Willy Maley

Gareth Stanton

Bart Moore-Gilbert

Post-colonial theory is a relatively new area in critical contemporary studies, having its foundations more Postcolonial Criticism brings together some of the most important critical writings in the field, and aims to present a clear overview of, and introduction to, one of the most exciting and rapidly developing areas of contemporary literary criticism. It charts the development of the field both historically and conceptually, from its beginnings in the early post-war period to the present day. The first phase of postcolonial criticism is recorded here in the pioneering work of thinkers like Aimé Césaire, Frantz Fanon, Edward Said, and Gayatri Spivak. More recently, a new generation of academics have provided fresh assessments of the interaction of class, race and gender in cultural production, and this generation is represented in the work of Aijaz Ahmad, bell hooks, Homi Bhabha, Abdul JanMohamed and David Lloyd. Topics covered include negritude, national culture, orientalism, subalternity, ambivalence, hybridity, white settler societies, gender and colonialism, culturalism, commonwealth literature, and minority discourse. The collection includes an extensive general introduction which clearly sets out the key stages, figures and debates in the field. The editors point to the variety, even conflict, within the field, but also stress connections and parallels between the various figures and debates which they identify as central to an understanding of it. The introduction is followed by a series of ten essays which have been carefully chosen to reflect both the diversity and continuity of postcolonial criticism. Each essay is supported by a short introduction which places it in context with the rest of the author's work, and identifies how its salient arguments contribute to the field as a whole. This is a field which covers many disciplines including literary theory, cultural studies, philosophy, geography, economics, history and politics. It is designed to fit into the current modular arrangement of courses, and is therefore suitable for undergraduate and postgraduate courses which address postcolonial issues and the 'new' literatures in English.

Postcolonial Criticism

Dr Bart Moore-Gilbert

Were the 1970s really `the devils decade'? Images of strikes, galloping inflation, rising unemployment and bitter social divisions evoke a period of unparalleled economic decline, political confrontation and social fragmentation. But how significant were the pessimism and self-doubt of the 1970s, and what was the legacy of its cultural conflicts? Covering the entire spectrum of the arts - drama, television, film, poetry, the novel, popular music, dance, cinema and the visual arts - The Arts in the 1970s challenges received perceptions of the decade as one of cultural decline. The collection breaks new ground in providing the first detailed analysis of the cultural production of the decade as a whole, providing an invaluable resource for all those involved in cultural, media and communications studies.

Cultural Closure

The Arts in the 1970s

A moving literary memoir about a son's quest for the truth behind his father's colonial past. When a letter from an Indian historian arrives out of the blue and informs leading academic Bart Moore-Gilbert that his beloved deceased father, a member of the Indian Police before Independence, took part in the abuse of civilians, his world is shaken as cherished childhood memories are challenged. He sets out in search of the truth – discovering much about the end of empire, the state of India today, and whether his father, as one of the many characters on his quest claims, really was a terrorist. Crisscrossing western India, and following leads from bustling Mumbai to remote rural locations, Moore-Gilbert pieces together the truth, discovering that the story of his father's life links today's politics with the past's, colonial India with its modern incarnation, terrorism across the ages, and father with son. The Setting Sun is at once an extraordinary meditative voyage across India, a story of the dying days of an empire, and a gripping family history.

A Memoir of Empire and Family Secrets

The Setting Sun

Dr Bart Moore-Gilbert, Dr

This comprehensive critical study of Hanif Kureishi details the writer's career to date. Kureishi has explored a number of key social and cultural issues of recent years, including the legacies of colonialism, the paradoxes of multi-culturalism, changing conceptions of class, gender and sexuality, globalization, and relations between popular culture and the canon. Bart Moore-Gilbert's authoritative text places Kureishi's writing in its historical, social, cultural, and critical contexts, and provides detailed readings of his major works.

Bart Moore-Gilbert

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