate
rial
inatextwhich
hasa novertl
ybi bli
calthe
meorf rameofr ef
erence(e.
g.,Noah’
sFl ood5.3.
2a ;
ParadiseLost5.1.3a ;TheVi s
ionofJudg ement5.1.
3e ).Whathasbe enadded,
removedormodi fiedc omparedwiththeBible?

(
d) Cross-
culturalt
ensi
ons .Concent
rateonat extwhichexposesthetensi
onsbetween
onerel
igionorbe l
ie
fs yst
em andanothe
r( e
.g.
,Chaucer5.1.
1c ;Shakes
peare5.
3.2b;
Kipl
ing5. 2.
5a;Ni chols5.4.
6d)orat extwhichexplore
sareligi
onorbe l
iefs
yst
em
unfa
mi l
iartoyou( may beTutuol
a5.2.5d,orMar shall
-St
oneking5.1.
6b).

Di
scu
ssi
on

(
i) Youju
stc
an’
texpe
ctk
no wl
edgeoft
heBi b
leanymor
e. Adver
ts,
popands
port
,
sur
e–andmayb
etheoddMao r
imyth.Butno
ttheBib
l e...
Ret
ir
inguni
ver
sit
yEngli
shl
ecturer
,NewZeal
and1996

(
ii
) Bib
lesare,
bytheirve
rynature,part
isan.
Ast hatpl
uralsuggests
,the
rearemany
bi
bles
,eveninEn gl
is
h,ande achistheproductofapa rti
cularint
eres
tgroup–
whet
herreli
gi
ous,comme r
cialor,i
ncreas
ingl
yno wadays
,both.
RobertCarr
ollandStephenPr i
ckett(e )TheBi
ds ble
:Aut hori
sedKingJames
Vers
ionwithApoc r
ypha( 1997:pr
eface
)

Als
osee:CLASSI
CS;THEOLOGY;POSTCOLONI ALI
SM AND MULTI
CULTURALI
SM;
aut
hor
(i
ty)
;canon;di
scour
se;nar
rat
ivei
nst
ory;t
ransl
ati
on.

READI NG:Intr
oduct
ory:Wy nne
-Davi
s1989:353–4;Ousby1992:83–5;Prick
etti
nCoyle
etal
.1990:653–64,
951– 62;
Ca r
rol
landPri
cke
tt1997.Adva
nced:Bar
thes1957;Sai
d1978,
1993;Spiv
ak1987;Bh abha1994;Coupe1997.

CANONANDCLASSI
C
‘Thec anon’r ef
e r
st oabodyofpr ivilegeda ndpr esc r
ibedtextswhi char ea s
s ume dt o
beof‘ classic’ st
atusa ndt hereforea utomat icallywor thyofs t
udy .Thema tte
rofwha t
textsa ret obeadmi ttedt othec a non,orofwhe thert hereeverha sbe enors houldbe
afixe dc anonatal l,hasbe e ne spe ciallyc ont entiousi nEng lishSt udiesove rt hepa st
twode ca de s.So,r el
at edly
,hast hemat t erofwhe thertextsc anbedi sti
ngui she d
as‘ class ic’or‘ popul ar’.Of tent hi sc ome sdownt othemat terofwhatc ount sas
LITERATURE, andwhe therweul tima telyne edt hatc a t
egorye i
the r.
Canonde rivesf rom aGr eekwor dme aninge ither‘me asuringr od’or‘ l
ist’.Bot h
me ani ng swe retake nov e
rande v ent uallyc onfla te dbye ar
lyChr istianity.‘
Canonl a w’
referredt or ulesorde creesoft heChur ch;‘thec anon’wa sal i
stoft hos ebooksoft he
Bibleof fic iallya ccepteda sge nuinea longwi th,la ter,thosewor ksoft heChur chf athers
appr ove da sa uthoritativeandor thodox. Al lthes ewe r
estudious l
ydi sti
ng uishedf rom
apoc ry phalwor ks,whi c hwe rer eckone dtobef a ke ,andhe ret
icalwor ks ,
whi chwe re
reckone d bl asphe mousa nd puton ‘ thef orbi dde nl i
st’
.Si nc et hes plitatt he
Re forma tion,t heRoma nCa t
hol icChur c hhasc ontinuedt or ecogni seasc anoni cal
elevenbooksoft heBi blet hatPr ote s
t antsr ejectasapoc r
ypha l.Sa ints,me anwhi l
e,
aref or mal ly‘ canoni sed’onc et he ya r
eadde dt ot heof ficiallis
toft he( s)el
ect.Fr om
Canonandc
las
sic 187

theoutset
,then,whe therc onceiveda soffic i
alrulesorasl i
sts,ca nonsandc anoni sat
ion
arecharacter
isedbya tle as
ttwof e
at ures:concertedins t
itutionalc ontrolandahi gh
degreeofinclusi
vity/exc l
usivi
ty.
Thenot ionoft hec anonasal istofs ecularpr i
vilegedbooksdat esf r
om t he
seve
nt e
enthc entury.Init i
all
yi tref
e rredt othosewor ksac ce ptedasge nui nel
ybya
parti
cularauthor( e.g.,‘theS hakespe arec anon’).Mor er ece ntly
,de bateove rwhat
shal
lber ecognised,c elebrateda ndt aughta s‘t
hec anonofEngl i
s hLiterature’has
generat
edagr eatdea lofhe atifnota l
wa ysal otofl i
ght.Mos timme diat
ely
,t hi
sc omes
downt othepr acti
cal mat t
erofwhoa ndwhats hallbe‘settexts’ oncoursesins chools
,
coll
egesanduni versiti
es .Thei ns
titutionsinvol v
e dinclude :

1)exam andsyll
abus
-set
ti
ngc ommitt
ees
,2)lect
urer
sandt e
achers
3)publi
sher
s,edit
ors
,ma rke
tingmanager
s,4)li
brar
iansandstock-
pur
cha
ser
s
5)cri
ti
csandreviewer
s,6)student
sandotherbookpurchase
rs.

Att hec rit i

c ala ndi deol ogi calc or ethe rei si nv ariablyac ompl exofde ba tesove rwhat
shal lbede eme dt oc ons titutet henat ionalhe rit
ag eori nt erna tionali de ntityof
Eng land, Br itain,Ame r i
c aorAus tral
ia .Att hes amet i
met he rear ec ont ri
but or y,often
confli c ting,de bate sont hena t
ur eoft heENGLI SHl ang uag e ,standar dorot he rwis e
,
aswe lla sar gume ntov erpr eci
s elywha tl iteratur emi ghtors houl dbe .Theout come
ofal lt he sede bat esva riesgr eat ly
.I tve rymuc hde pe ndsonwhe the rthe rei sa
pr edomi nant l
ymonoc ultur alorMULTI CUL TURALc onc e ptionofwha ti tme a nst obe
‘Eng lish’ ,‘Ame rican’,‘ Aus t
ra l
ian’ ,e tc.The rear epr ess i
ngl ypr a cticaldi me ns ionst o
thepr obl e mt oo. Ont heonehand, cons ide r ationsofc os t,copyr ig ht,ava ilabilityand
she erf ami l
iar ityof tenwe ig hhe av il
yi nf a vouroft hewe ll-known( ifnotal wayswe ll
-
love d)t ext .Ont heot he rhand,f re sht ext s( oldaswe lla sne w)a rebr oug htt o
pr omi ne nc eandpe opl er e all
ydowe lcomeac hang ei fi ts eemst obei napr omi sing
dir ection.Ei the rway ,t hea ssumpt ionoras sertiont ha t‘ thec anon’( sing ulara nd
de fi
ni tive )hasal wayss impl ybe e
n‘ the re ’,auni ve rs alandt ime lesse nt i
ty ,isa
conv enie ntbutmi sleadingmy t
h. ‘Eng lishLi teratur e’its elfha sha rdl ybe e na rounda s
ane duc at ionals ubj ectf ormor et hanac ent ur y( see1. 5) .Howc oul danyofi tstexts
bet hat‘ se t
’ ?!
Thec onc e ptc lassict endst owor ki nt ande m wi tht ha tofc anon.Wr itersandt he i
r
wor ksge tdubbe d‘ clas si
c (s)’whe nt he yar er ec kone dfir st-( nots ec ond-ort hird-)
class .Itisal sous ua l
lyi nsistedt ha tthe yhave‘ stoodt het e stoft ime ’(thoug ht hisstil
l
leave st heque st
ionofpr e ciselyhow l ong ,whos et ime ,a ndwhatki ndsoft est)
.
Mor eov er,‘ classics’inva ri
abl yt e ndt obede fine di nc ont radi st
inc ti
ont oot he rwor k
whi c hi sl abe l
ledva ri
ous lyas‘ mi nor ’, ‘
c ommon’ or(unde rsc oringani mpl i
ede l
itis
m)
‘popul ar ’.Theanc i
entwr i
terGe ll
ius ,f ori ns t
anc e ,t al ksoft hec lassicuss criptor
(classicwr ite r)whobyde fini t
ioni snonpr oletar i
us( notc ommon/ pr oletarian)( see
OED c l
a s s
ic ).Inf a ct
,t hi sv alue -lade nands oc i
al l
yhi er arc hicals e nseofc l
as si
cwa s
car ri
edove rf rom Gr e ekandLa tins ot hatf rom t hes ixt eent hc e ntur yonwar ds‘ the
Cl assics’be c amet heus ualt e rmt or efert ot hes tudyofGr eeka ndLa tinc ultur easa
whol e,asdi s t
inctf rom l ate rve rna cul arc ul tur es.Thusi nmanyane o-c l
a ssi
calba ttl
e
oft hebooks ,classicswe rei nva r i
abl yi de ntifie dwi th‘ thea nc ient s’a soppos edt o‘the
mode rns ’ .Howe ve r,itwa snotl ongbe for ev ernac ularwr it
e rss uc hasDant ei nI t
aly
andChauc e r,Spe nser,Sha ke s
pe a reandMi l
toni nEngl a ndwe real s oha iledasc lassi
c s
.
Thi se spe ciallyt ende dt ohappe nwi thpoe tsi ns of ara st he yc oul dbes hownt ous e
classical( i.e.Gr ee kandLa tin)mode lsa ndt or epres entt hebe ginni ngsofmode rn
COMMONTOPI
CS 188

nat ional l
iteraryt radi t
ions .Int hiswayt hea ppe ar anc eofac ont i
nuoust raditionwas
for gedbe twe enol de randne we rl i
teratur esands oc ialor ders.
FEMI NISTS ,howe ve r
,ha vebe en qui ckt o poi ntoutt hatt he sewe r el arge ly
pat riarchalor der s;andPOSTCOLONI ALc riti
cshavea dde dt hatt he ywe r
ewhi tea nd
We sternEur ope ant oo.For ,unt ilveryr ecent ly,thec har getha tt het ra ditiona lliter ary
canonwasl argelys toc kedwi thc lass
ic sby‘ De adWhi teEur ope anMa les’( DWEMs
fors hor t)
,thoug hc r ude l
yput ,wa shar dt ode ny .MARXI STS,me anwhi le,woul di ns is
t
oni nserti
ngac lassc ompone nti ntot hee quat i
on( pe rhaps‘ DWEMi ddle -t
o- Uppe r
Cl assMal es’).Inal lt he sec as est hec ons e que nc eshav ebee nbot hr adi calandf ar-
reac hing.Notonl yhavet he rebe enc onc ertedc ritique sofpr evious lye s t
abl ishe d
wr iterswi thr espe ctt oge nde r,ethnicitya ndc l
a ss;t he rehasa lsobe e napr odi gious
amountofwor ki nt her ediscov e r
yandr eappr aisa lofne glect
edt radi t
ionsofwome n’ s
,
blac kandwor king- c l
as swr i
ting .(Forf urthe rinf or ma tionont he se,t ur nt os ections
2.6–8. )Atanyr a te ,iti snow ne c ess
a ryt ot hinki nt ermsofoppos edora lterna tive
tradi ti
ons,a ndt ot al kofpl ur alorope nc anons : li
s tsoft extsa ndl ine sofde velopme nt
whi chwe repr evious lyi gnor e dorc ross edoutandnow c rossandr e -cros sac cor di ng
tot hel ogicsofdi ffe renc ea nds imi l
arityands elfandot her.
Bute vent hisisonl yones ideoft hec anonde bat e.S trictl
y,theot he rs idei snoc a non
atal l.As ympt om oft hisist ha tdur ingthel a tetwe ntiethc enturyi tbe camei nc reasing ly
commont ot alkofmanymor ething st hanaut hor sa ndbooksa s‘ classic s
’.I nt he
MEDI Aa ndi npopul arCULTUREg enerally,wer ea dilys pe akofc lass i
cc ars,rac es, films ,
pops ong sands oa pope ras.I nde ed,inPOSTMODERN di sc
our ses‘ class ic’hasc omet o
me an litt
lemor et ha n‘ some thingt ha tus edt o bepopul a r’( ormor ec yni ca lly
,
‘
s ome t
hingbe ingc omme rc i
al lyre cycl
e d’).Howe ver,i npr i
nc iple,s uc hac harg emay
bease as i
lyleve l
leda tthe‘ rec ycling’ofShake spe a reons tagea ndone xam s yl
labus es
asatt helate stTVr e -runofRos eanneorar e-mi xof‘ Bohe mi anRhaps ody ’.Inde ed,
whe theryouar ei nc linedorr equiredt ot reatanyoft hesemat erialsas‘ c anoni c al’
,
‘
c lassic’orot he r
wi sei sv erymuc ht hepoi nta tis sue .Iti sals
ot hepoi ntoft heope nly
ambi guousi nvi t
at iont o‘ firec anonsyour self’int hea cti
vitywhi chf ollows .

Ac
tiv
ity
Whattente
xtswoul dyouputi nafir s
t-yearcourseint
roducingade gre
eprogra
mme
cal
le
d‘Engli
shLi t
erat
ure’,‘
Lit
e r
atureinEng l
ish’,‘
Engli
shSt udie
s’or‘Li
ter
aryand
Cult
ura
lStudies’
?(Youc hoosethecour s
et i
tl
eande mphasi
st oo.)Goont orevi
ew
andper
hapsre vi
seyourchoicesandc ombinationsoftextint hel
ightoft
hec r
ite
ria
bel
ow.Havey ou‘cover
ed’ors oughttorepresentinst
ancesof:

♦ mega-ge
nressuchaspoet
ry,dramaa ndpr ose(incl
udingt henove
landshortst
ory)?
♦ ge
nresa nci
entandmode rns uch asc ome dyand t ragedy,epi
cand lyr
ic;auto/
bi
ography,t
ravelwri
ti
ng,sci
encefictiona ndromanc e?
♦ wri
tingsandpe rf
ormancesinEnglishf rom,s ay
,Aus trali
a,New Zeal
and,India,
Afr
ica,America
,theCari
bbean,Engla nd,Ir
eland,Scotland,Wales
?
♦
♦ var
iousperiodsand move ments
:fift
hc enturytot hepre
sent,Angl
o-S
axon t
o
post
modern?
♦ var
iouss
ocialgroupsdis
ti
nguis
hedbyg ender,cl
assandet
hni
cit
y?
♦ var
iousmedia–s poke
n,writt
en,pri
nted,audio-
visual
?
Canonandc
las
sic 189

Goont oconsi
derthepossi
bil
it
yofint
roductor
yc ourse
sba s
ednots omuchon‘ se
t’
t
extsor‘cov
erage’buton,say
,ski
ll
s,te
chniques
,t he
ories
,approaches,pr
act
ice
sof
re
adingandwr i
ti
nga ndres
earch(
seePartFourforsomepos si
bil
it
ies)
.

Di
scus
sion

(
i) Th
eg re
a tEngl
is
hno v
eli
stsa
reJaneAu st
en,GeorgeEli
ot,
He n
ryJamesandJoseph
Conr
ad–t os
topforthemo me
nta tthatcomp arat
iv
elysaf
epointi
nh i
st
o r
y.
FrankR.Le a
vis,TheGre
atTr adit
ion(1948)( 1972:9,o
pe n
ingsente
nce)

(
ii
) Thechall
enge,t
hen,i
snotsimp l
ytosuppl
antthe‘e
ccle
sias
ti
c al
’canonwit
hthe
‘e
mergent’t
ransgr
ess
ivecanon,butt
or et
hinktherel
ati
ono fbothonthebasi
s
ofwhatitmeanstobe‘cul
tured’ori
ndeededucat
ed.
HomiBha bha,Time
sHi gherEducat
ionSupplement(24J anua
ry1992)

Al
sos
ee:1.
5.4;1.
5.11;1.
6;LI
TERATURE;ge
nre
;poe
trya
ndwor
d-pl
ay.

READI NG:I nt
roduct
ory:Hawthor
n2000:34–6;Du r
antandFabb1990:9–13;Sanders
1994:1–15;Guil
loryi
nLentr
icc
hiaandMcLaugh
lin1995:
233–49;St
ri
ckl
andinCoyee
l tal.
1990:696– 707;MaybinandMe rc
er1996:235–74;Butl
eretal
.inWalde
r1990:9– 41.
Advanced:Laute
r1991;Ga t
es1995.

CHARACTERANDCHARACTERI
SATI
ON
Cha racterc anbepr ov is
ionall
yde finedas‘ thec ons t
ructi
onofafic tionalfigur e
’,and
charac t
e ri
sa ti
onas‘ thel ite
rary,lingui
s ti
ca ndc ul t
uralme answhe rebyt hatfig ureis
construc ted’.Char acteri sac entralconc eptint raditi
ona lapproa che stonar rati
ve,
especiallynove l
s,playsa ndfil m.Thati swhyt heme aningandv alueoft het er
ma re
ofte
nme relya ss
ume dora sse
rted. Thereisa l
soac ommont endenc ysimplyt odes c
ribe
ficti
onal char acter
sa sthought heyreallyexiste
dandt oforgettha tthema tteratissue
isoftent heki ndsofc haracte
rr e
presenteda ndt hepr ocessofc haracteris
ation.For
allthe s
er eas onsitisi mpor tanttog raspt heva rioust hingsthatma ybei mpl iedby
charac ter,a ndt or ecogni s
et hatc haracteris
ationi sbot hac rea ti
veandac riti
cal
acti
vity.I tisal soimpor t
anttoknow t hatmanyappr oac hesarec riti
caloft heve ry
conce ptofc haractera ssuch.
Char acterde ri
vesf rom aGr eekwor dme a ning‘ toe ngrave ,toi nscribe’and
currentlyhast hreemai nme ani ngs:

1 thedist
inct
ivenatur
e ,dis
posit
ionandt r
ait
so farealpers
on( e
.g.,‘
Myc hil
dre
n
have/
arequit
ediff
erentc h
aract
e r
s’)
;
2 thepart
icul
arrol
eplay edbyafic ti
ona lfigurei
nano ve
l,fil
m orplay(e.g
.,‘
Hamlet
isacharact
erinShake spe
are’
sp l
ayo fthatname’
);
3 alett
ero ft
healphabe torothergraphicdevic
e(e.g.
,‘Thepri
nte
rp ic
kedupe ac
h
chara
cterandputiti
ni tsbox’)
.

Toge
ther
,al
lthr
eemeani
ngsre
mindusthat‘acharac
ter
’canbeeve
rythi
ngf
rom a
re
alper
son(
whatev
erwemeanbyt
hat
)toafragmentofpri
nte
dla
nguage–ape
rsonal
COMMONTOPI
CS 190

ide nt i
tya ndat ext ua le ntity.Thefir stt wode fini tionsal sor emi ndust hatdi scus sions
ofc har a cterine vi tabl yr equi reust one got iatet her elationbe twe enr ea landi magi ned
pe rsons ,a ndbe t we enf ac ta ndfic tion.Oneans we rist ot reata llc ha rac t
ers,‘real ’or
‘imag ine d’ ,ast hepr oduc tsofdi s
c our s eandr epre sentat ion.I tt hende pe ndsupont he
pre c isef rame sofr efe re nc e( phys i cal,bi ol ogi cal,ps ychol ogi cal,s oc ia l,histor ical,
phi los ophi cal,e tc.)wi thinwhi chwec ons truc tournot ionsofr ealityandwha titis
tobeape rson.Mor epa rti
c ular l
y,i tobl i
g e sust oe nga gewi tht her e l
at ionsbe twe en
pe opl e ’
spe rsonals tor ie s( i
nc ludi ngaut o/ bi ogr aphi es)andmor epubl icandge ne r
al
his tor ies.I nde ed,i fpe opl ear ei nr ealitya lready‘ pl ayingpar ts’a nd adopt ing
psyc hol ogi calands oc ia lrol es,itbe come saf as cinat i
ngque sti
onj us thow f arwec an
dist ingui shc ha rac ter si nLI TERATUREf rom c ha rac tersint her estofl i
fe .Whatar et he
diffe renc e sbe twe enpl ay i
ngt her ol esof ,say , fathe r,son,pa rtne randl ec turerinafil m
andpl ay ingt hos er ole si nf ac t?Tobes ur e,the rea rec ruc ia ldifferenc e sofc onse que nce
andr espons ibility. Butf or mal lya ndi de olog ically–i nt er msofhowa ndwhywepl ay
the ser ol es–t her ei sobvi ous lymuc hi nt erde pe nde nc ea ndmut uali nflue nce.‘Shef eel
s
asi fs he ’
si napl ay–s hei sa nywa y’,ast heBe atlesputi ti n‘Pe nnyLane ’
.
Fort he ser easonsnotal lc riticsa rehappywi tht henot ionof‘ c har ac ter
’,ass uch.
MARXI ST, FEMI NI STa ndPOSTCOLONI ALc riticsof tenpr e f
ert ot ot alkaboutpe ople
as‘ site sofs truggl e’,‘ subj e ctivities’,‘ide ologi cal subj ects’, ‘i
de ntities’,‘ repr esenta t
ives
ofdomi na ntormut ed pos itions ’,‘ instanc esofc ompe ti
ngdi sc our s es’
,‘ voi ces’,
‘bodi es’,‘ste reoty pe s’,‘ ant itype s’,e tc.Char a cteri nat ra ditiona lse ns ei snotac ent r
al
ande ffec ti
v epar toft he irc riticalle xicon.I nde ed,f orma nyc ont empor aryc r
iticst he
conc eptofc ha rac te ri sf art oot aint edbyhumani stas sumpt i
onsa boutt heuni tyand
sanc ti
tyof‘ thei ndi vidual ’ andt hea ll
e ge duni versal i
tyofhuma nnat uret obeofmuc h
use .Fors uc hc riti
c st hec onc e ptofc ha rac te rmays ervea sapoi ntofde par t
ur e,but
itisr ar elyapoi ntofar r i
v al.Re sistanc etoandde cons tr uctionof‘ c ha rac t
er’i se ven
mor ee mpha ticamongwr iterswi thaPOST/ STRUCTURALI STo raPOSTMODERNI ST
be nt .The yha vel ittlet imef orac ons truc ts ot i
edt onot ionsoft hei ndi vi dua lasapr e
-
give nc ent reorf ornot ionsof‘ c onvi nc ingc har ac t
e rs’t i
edt ol imi tingnot ionsof
real ism.
Not wi thstandi ng s uc h abar r ageofal terna tive s,c ertaint radi tionalwaysof
de scr ibingc har ac tera ndc har ac t
e risationpr ov er ema rkabl yr e sil
ie nta nd,i fha ndl ed
wi thc ar e,s ervice abl e .Char ac ter
sma yt huss ti
llbede sc ribe das :

♦ rounde dorf lat,followi ngE. M.For ster

’sAs pectsoft heNove l( 1927):‘rounde d’
charactersa r
ei nte ri
orised,psy cholog i
c a
llycompl exandde velop( e.g.
,PaulMor elin
Sonsa ndLove r
s ,Sethi nBe loved);‘ fl
at’char actersareknownt hroughe xterior
appe a
ranc e,ar eappa rentlys i
mpl erandpe rhapspr edict
able–t hel atterar
eof t
e nalso
call
edc aric
at ur e
s( e.g.
,J onson’ sVolpone ,Di ckens’
sMrPi ckwi ck).
♦ indivi
dual sort ype s(onc loserins pec t
ion,mos tchara c
terst urnoutt obebot h).
Chauc er’
sa ndSha kespea re’
sma j
orc har act
ersar eoftende sc
r i
be dasami xture.
♦ character-
nar ra t
or sorc har acter-
ac tors:tel
lingt hetaleorbe ingt oldbyi t(Janei n
JaneEyr ei sac har acter
- narrator,whe r
easEdwa r
dRoc hesterisac haracter
-actor;
theserelati
onsa rer eversedi nWi deS argassoS e
a:s ee5.2.4c –d).
♦ pointsofvi ewt hats wi tch,ge tmi xe dorc ompounde dac c ordingt othevar i
ous
narrati
v eanddr ama tics tr
ategiesinpl ay(JaneAus tenandBe c
ke ttrepres
entwha t
maybet erme d,r espective l
y,‘real
ist’a nd‘mode rnist’wayswi thcha racte
randpoi nt
ofview) .
Char
act
erandc
har
act
eri
sat
ion 191

Butwha teverte
rmsyouus etode sc ri
bec hara c
ters
,itwillbecleart hatthee mphasis
shouldlarg
e l
ybeonc haracte
ris
at ion:t hekindsofc haracte
ra ndt heway sinwhi c
h
charact
ersarecons
tructe
d.Cr ucially,f r
om ac rit
icalpointofviewt hisisasmuc ha
matterofhowt her
eaderseesthec ha racter
sa showt hewr i
ters
ay sthe m.Me anwhil
e,
asmanyoft heappr
oa c
hesreferr
edt oe arl
iersugges
t,iti
ssome t
ime sa rguablewhether
wes houldtalkof‘
characte
rs’ass uc ha tall.

Ac
tiv
ity
Concentrateonagr oupoffiguresfrom anov e l
,play
,fil m,auto/
biography,history
ornewss toryands ugges
thow theymi ghtbeappr oachedby( a)aMARXI S T; (
b)a
FEMINIST; (
c)aPOSTCOLONI ALc r
itic
.How c ompatiblearesuchapproa c
he swi t
h
anal
ysesofc har
ac te
ris
ati
on based upon,s ay,‘rounde d’and ‘fl
at’char acter
s,
‘c
ari
catures’
,‘i
ndi
viduals
’and‘t
ypes’
,‘pointofview’(s
eea bove
)?Whi chcri
ti
ca lte
rms
andframe sdoyoupr ef
er?(At
wood’sHappyEndi ngsa ndKipl
ing’sMuhamma dDin
ares
ug geste
dfocusesinPartFi
ve,5.4.3aa nd5.2.5a.)

Di
scus
sion

(
i) Cha
rac
teri
sar
gua
blyt
hemo
sti
mpor
tants
ingl
ec ompon
entoft
henov
el.
Davi
dLodge,TheArtofFi
cti
on(
1992:67)

(
ii
) Charac
tersarei
magi
nar
yidenti
ti
escons
truc
tedt
hroughreport
sofappe
aranc
e,
act
ion,s
peechandt
hought
.
Bri
anMoo Li
n, ter
aryTerms:APrac
t i
calGlos
sar
y(1992:10)

Al
sos
ee:a
uto/
biog
raphy
;nar
rat
ive
;for
egr
ound...poi
ntofvi
ew;s
ubj
ect
.

READI NG:Int
roduc
tor
y:Bennet
tandRoy
le1999:63–70;Lodge1992:66–9;Moon1992:
7–10;Fors
ter1927.Advanc
ed:Boot
h1961;Cul
ler1975:230–40;Tool
an1988:90–148;
Culpe
per2001.

COMEDYANDTRAGEDY,
CARNI
VALANDTHEABSURD
Brie
fly,come dyi swha tma ke susl aug handha saha ppye ndi ng; t
rage dyiswhatma kes
ussada ndhasanunha ppye ndi ng;c arni
va li
saki ndofr iotousf e
stival,andt heabs urd
iswhatpe rplexe sandc onfoundsus .Allthe set er
msof fe rway sofc ate gori
singki nds
orgenresofe xpe ri
ence.The yar ea ppliedc hieflybutnote xc lusivel
yt oLI TERATURE,
andchieflybutnote xclusivelytodr ama. Come dyandt rage dya repr imar i
lyass oci
ated
withCLASSI CAL a ndne o-class i
ca lappr oac he stodr amade ri
ve df rom Ar ist
otle’
s
Poetic
s( c
.330 BC) .Car nivaland t heabs urd havemor es pecifical
lymode rn
antece
de nts.Ca rnivala ndt hec arnivales
queowet hei
rc ri
ticalc urrenc ytoBakht in’
s
int
erestinpopul arfestivalformsi nl i
terature ,notablyi nhi sRabe laisandhi sWor ld
(1968).Thea bsurda ndabs ur dism ar emos tof tene ncount eredi nt hephr ase‘the
theat
reoft heabs urd’ands tillowet he i
rc urrenc ytoahi g hlyi nflue ntialbookoft hat
namebyMa rtinEs sl
in( 1961) .Thet hreeki ndsofc onc eptg athe re
di nt hisent rya r
e
COMMONTOPI
CS 192

ondi ff
ere nttraj
ectori
esi ndif
ferentframesofr e f
ere
nce.Theyt here
foreentai
l diffe
rent
aestheti
c sandpol it
ics.None the l
ess,i
tishi ghlyinstruct
ivetoappr oa
cht hem asa
rel
atablec l
uster;f
ort heyar ecommonl yus edt omap,a ndsome t
ime st
or edraw,t he
samet ext ualterra
in.
Come dyandt ragedyar ebr acedag ainstoneanot herinac learhierarchyby
Aristotl
e :come dyinferior,t
ragedys uperior.Thisorderande mphas i
sarede li
be rat
e l
y
reversedi nt hepr ese
nte nt
ry.Come dyde r i
vesfrom Gr ee
kkomos -oidos,me aning
‘revel
-song’ ,andi ni
tiall
yr efe
r r
edt oeve ntsas s
ociat
edwi thf e
rti
lit
yr i
tualsa ndt he
festi
valofDi onysus.Ac cordingt oAr i
stot l
e,whot reatsitsli
ghtlyands light i
ngly
(Poetics,Chapt ers4a nd5) ,come dyhast hef ol
lowingingredients
:

♦ happye ndi
ngsandanoverallprogr
essi
onfrom dis
orde
rtoor der
,chaostoharmony
;
♦ charact
ersofinf
eriormoralquali
ty,usual
lyoflowersoci
als t
atus(s
lav
es,ar
tis
ans
,
trade
rs,etc
.);
♦ as pe
ctacl
eofwha tisr
idi
culousbutlaughabl
e,andthere
forecausesnopain.

Tothismus
tbeaddedac at
alog
ueofcomics
ub-ge
nreswhichhavesubs
eque
ntlybee
n
deve
lopedanddist
ingui
shed(eve
nthoughinanypart
icul
arinst
anceweinvari
ably
meetamixtur
e):

♦ come dyofhumour s,basedone xa g

gerati
onofs upposedphy si
ologicaltypes:sangui
ne,
me l
anchol ic,phlegmat i
c,choleric(hence‘ humor ous’=‘ funny ’
);
♦ come dyofma nners,basedonaf fec
tati
onsi ns ocialappearanc eandbe haviour;
♦ romant iccome dy,involvi
ngfa ntasti
cadv e nturesa ndof t
e nal ovei nteres
t;
♦ pastoralc ome dy,i nvokingidyl li
cori di ot i
ci mage sofc ount r
yl iving,especial
ly
among str omant i
c al
lypr e
tti
fiedorgr ote
s que lyugl i
fieds hephe rds;
♦ sati
ricc ome dy,expos i
nga ndc ensuringfaul ts,usuallyinvolvings exanda cquisi
ti
ve-
ness,oftens etinac orruptcityorhous e
hol d;
♦ blackc ome dy,ada rkkindofs atire
,oftenwi thanunc ertainsenseofmor al
ityanda
sharps enseofabs urdi
tya ndpe rhapswithac arnivales
quef e
el( s
eebe l
ow) .

Come dyi snotl i

mi tedtopl ays ,ofc our se ,ort ol iterature.Come dywasandi sa
commonf eatureoft henove lwe llbe foreandaf te rFie l
ding’swi tt
yc har ac teri
sation
ofhi sTom J one s( 1749)as‘ ac omi ce picpoe mi npr os e’.Me anwhi l
e,c ome dyi nve rs
e
–s ome t
ime ssof tenedt oir ony ,some time ss harpene dt os atir
e–i sevide nti nEngl i
sh
from we llbe foreCha uce rt owe llaf terByr on( e .
g.,5. 1.5e ).Comi cs( plural),we
shoul dal sonot e ,referst oac oupl eofpopul arandunt i
lr ecentlya cade mic all
y
negl ectedge nr es:c omics tripsandc ome dians.Pr i
nt edc omi cs tripsappe aredi n
news pape rsdur ingt hel at eni ne teent hc e nturya nds oongr ewt ooc cupywhol e
publ i
c at
ions( i.e.full-
blownc omi cs)int heirownr i
g ht.Thoughl ongas soc iatedwi th
children’sorc hildishr e
adi ng ,ne ithert hec omi cnori tsde scendantt hemode rng raphic
nove l/booki sne c es
saril
yt rivial ore v enf unny .Inf act,muc hoft hebe stc ont empor ary
wor konnar rativea ndpopul arve rba l-visualc ul
tur ec onc entratesonpr eciselythe s
e
genr es.‘
Comi c s
’ inthes ens eofc ome dians( ‘s
tand- up’,‘alternative’orot he r
wi se)a r
e
alsoi ncreasinglyr ecognise da ss i
g nific antf oc use
sofs tudy .Al ongwi thTV‘ sitc
oms ’
(i
.e. s
ituationc ome dies
),the yof t enf ore groundands portwi ths hift
sinc ont empor ary
discour se.Thes tudyofj oke si npa rticularhasf eatur edc entrallyinvar iouski ndsof
PSYCHOLOGI CALa na l
ysisv ir t
ua llys inc ei t
si ncept i
on( e.
g.,Fr eud’sJ oke sa ndt he i
r
Re l
at i
ont otheUnc onscious ,1905) .I ti sa ls
oaf oc usf ormuc hs ignific antwor ki n
Come
dyandt
rage
dy,c
arn
ivalandt
heabs
urd 193

dis
coursea nalysi
s(e.
g.,Chiaro1992) . Al
lina l
l,then,Ar is
totlemayha veha dthefirst
wordonc ertainaspectsofcome dy.Buthedoe sn’tnecessaril
yhavet helastlaugh.
Tragedyde rive
sf r
om theGr eektra gos
-oidos( ‘
goa t
-song’)a ndini
ti
allyreferr
edto
fes
ti
valstoDi onysusinwhi chahe -
goatwass ac r
ificed.Tr agedyistreatedatmuc h
great
erlengthandwi thmuc hg r
e at
ers er
iousne s
st hanc ome dybyAr ist
otle(Poeti
cs,
Chs6–19) .Ac cordi
ngt ohim,ithast hefollowingc haracteris
tics(
noticethatthefirst
thre
ea r
edi rectl
ya nti
theti
caltothoseofc omedyabov e):

♦ unhappye ndingsandapr ogr essi

onf rom or dertodi s
orde r
,har monyt oc ha os;
♦ character sofs upe r
iormor als,usuallyofhi ghsoc ials
tat
us :kings,nobl es
,e tc.;
♦ as pec tacle whi c
h‘ ar ousespi ty and f ear’butwhi c h,be ing notr e albuta
repr
e senta t
ion,‘ purges’the s
ee mot i
onshar mlessly(aproc esscall
e dcathar si
s)
;
♦ aplotbui ltar ounda‘ downt ur n’(cata-s
trophe )ande ventualr ecognit
ionofat r
ue,
appalli
ngs tateofaf fai
rs ;
♦ aher oorhe r
oi ne(thepr otagoni st
)whoi sba si
callynoblebute ventuall
yundoneby
somet ra gicflaw ( hamar t
ia),oftenint hef orm ofe xces
sivepr i
de( hubris),aswe llas
bysomei mpl acableforc esuc hasde s
tinyorf ate,usuall
yr epresentedbyt hegods ;
♦ afigur ewhos tandsoutag ainstthepr ot
agoni s
t( t
heantagoni st)aswe llasac horus
whichc omme nt smor a
lly,of t
e nprophe t
ical
ly,upont heunf oldingac t
ion;
♦ ‘t
her epr esentationofana c t
iont hatisc ompl et
eandwhol e’(Ch.7).

Le gionsofc ritics( inc ludi ngdr ove sofs tude nts)ha ves oughtt oappl yAr ist
ot l
e ’
s
criteriat opl ay sc a ll
e dt rage dies.Ther esultsr angef r om t hebr illi
antt ot hebana l
.
Rout i
neana lys esdut ifullypl odt hroug ht hepl ayi nhanddul ynot i
ngt hepr esenc e–
orl ame ntingt hea bs e nc e–ofc athar s i
s,ha ma rti
a,hubr is,c atas trophe ,e tc.(invoki ng
theGr eekname ss eemst ogi vethes tampofaut hor i
ty) .Howe ve r
,mor ea dve nt urous
andge nui ne lyc riticala nal ys est endt obr acet hems elve sag ains tt hef ra me wor k
suppl iedbyAr istot l
e .The ypr obet hec onc eptsthe ms elvesa ndas ks uc hque stionsa s
:
pre ci
s elywhoorwha ti sr es pons iblef ort hec atas tr
ophe ?Whyi spr idea ccount eda
fault?Wha twoul dhappe ni fpi t
yandf e arwe reredire ctedr athe rt hanpur ge d?What
soc i
ala ndpol iticalf or ce sar ebe ingpa sse dof fasf ateort hewi lloft hegods ?I nt his
wayt henat ureandf unc tionoft rag edyma ybei de nt i
fie dnots impl ywi t ht hepl ay
its
e l
f,t reatedasani solat edar tef
ac t, butwi ths pecifics oc ial-his torical condi tionsa nd
ideol ogi calf rame wor ks( e.g.,pa rticulars tatea ndf ami lys t ruc tur es,t her elative
pos it
ionsofnobl es ,c it
iz ensands lav e
s ,me nandwome n,na tiv esandf or eig ner s
)a s
we llaswi ths pe cificki ndsofmyt h,r elig i
onandmor ality.
Anot he rimpor tantc ons iderat i
oni st hef actt hatmos tpos t-classica lpl aysar e
palpa bly‘ mi xe d’ i
nmode .The yc ommonl ya lt
erna t
ea ndof te nfus ee l
e me ntsoft ragedy
andc ome dys oa st opr oduc et ragi -come dy.Fori ns tanc e,Sha ke s pea re’sHaml e t
,
thoug hnomi na llyat r age dy ,inc l
ude sc omi cgr a
ve digg ers/clowns ,af ussyandf unny
oldpe dant( Pol oni us)a swe ll a
sapr otag oni st
,Haml e thims elf,whoc ease l
e sslys ports
wit hs ens ea ndbi t
t erlypl ay st hef ool .Conve rse
ly,tr agi-comi cmi xtur esandf us i
ons
char ac t
e risenomi nal‘ come dies’s uc hasAsYouLi keI ta ndTheTe mpe st.Anot he r
mat tert ha tpl aysha vocwi thc la
s sicaldi stinctionsbe twe ent r
a ge dyandc omi chast o
dowi t hc ha nge si nunde r lyings oc ials truc ture.Forobvi ous lyanae sthe ti
chi erarchy
bas eduponadi stinc tionbe twe ent het ragicallynobl ehi ghl ifeandt hec omi cally
ignobl el owl i
fec a nonl yhol dasl onga si tisunde rwritte nbyac orre spondi ngpol it
ical
hiera rchy .Onc et hemi ddl eandwor kingc lassesbe comes oc iallypr omi ne ntand
pol i
tica l
lyawa re ,theol dmode lbe come sas t
rait-j
ac ke tori si rrelevant .Wes eet his
COMMONTOPI
CS 194

happe ningi nI bs en’sa ndChe khov ’spl ays .The rethef oc usi sons tr es
s esands trains
wi thint hebour ge oisf ami ly.Cla ssical di sti
nc t
ionsbe twe enc ome dyandt ra gedy ,a l
ong
wi tht he iras s oc ia teda es theticsandpol i
tic s,simpl ydonotappl y .
Thea bs urd,f ollowi ngEs sli
n’ sTheThe a treoft heAbs ur d( 1961) , referstoagr oup
ofmi d-twe nt iet h-c ent ur ypl aywr ig hts ,not ablyI one sco,Be cke tt
,Pi nte randAl be e.
The sewr it
e rse xpl oi ts ilenc ea smuc hass pe ech,abs enc ea smuc haspr e s
e nce ,and
inc ohe re nc er at he rmor et hanc ohe renc e .Es s l
ine mphas i
s est hewaysi nwhi cht hey
alle xplor eki ndsofi l
/logi candnon/ char ac t
e r
,ac tionl esspl otandi nde te r
mi nate
setting ,e spe ci allybyc ompa ri
sonwi tht het he n- domi nantf or m of‘ we ll-madepl ay’.
(Thel att erc har a cte risti
c allyha dac learbe gi nni ng,mi ddl eande nd,ar eadilyr ecog-
nisa blet he me , andof tenpr es
ent ed‘ r ealistic’figur esi nmi ddl e -classs urroundi ng ss uch
asdr a wi ng- rooms .)Be cke tt’
sNotI( 5.3. 3d)i sa ni nstanc eofabs urdi stt heat re.It
showsas pot lit‘ Mout h’pour i
ngf or thac ont inuousmonol ogueonami nima llys e
t
stag ewhi leas ha dowyfigur e( ‘theAudi tor ’)loomst oones i
de .Bute xpl orationsof
‘theabs ur d’,ge ne rallyc onc eive d,e xt endmuc hwi de randmuc hf urthe rbac kt han
ce rtainki ndsofmi d- ce nt urydr ama.Themov eme nthasc l
os eae sthe ti
cl inkswi th
Sur r ealisma ndExpr es sioni s
m( not ablyKa fka )andphi los ophi call inkswi t ht he
exis tentia li
s m ofCa musa ndS ar tre.Al lthe semove me ntsc anbec har a c
te risedbyt he i
r
scept ic i
sma boutc onv ent ionalr e asonandt he i
ra t
te mpt stoe mbr ac e,a nds ome ti
me s
cele brate ,‘ me ani ng le ssne ss’asac ondi tion.I nf a ct,wec anr eadi lys eea bsur dism as
par toft hege ne rali l/
log icofmode r nism whe ret hes uppos edc ertaintiesoff ami ly,
stateandr e l
igi ona rec r umbl i
ngandi sola tedi ndi vidual sa ret r yingt opi ecet oge ther
somes ens ea gai ns ta nos tensiblynons ens icalbac kgr ound.I nt hisr espec t,El i
ot ’sThe
Was t eLa nd( 1922)andJ oyc e’sUl ys se sa r enotal ittle‘ abs ur d’.Ands o,i nqui t
e
diffe rentve i
ns ,a reHe l
le r’sCat c h22( 1961)andI rv i
ng’ sTheWor ldAc c
or dingt o
Gar p( 1978) .‘ Nons e nseve rse’,a nd‘ nons ens ewr iting ’inge ne ral,ma yal sobec ited
att hi spoi nt .Le wi sCar r oll’
sAl ic ebooks( 1865,1871)ar ea mong stthemos tf amous
fic tional ise dc ele br ationsofpar adoxandnons ens e.De c ons tr uctivec r i
ticshav ean
espe c i
al int ere sti nt he sewor ks,asi nf or msofpar adoxa nda bsur dismg e ne r
a ll
y. The y
ar gue–andof te ns e ekt ode mons tr atei nt he i
rownmanne rofwr iting–t hate very
mode lofr easonde pe ndsupont hec ov e rtre leaseandc ontrol ofi tsoppos ite(unr e ason,
nons ens e,abs ur dity) .
Car niv aland‘ t hec ar nivales que ’ar ec onc ept si de ntifiedwi thmor es ociallyand
pol iticallye ng a ge d,l e ssphi l
osophi ca llyde tache d, kindsofnons e nse.Thet ermde riv
es
from t heI talia nc ar ne -
va l
e( li
te rally‘ af are we llt ofle sh’)andpr i
ma ri
lyr ef
e rst ot he
Shr ov e t
idef es tiv ali nwhi chChr istiansf eas tandr e velbe for eLe ntandape riodof
enf or cedabs tine nc e.I nEur opedur ingt heMi ddl eAge sandt heRe nai ssanc e,a sin
Sout hAme ricana nds omeot he rc ount riesnow,c ar nivalwasanoc casionf ors t
r ee
t
par tiesa ndpag eant s .Some ti
me st he sel edt or i
ot sandupr ising s.Thi sishowBa khtin
de fine s‘c arni va l’asac riticalc onc epti nRabe laisa ndhi sWor ld( 1968:10) :
[
C] ar
nivalcel
ebr
atesthete
mp or
aryli
berat
ionfr
om pre
vail
ingtrut
handfrom t
he
e
stabl
ishedorder
:itmarksthesu
spens
ionofallh
ier
arc
hica
lr ank
,pri
vi
le
ges
,norms
a
ndpr ohibi
ti
ons.
Poli
tic
a l
ly
,car
nivali
sseenasane xpre s
sionofpopularcult
ureoppos edora l
ternati
ve
toanof fici
alorderwhichitinvert
sands portswit
h.Phy s
icall
y,itisthecele
br at
ion
ofthebodyove ra l
lthathabitual
lyc onstr
ainsit
.Thisae s
theti
callyandpol i
tical
ly
chargednoti
onofc ar
nivalhashadc onsider
ableimpactinmanyar e
a sofli
ter
aryand
cult
uralst
udie
s,espec
ial
lythosewher epopularfor
msandpr a c
tic
esa rebrac
eda gai
nst
Come
dyandt
rage
dy,c
arn
ivalandt
heabs
urd 195

(
orwi t
hin)el
itest
ructuresandc ontexts
.Indeed,theke yc
rit
ical andpoli
ti
calques
ti
on
i
sjusthow farcarnival
es quee l
e mentsarecont ainedby–ore xceedandbreakope n
–theframeswi t
hinwhi cht heyope rate.(
Broadlys peaki
ng,NEW HI S
TORICISTSt
end
t
oc once
ntrateon‘containme nt’whi l
eMARXI STSa ndCULTURALMATERI ALI
STSpoint
t
ot hepossi
bili
ti
esofr adicalrupt ure,e
v e
nr e
v olution;see2.
6) .
Text
sofa nobvious l
yc arnivalesquena t
uref e
at uredinPar tFiveincl
ude:

♦ theChest
erNoah( 5.3.2a ),whereNoa h’swi f
ecar ouseswit
hhe rfr
iendsbeforethe
Floodandlaug hinglyflout stheaut hori
t yofhe rhus band;
♦ Synge’
sPlayboy( 5.3.3a ),whe r
ethea ppar entmur derofafather(
andt heovert
hrow
ofanoldver s
ionofr ur alIr
e l
and)iscarriedt hr
oughwi t
hthepanacheofpantomi me;
♦ Churchi
ll
’
sCl oud9( 5.3.3e),whe r
eme na ndwome nc r
oss-
dress
,act
orsostent
ati
ously
playst
ere
ot ypicalrolesa ndthee f
fectisoneofgr otesqueparody;
Ar
gume
ntsc
oul
dal
sobemadef
oratl
eas
tsome‘
car
niva
les
que
’el
eme
ntsi
n:
♦ Shakespeare
’s‘
Mymi str
e s
s’eyes
’(5.1.2a),whi chinver
tsr
omant i
cexpe c
tati
onsabout
femalebeautya ndinst
itutesagrotesqueye tlovableanti
type;
♦ Mor gan’
s‘TheFi rstMe nonMe r
cury’(5.4.4b) ,wherethetwogroupsfir stmixup
thencompl e
telyswapr oundonea nother’
sl anguages;
♦ Pope’sandByron’ sve
rsi
onsofmoc k-her
oic( 5.1.3bande ),wher
ehe roi
cpr e
tens
ions
arebothunde rcutandc el
ebrated;
♦ Nichols’
s‘TropicalDeath’(5.4.
6d) ,whe r
et hedar kl
ynegatives
olemnitie
sofnorth-
we s
ternEurope anfuneralrit
esa r
eblownapa r
tby‘ abri
lli
anttr
opicaldeathyes’
.
Me anwhile
,wha twemightc al
lthe‘mock-car
nivale
sque’isrampantinTV a dver-
ti
sing,popvideosandmanyot herformsofPOSTMODERN c ult
uralact
ivit
y.Butther
e
thefantas
yof f
e rofindi
vidualf
reedom,bodilyfulfil
me ntandaunive r
salutopiai
s
alwaysapr e
ludet opurc
has e
.Wear eonlyinvi
tedtoplayifwec anpay.

Ac
tiv
ity
(
a) Explor
eatextwhic
hisnominal
lyac omedyoratr
age
dywi t
hArist
otl
e’
scr
ite
riain
mind(se
eabove)
.Howhelpf
ulorinhibi
ti
ngdoyoufindthes
ecri
ter
ia?Whataspec
ts
ofthet
extt
endtogetne
glec
tedbystart
ingatt
hes
epoint
s?
(
b) Drawi
ngont heabovedefini
ti
ons,ide
nti
fyatextwhichyouc onsi
derinsomeway
‘
absur
d’orinsomeway‘carni
vale
sque’
.Woulditbejustasusef
ultocal
lthe
m,say
,
‘
comic’
,‘t
ragi
c’or‘
tra
gi-
comic’
?(Like
lyte
xtsf
rom PartFiveareli
st
edabove.
)

Di
scu
ssi
on
(
i) Thetragedyo f[any]per
iodli
esintheconfli
ctbetweentheindi
vi
dualandthe
co
lle
c t
ivi
ty,orintheconflic
tbetwee
nt wohost
il
ec ol
le
cti
vit
ieswit
h i
nthesame
i
ndiv
idual.
LeonT r
otskyLi
, te
ratur
eandRe vol
uti
on(1924:Ch.8;‘
an y
’repl
aces‘
our’
)

(
ii
)[A]tt
hecen
treofEuropea
nman ,do
minat
ingth
eg re
atmomentsofh
isl
if
e,th
ere
l
i
esanes
senti
alabsur
dit
y.
TheTemptat
ionoftheWest(1926)(
seeCuddon1992:968)
COMMONTOPI
CS 196

Al
sos
ee:CLASSI
CS;ae
sthe
tic
s;dr
ama;g
enr
e;poe
trya
ndwor
d-pl
ay.

READING:I nt
roductory–c hieflyoncomedyandtragedy:Cuddon1999:148–60,926– 36;
Preminge
randBr ogan1993:225–9,1296– 1302;Ar i
stot
le1965:29–76.Ad vancedon
comedyandtragedy:Wi l
li
ams1966( moderntr
agedy)
;Pur die1993(mo de
rncome d
y).On
theabs
urd:Essln1961.Onc
i arni
val
:Bakhtin1968,1981:41–84;St al
lyb
ras
san dWh i
te
1986;Hirs
chkopa ndShephe r
d1988;Pur di
e1993.Onj okes
:Ch i
aro1992.

CREATI
VEWRI
TING,
CREATI
VITY,
RE-
CREATI
ON
Cr eativewr it
ingr e ferst ot hepr act i
c eofwr itingpr osef iction,poe t
r y,s cr i
pt sand
some time sa ut o/bi og r aphy ,chi eflyi ne duc at i
ona lc ont ext s.Thepr ima r yas sociation
wi thc reativewr iti ngc our sesi sc ons t itut ive :out sidee duc ation‘ c r
e ativewr it
e rs’
usual lyr efert ot he ms elvessimpl yas‘ wr ite rs’,andi nbooks hops‘ cre ativewr i
ting’is
notr ecogni sedasag eneralc at e gor ys uc hasFi c t
ion,Non- Fi ction,Bi ogr aphya nd
Poe try.Cr eativ ityi she rede fine dast hec apac ityt oma kes ome thingor igina land
fit
ting,whe r e‘ or igi na l
’c anme anbot h‘ nove l,innovat ive ’( i
tsmode r ns ense )and
‘goingt ot heor igi n, es senti
al’ (
itsanc i
e nts e ns e),a ndwhe r e‘fit ti
ng ’me ansa ppr opria t
e
fors omepur pos eandt os omepe rson.Cr eat ivityi st he r efor er e cogni s edt obe
some thingc ommona swe l
la ss pe cial,or dina rya swe llase xtr aor dina ry,c olla borative
aswe lla sindi vidual .The sedi s tinct i
onsar ei mpor tantbe c aus ec reativityof teng e t
s
loos elyas soc iate dwi thnot i
onsofdi vine‘ c reat ionf rom not hing’( exni hilo)ont he
onehand,a nds te re ot ypesofi ndi vidual‘ ge nius e s’–of tenma le,s ome ti
me sma d–on
theot her.Re -creat ioni she r
eof feredasac ruc ialbr i
dgi ngt erm.I tr efe rst ot hef a c
t
thati npr ac ticec re a tiona lwa ysi nvol ve smaki ngs ome thi ngne woutofs ome thingol d
ands ome t
hi nge l
s eoutofwhata lreadyi s. Thes tressi sputfir ml yonac tiver e -creati
on
(asdi stinctf rom t her elati
v elywe aknot ionof‘ r ecreat ion’me a ni ngpas t
ime ,leisure
activity)andde libe rat el
ydr a wsona ss oc iat i
onwi ths uc hc onc e ptsasr e-vi si
on,r e
-
me mbe ringandr e-c ollecti
ng.Al lthe s e‘ re -’t ermsi nvol veani ns istent,of te nr adic al
re-visiti
ngandr e-va l
ui ngoft hepa sti nt hepr ese nti nor de rtog estur et owa ysf orwar d.
Initiallyde ve lope dbywr i
terss uc hasAdr ie nneRi c h,Al iceWal ke r
,ToniMor ri
s on
andLoui sGat e st or efertot hedual findi nga ndmaki ngoft r adi t
ionsofwome n’sand
blac kwr it
ing ,s uc ht e rmsa r
enow wi de lyappl iedt oa lls or tsoffic tionala ndf actual
proj ects,ins tor ya ndhi st
or y.Re -
c rea tioni st hec or respondi ngt ermi nt hea reaof
creat i
vity.Li ker e wr iting, i
tof f
e rsabr idgebe t
we e nt henot i
onsofr ea dinga ndwr i
ting
(seewr it
inga ndr e a ding ).Andl ikec ritique ,i ts uppl iesac ruc iallinki ngt erm be twe en
creat i
vitya ndc riticism.Br oadi s sue stodowi tht hei ns titut iona lf rami ngof‘ Cr eative
Wr iting’i nr ela tiont o‘ Eng l
ish’ ,and‘ Engl ishLi ter
a tur e’i npa r t
ic ula r
,ar eaddr essed
int hePr olog ue( pp.9–11) .
Wenowc ons ide rs omei nsta nc esofwha ta ct ual l
ygoe soni nc rea ti
v ewr i
t i
ngc las
s es.
Thef ollowi nge xt r ac tfrom t hec our s
ede sc ript ionofawe ll
- establ ishedI ntr oduc t
or y
Cour sei nCr eat iveWr iti
ngwi llhe lps ett hes ce ne( wi tht hankst oTonyLope zand
PaulLawl eyatt heUni versityofPl ymout h) .Theai msoft hec our sea r e:

1 t
oint
r oducearangeofwrit
ingsasthebas isforas t
udyofcomposit
ion;
2 t
oestabli
shawor ks
hopthatwillfos
terstud e
n t
s’cre
ati
vewriti
ng;
3 t
oestabli
shtheimport
anceofr ev
isi
onint hepr oc
essofcomposit
ion
;
4 t
ochal l
engecommonplac
en oti
onso fcr
eat i
vityandori
ginal
it
y.
Cr
eat
ivewr
iti
ng,cr
eat
ivi
ty,r
e-c
reat
ion 197

Theas se sse ds killsa re :(a )r esear chf orwr i

ting;( b)wr it ingpr ac tice;( c )c riticals e lf
-
reflect ion;( d)dr af ti
ng ,r ewr itingande diting.Cl early ,t he n,t heki ndsofs ki l
la nd
knowl e dgec ul ti
va t
e dar ec ompa rablet ot hos eonmos t‘Li t eratur e’ cour ses. Theonl y
,
andma jor ,di ffer enc ei sint hee mphas is:c reat i
vewr itingf or egr oundsone ’
sown
wr it
ingr a the rmor et hanwr itinga boutot he rpe opl e’swr iting;doi ngi tr at he rmor e
thande scr ibingi t.Butot he rwi set hes ki l
lsandknowl e dg einvol ve dar es imi laror
compl e me nt ar y.The yar enot–orne e dnotbe–i nc onfli c t.
Havi nge stabl ishe dabr oa dout line ,he rei ss omer e pr esent ativede tail.Ge off
Hol ds wor th’ s‘Ic allhi m Tue sdayAf ternoon’( 5. 2.3c )a ndCha nWe iMe ng’ s‘Is pi k
Ingg li
s h’( 5. 1. 5b)we rewr iti
nge xe rcisespr oduc edi nre spons eto,r e spe ctive ly,De foe ’
s
Robi ns onCr usoe( the‘ Ic allhi m Fr iday ’c hapt er,5. 2. 3b)andCar ibbe ant e xts
includi ngCol li
ns ’s‘NoDi alec tsPl ease ’(5.1.5c ) .Thati s,s trictly,the ywe rer ewr i
t i
ng
activitie s.Thes tude nt stookane xi s
tingt exta nde it
he rs ys temat i callyc hang edi t( a
lit
tleoral ot )orus edi tasapr omptf ors omewr i
tingoft he irown.Ki ndsofr ewr iti
ng
ofc las s i
ct e xt sandt opi csbye stabl i
s hedwr iter sfe at ur edhe r ei nc ludeKaz ant s i
s
on‘ Le daandLe onar dot heSwan’( 5. 1.4b) ;Fant hor pe ’s‘ Knowi nga boutSonne ts
’
(5.1.2g,ar e wr iteofBr ooke ’
s‘ TheSol dier’,pa rtlyi nr e spons et oTe rryEagl eton
(5.1.2f )andBol am’ s‘ Gr uoc h’( 5. 4.3b,ar ea l
isat ionofLa dyMa c be thi nandonhe r
ownt erms ).Me anwhi l
e ,At wood’ ss hor ts t
or yHappyEndi ngs( 5. 4.3a)of fersawi de
rangeofal terna tivee ndi ngs .Al lt he set ext sa rer e -c re ationsi namor eorl ess
cons tra ine dorf r ees e ns e:the ye xt endf rom pas ticheandpa rodyt hr ougha dapt ation
andc r i
t i
quet of re e-standi ngt ext sint he irownr ight/wr ite .Inde edapoi nta tiss uei s
howf art he seoranyot he rtext sar ewr i
ttene nt irely‘ i
nt he irownr ig ht’,a ndhowf ar
ins omes e ns et he ya lway sr epr es entar es
pons et oot he rt extsandar e-c reationof
one ’
ss elft hr oughe nga geme ntswi thot he r
s.Thi si sapr inc ipleofwr itingaspr a ctice
nol e sst hanofdi alogueandi nt ertextual it
yast he ory .Tobes ur e,noneoft hisne e d
unde rmi net hes ens eofuni que nes sandwonde ri nv olve di nc reativea c tivity;i nde ed,
itmaya c tua ll
ye nha nc ei t.Buti ts houl d,inLope zandLawl ey’sphr ase ,‘ cha llenge
commonpl ac enot ionsofc reat i
vi tyandor iginal ity’.
Wi thal lthi si nmi nd,wel ooka tac lutchoft e xtsbyt hewr iter,pe rfor me r,teac he r
ands cie nt istMar ioPe truc ci( 5.4. 3c ).The sewe rege ne rat edi nsidea ndout s ide
educ a tiona landot he ri ns ti
tut ions ,inc ludingal abor at or yandamus e um.The ymay
thems elv esbeus eda sf ra me wor ksorpr ompt sf orwor ki nc rea tivewr itingc las se s
;
butt he yal sog es tur et owor dsandwor l
dsbe yond.I nt his ,c r
uc ially,t he yr emi ndus
thatwr itingi sc rea ti
v eandc riticalandt hati tt ake spl ac ei n,about ,f rom a ndf ora
variet yofa ctualandpos siblewor lds.‘ TheCompl eteLe tterGui de ’( i)i sa ne xampl e
of‘c ut -up’ ,aki ndof‘ col l
ag e’.I tdr awst oge t
he rdi ffe
r entpar tsofa ne ar ly-twe nt ieth-
cent ur ygui det owr iti
ngl ette rsf oral loc cas ions( theki ndofgui deRi char ds on’ s
epistol ar ynov e lPame las tar tedof fas ).Thevar i
ouspa rtswe r es e lec tedandr e-
combi ne d,l ine ate da ndgr oupe dass hown.‘ Mut ations ’( ii),ast heat ta che dnot e
indic ate s,i saki ndof‘ comput er-ge ne rated’poe m.I ti swhatmi ghtha ppe ni fa
comput e re ngag edi nr a ndom r e-combi na ti
onoft hel e tte rsi ntheope ni ngwor dsof
thenur seryr hy me‘ LittleBo- Pe ep’. Howe ver,asPe truc cide mons tra tes ,theappar e ntly
random nat ureoft hepr oc esshasbe e ns ubj ectt ode s ignandc raf t
ing .Thi smaybe
‘chaos ’
,buti tisi nf or me dbyav arietyofor dersa ndl ogi c s( i
nc ludi ngt hatofg ene tic
‘mut a tions ’,ast het i
tles ug ge sts).Asac onse que nc e,byt hec loset her eade rha sbe en
treate dt oac ur iousc ac ophonyofs e mi-Engl ishe s( re s ona ntofDut c h,S cot sor
some thi nge lse,de pe ndi nghow y oupr onounc et he m)andas uc ce s
s ionofv ar i
ous ly
innoc entors alac ious ,hal f-sens icalornon- sens icalva riant sonas che me .Aswi th
COMMONTOPI
CS 198

mos tpoe ms ,thisonei sbe sttr

iedoutont het ong uea nde ara swe llast hee ye,wi th
ana udi encea swe llast oone self
.Pe rf
or ma nc eisac ruc iala spectoft he‘ publ ication’
(i.e.ma kingpubl i
c)ofc reativewr it
ing ;asist hes howi ngands haringofone ’
swor k
inpr ogr essinwor kshops.
As e nseofoc casi
onandc ontextisespe ci
al l
yimpor tantwi that exts uchas‘ Tr enc h’
(iv).Fort hist ext,ast hes uppor t
ingnot ese xplai
n,wasc ompos e df ora ndi ne ver y
sens es it
ed( si
ghted,c i
ted)i ntheImpe rialWa rMus eum,London.I tisapar ticula rly
poi nt edi ns tanceoft exti nc ontexta ndpoe t
ryaspe r formanc e.‘Oc casi
onal ’piec es
suc hast hi sc anbeg eneratedwi thmanys pecifi
cl oc ationsa ndpur pose si nmi nd.
Me anwhi l
e ,amor ef ree-
standingpi eces ucha s‘Refle ctions ’(ii
i)spor tswi t
hi nv ersions
andpe rversionsoff ami li
arphr ases.‘Stingl i
keabe e’
,‘ ast oug ha sanut ’
,a nd‘ ha re-
br aine ds che mes’a r
eal lsubjectedt os ubtlydi ffe
r entpr essures.Ther es
ul tisat ext
whi ch*de -f
a mili
arisesa s
pe ct
soft hewor ldbe yond,e ve na sitdr awsa tt
ent iont ot he
ar t
ific eofi tsownde viants t
ructures.
Wha tr eallymat te
rs,then, i
snotwhe t
he rwel abe lsuc ha ctiviti
esc ri
t i
calorc re
a tive,
butt hequal ityandv alueoft hee xpe riencege nerat edbys uc he xpe ri
me nt s.Int hi s
re spe ct,r eca l
li
ngt hei nit
ialde finiti
onofc reati
vityast hepr oduc t
ionofs ome thing
‘or igina landf itti
ng’,ac ritic
ale ssayma ybej udge dbot hwhe reasapoe m maybe
judge dne ither.Itallde pendsupont heki ndsofr e -
cr eationorc ri
tiquei npl ayand
whatwee xpe ctorde mandf rom t hepar ticulardi scour sesa ndge nres.A pl ayf ul,
punni nge s saybyDe rridamaybeas our c
eofde lightorde rision.S oma yt hemos t
sol emnpr onounc eme ntbyF .
R.Le avis.

Ac
tiv
iti
es

(
a) Dr
aw ononeofthete
xts,t
echnique
sori
deasf
eat
uredabov
easapr
omptt
ofa
shi
on
at
extofyourown.Thenreflectonandwri
teupthepr
oces
s.

(
b) Expe ri
me ntwi tht heproblemsa ndpos sibil
it
iesofbot h‘fr
eewr i
ting’a nd‘ setwr i
ti
ng’.
‘Freewr it
ing ’me anst hatyouwr it
edownwhat evercome sintoyourhe adf or
,say,
tenmi nutes,wi thoutpaus ingf ormor ethanas econdort wot ot hinkwhatc ome s
next( i
gnor ingfor malpunc t
uationors entences tr
ucturesifyouwi s h).S etwriting
me ansthatyouwr itewithsomes pecificc ons
t r
aint,purposeortopici nmi nd, whether
formalorf unctiona l;f
orinstance,youmaywr iteinaha ikuors onne tf orma bout
some thingt hathappe nedl as
tni ght( cf.5.4.4and5. 1.
2),ort ryt owr it
ei nyour
mot her’
sorf at
he r’
svoi c
e,ands oon.Hav i
nge xpe r
imentedwi thbot h‘ free’and‘ set
’
writing,goont oc onsi
derwhatmi ghtbewor ke dupf rom both;al sot or eflectupon
justhowc re ati
ve ,orr e
-cre
a t
ive,youj udgetheva ri
ousprocessesa ndpr oduc tst
obe .

Di
scu
ssi
on

(
i) Th
eimag
inat
ioni
mit
ate
s.I
tist
hecri
ti
cals
pir
itt
hatcr
eat
es.
Os
carWil
de,I
nte
nti
ons
,1891;c
f.Wi
l
dep.
280.

(
ii
) Imus
tcr
eat
eas
yst
em orb
eens
lav
edbya
not
herman’
s.
Wi
lli
am Bl
ake
,An
not
ati
ons
,1790s
.
Cr
eat
ivewr
iti
ng,cr
eat
ivi
ty,r
e-c
reat
ion 199

(
ii
i) Compare(a)‘
Youro
wnl i
feisthefirsts
ourceofyourwri
ti
ng’with(b
)‘Readin
g
i
sthebes
tsourc
eofins
pirat
ion’
.
(Bothsta
tementsa
r ef
rom Jenn
yNe wmane tal
.(eds)
TheWr it
er’
sWor kbook2000:3,27.)
Als
os ee:Prol
ogue:Engl
is
hLi
ter
atur
eandCr e
ati
veWri
ti
ng;LI
TERATURE;writ
ing
andr e
ading,respons
eandre
wr i
ti
ng;al
ter
nati
vemodesofcri
ti
caland c
reat
ive
wri
ting(4.4)
.

READING:Onc reat
ivewri
ti
ng:Mil
ls1996,Si
n gl
etonandLuckhur
st1997;Newman,Cu
sick
an
dLaT ouret
te2000.Oncri
ti
cal
-cr
eati
vewrit
ing:Pope1995;NashandStace
y1997;Curr
ie
i
nWo lf
reys2001:152–168;Bolme
a tal.(f
orthcomin
g).Oncreati
vit
y:Ri
chandWalkerin
Bart
holomaeandPetros
ky1999:603–20,694–706;Po pef
orthco
ming2003.

DIFFERENCEANDSI
MILARI
TY,PREFERENCEAND
RE-VALUATI
ON
Al lthet er msi nt hise nt r
yha vet odowi thpe rceivings imi l
ar i
tiesanddi fferenc esa nd
expr e ssingpr eferenc es .The sear ebas icope rationsofa nal ysisa nde valua tion.He nce
thepe rsistenc ei ne ssa yque stionsofs uc hf ormul asas‘ Compar eandc ont rast...’
and‘ Howf a rdoy ouagr e e...? ’Mor eove r,be caus edi fferentpe opl e–ore achofus
atdi ffe rentmome nts–maype rc ei
veot he rdi fferenc e sande xpr essot herpr eferenc es,
the s
ea r eal soope rationst hati nvol vefor msofr e-v aluat i
on.
InLANGUAGE,s imi laritya nddi ffe
re ncea ref unda me ntalpr inciplesate ve r
yl ev el
be caus eweonl yknow ones ound,wor dors truc tur et ot hee xt entt hati tismor eor
lesss imi la rt oordi f f
e rentf rom ot hers.Thusi nt ermsofs ound‘ pin’i sal mos tt he
sameas‘ bi n’:t he re’sj ustone*phone medi f
fe rent ,av oiced/ unv oi ceddi ff
e re nce
be twe e n/ b/and/ p/.Buta tt hes amet ime ,int ermsofme ani ng,‘ pin’i sal mos tt he
sameas ,s ay ,‘ne edle ’butv erydi fferentf rom ‘ bi n’.I nt hiswayl anguageof fersa n
inter playofs imi laritiesanddi fference satavar i
e tyofl eve l
s.Whe nac tua llyus ing
langua ge ,wes ele ctf rom t heav ail
a bler esour ces:weus eones ound,me ani ng,wor d
ors tr uc turer athe rt hana not he r.
InLI TERATURE, s i
mi l
ar i
tyanddi fferenc ea rea lsof unda me nt alc onc ept s.Firs t,in
or dere ve nt oc ons truc tac ate gor yoft extsc alledLi te rature ,wene edt opos i
ts ome
kindofs imi lar i
tyamong stal lt hei temsi nclude d.I ne vitably,att hes amet ime ,t his
me ansde cidi ngwhi chi te msar et obee xc l
ude d.Wet husc ons tructt hec ategor i
es
Liter atur e/Non- li
terat urebyadi alect
icalpr i
nc ipleof‘ i
s ’(si
mi lart o,include s)ve rsus
‘isnot ’( dif f
e rentf rom,e xclude s).He nc ef undame nt alar gume ntsaboutwhe ther
Liter arySt udi ess houl di nc ludeore xcludedr ama ,pe r for manc e ,TV, adve rtisi
ng ,ne ws
repor ting ,etc .(see1. 8.2).Anot he rareawhe ret hepl a yofs imi laritya nddi ffer
e nc eis
cruc iali st ha tofg enr e.Whe the rwea res ortingt e xt si ntot hec at egoriesofc ome dy
andt ra ge dyor ,fort ha tmat t
e r,‘shoppi ngl ist’and‘ ans we r-phoneme ssag e’,thes ame
anal y ticalanddi alectic a
lope r ationsappl y:i sthi sbutnott ha t;i nc l
ude st hisbutnot
tha t
; simi la rtot hi sbutdi ffe r
e ntf rom that . Thema tte rofr e
-v aluat ionmos tobv ious l
y
come si nt onot ionsofLi terat ur ewhe nwear ec ons truc ti
ngac anonofg reat,c las si
c
wor ksor ,mor epr a gma ti
c all
y ,as ylla
busbui ltround‘ set’text s.Foratt hatpoi nta ll
thepot ential simi laritiesa nddi fferencesmus tber esolve di ntopr ov isi
ona lpr ef
ere nc es.
Whats hal lber eadandwhy?Ans we rsvar y,ofc our s e,he nc ea lt
ernat ivec anons ,
tradi tionsandc our sesofwome n’s,blac k,POSTCOLONI ALwr it i
ng ,e t
c.
COMMONTOPI
CS 200

CULTURE i
sal
soc ons
truc
tedf
rom t
hepe
rce
pti
onofmyr
iadpe
rmut
ati
onsof
s
imil
arit
yanddif
fer
ence.

♦ A‘s amene ss’c onc e

ptofc ulturetendstowar dst heviewt hatg loba l
lyornat i
onall
y
the
r eisonemode ltowhi chal laspir
eandag ainstwhi cha l
lothe rscanbepl ac edand
gra
de d.He nc es uchmonol i
thicnot i
onsasCi vili
sationandEngl ishCul ture(capital
is
ed
and s i
ng ular).An e mphas i
s on s ame nessg ene r
all
ye ntailsmonoc ulturali
sm,
homoge ne i
ty,c entrali
s i
nga nduni ty
.Therei sapr omi seofcohe rencebutwi that hreat
ofintolerance .
♦ A‘ dif
ferenc es’c onceptofc ulturetendstowa rdst heviewt ha tglobally,nat i
onall
y
orloca l
lyt herear emanymode lstowhi chdi f
ferentpe opleas pireandr elate,and
thattherei snoove rarc
hingmode lwithinwhi chc ult
ur e
s( lowe rcaseandpl ural)
canbepl ac e
d.Suc hMULTI CUL TURALISM i sus uallyexpr e
sse dint ermsofvar iet
y
andvar iati
on,mul tiplecentresandhy bridity.The reisapr omi seoft ole
r ancebut
withat hr eatoff ragme ntati
on.

Nots ur prisi
ng l
y,a llge nui nelydy nami cc onc eptionsofc ulturet e ndt omovebe twe en
andbe yondt hesepol arities.Thoug he ve nt he nt he yma ys tres sdi ff
er enc ewi thin
same ne s s(i.e .va rietywi thin uni ty)aswe llasdi fferencebe yonds ame ness( i.e.
va riationwhi che xce edsuni ty).I tallde pendshow c l
os edorope n,f inishe dori n
proc ess,t hes y s
tem( s)ofc ulture(s)ar er eckone dt obe .
Di ffer e
nc ei sat e rmt hathasbe c omev e rypr omi nenti nc riti
c alt he oryove rt helas t
thirtyye a rs
.I tde rive sf rom Lat indi fferre,me a ning‘ tomov ei nt wodi recti
ons ’or‘ to
carr ya way ’,andbot hs ens esca nbet racedi nc ur re ntus ageoft het er m.Twodi st
inc t
tradi tionsc onve rget o ma kedi ffer enc eake yc onc ept:onepol itical,t heot he r
phi los ophi cal.Fi rst,t he reist hepol iticalpr essur eofFEMI NISTa ndPOSTCOLONI AL
appr oac he s.I nt he sec asesi tisthef undame nt aldi fferenc esbe twe e n‘ f
e mal e’and
‘mal e’( ing ende rt erms‘ femi nine’and‘ mas culine ’)a ndbe twe e n‘ bl ack’and‘ whi te’
tha tc ons t i
tut ethei ni ti
a lpar ame tersofc ri
tica ldi scour se.Ins ophi s t
ica t
e dmode ls
thes edi ff
e r
e nc e
sa real wa ysr ecogni sedass hiftingandpl uralr athe rt hans taticand
*bi nar y.Tha tis,the rear emanymor epe rmut ationsofg ende ra nds hade sofc ol
our
tha nt wo.I ti sal sor e cogni sedt hatdi ffer encesofg ende ra nde thni c ityint eractwi th
oneanot he randwi thot he rdi f
fer enc e
sbas eduponc lass,e duc ation,r eligionand
region.
Thes econdmaj orf or cebe hindc ont empor ar yi nterestindi ffer enc esde riv esfrom
POS TS TRUCTURALI STp hilosophy ,e spe c
ia l
lyt hewr it
ing sofDe r rida .Dr a wingont he
ambi g uityoft heFr enc hv erb (whi chme ansbot h‘tobedi ffe r
entf r om’a nd
‘t
ode lay/defe r’)
,De rrida,pr opos est ha t bec onc eiveda sa nac tivitywhe r
e by
termsandc onc ept snotonl ydi ff
erf rom oneanot he rbutal soe nga geusi nane ndle ss
proc e ssofde fe r
ra lorde lay .Everya ctof‘ diff
er entiat i
on’i s,ine ffec t,ade layingt actic.
Ati tsmos tba sic ,t hepr inc i
pleof i
sc onf irme dbyt hef ac tt hatone
dictiona ryde finitionl ea dst oanot he r,whi c hle adst oa nothe r,the na nothe r–ands o
on.Ev ent ually,itmaywe l
lc omeba ckt ot het e rm wi thwhi chy ous tarted( lookup
‘l
ang uage ’and‘ wor ds ’tos eet hisc i
r cularityinmot i
on) .
Signi ficant ly,theonl ywa yt oa rrestt hepot ent i
allyi nfini tepl ayofdi fferenc e/
de f
e rrali nl angua gei stoi ns i
stupona*r eferenc ei nt henon- ve rbalwor l
d;andt ha t
intur nme a
nse xpr ess i
ngapr eferencef orc e r
tainwa ysofs ay ingands e ei
ngt hewor ld.
Fori ns tanc e,I( likeyou)ma ybeknownbyal lsor t
sofdi ffere ntl abe l
s:i nmyc as e
‘f
at he r’,‘hus band’ ,‘son’ ,‘lecturer’,‘citi
z en’,‘pa ti
e nt’,‘cyclist’,‘gui tar i
st’,a nds oon.