Postcolonialism: Intersectional Perspective

The purpose of the course is to introduce students to postcolonialism using an intersectional framework that considers the interconnected nature of social categorizations such as race, class and gender. Relying on an interdisciplinary and transnational approach, the course will draw on a variety of contexts and on a broad literature in order to develop a comprehensive understanding of this field of research. Students will acquire an in-depth knowledge of postcolonial thinking, from postcolonial studies, developed by Indian and Middle Eastern scholars in the late 1970s, to decolonial thinking which emerged in Latin America and in the Caribbean. More specifically, the course will focus on how racism/racialization and gender hierarchies have shaped colonialism as well as the meanings of modernity in both Western societies and the colonies. We will address influential theories, as well as the contemporary conditions of postcoloniality by focusing on more recent concepts such as homonationalism (Puar, 2007) and the coloniality of gender (Lugones, 2008). In the classroom, we will discuss and provide critical analysis of the readings and pay close attention to questions of method and to how these theoretical concepts can be put into practice.