Migration and Postcolonial Theory

Course Code: IM632L

Institution:

Department of Global Political Studies

Revision:

1

For students admitted fall 2013   fall 2012  

Approval

The course was established 09 February 2012.
This course syllabus (version 1) was approved 01 March 2012 by the Board of Studies at Faculty of Culture and Society.
The syllabus is valid from 03 September 2012.

Education level

Advancement in relation to the degree requirements

Entry requirements

Learning outcomes

• be well-oriented in the theoretical development of postcolonial theory
• understand the importance and analytical impact of postcolonial perspectives in race/ethnicity and gender studies
• demonstrate knowledge of theoretical concepts and of analytical approaches dealt with in the course
• demonstrate capability to use theoretical concepts and analytical approaches dealt with in the course in autonomous analyses of empirical material
• demonstrate an ability to communicate and develop his/her knowledge and skills in the field of study through writing a paper and giving a presentation.

Assessments

This course is graded through three different types of exercises: 1) a student presentation, 2) a short individual paper, and 3) Seminar activity. Group presentation involves presenting an analysis of a selected aspect of postcolonial theory introduced on the course. The paper involves either an individual analysis of an aspect of a case, or a theoretical exploration of a topic in postcolonial theory. The seminar activity involves presentation and discussion of selected course literature.


Course content

The course will present and problematize the work of classical theorists in the field of postcolonial theory and discuss their impact on various disciplines in the social sciences and the humanities. The aim is to increase students’ awareness of the theoretical and empirical impact of postcolonial theory in race/ethnicity and gender studies. The course will address theoretical approaches of anti-colonialism and explicate key concepts central to the field. The course is divided into four parts: the first part entails close reading of key theoretical texts, the second and third part deals with the ways that postcolonial thinking has been absorbed in various disciplines and the last and fourth part will concentrate on the students’ own production of individual papers through group discussions, presentations and seminars.


Learning activities

The course is based on active participation of the students. A variety of methods, including interactive lectures/discussions, assigned readings, and group projects will be utilized for the purpose of achieving the course objectives.


Grading system

A,B,C,D,E,U.


Reading list and other media

Aimé Césaire, Discourse on Colonialism Monthly Review Press; New Ed edition 2000

Bhabha, Homi K. The Location of Culture. New York: Routledge, 1994.

Chakrabarty, Dipesh. Provincializing Europe: Postcolonial Thought and Historical Difference Princeton University Press 2007

Fanon, Frantz. Black Skin, White Masks. Grove Press, 2008.

Loomba, Ania. Colonialism/Postcolonialism. New York: Routledge, 2005.

Mankekar, Purnima. Screening Culture, Viewing Politics: An Ethnography of Television, Womanhood, and Nation in Postcolonial India. Durham: Duke, 1999.

McClintock, Anne. Imperial Leather: Race, Gender, and Sexuality in the Colonial Contest. New York: Routledge, 1995.

Mohanty, Chandra Talpade. Feminism without Borders: Decolonizing Theory, Practicing Solidarity. Duke UP, 2003.

Said, Edward. Orientalism Penguin 2003

Spivak, Gayatri Chakravorty. A Critique of Postcolonial Reason: Toward a History of the Vanishing Present Harvard University Press, 1999

Young, Robert J. C. White Mythologies: Writing History and the West Routledge,2004


Course evaluation

All students are offered an opportunity to give oral or written feedback at the end of the course.