Brief Introduction of Bill Ashcroft Gareth Griffiths Helen Tiffin The Empire Writes Back Theory and practice in post-colonial literatures

The postcolonial era has marked its specialty in the evolution of postmodern discourses which have cross-cultural impacts on the contemporary society. The effects of imperialism and colonialism have shaped the Third World countries in the political and economic grounds. These countries experience a cultural hegemony which is better revealed in postcolonial writings. The term colonial refers to the period during colonisation and the term postcolonial according to Bill Ashcroft covers “all the culture affected by the imperial process from the moment of colonisation to the present day”. The unequal forms of caricaturing the previously colonised Third World countries invoke criticism from the former colonies. Postcolonial literatures oppose this inequality by deconstructing the European structures of philosophy, history, literary studies, anthropology, sociology and political science. Homi K.Bhabha is right as he asserts that, “A range of contemporary critical theories suggest that it is from those who have suffered the sentence of history – subjugation, domination, diaspora, displacement – that we learn our most enduring lessons for living and thinking”.

            Ashcroft further adds that the literatures of former colonies like African countries, Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, Carribean countries, India, Malaysia, Malta, New Zealand, Pakistan, Singapore, South Pacific Island countries and Sri Lanka contribute to postcolonial literatures. Postcolonial writers take into account the inaccuracy of the European theories to deal with the “complexities and varied cultural provenance”, and they make an attempt to reveal the “cultural traditions” that are concealed by the European theories. Ashcroft, Gareth  Griffiths and Helen Tiffin discuss the various kinds of experiences like “migration, slavery, suppression, resistance, representation, difference, race, gender, place, and responses to the influential master discourses of imperial Europe”. Postcolonial works are a response to the historical and cultural dilemma of the colonies after the departure of the empire. Using the English language which is common across the world, postcolonial writings bear with them the concern of the particular regions of the former colonies. It is ironical that the English language which has been mastered from the empire is used for literary purposes to criticise the cultural inequalities powered by the empire:

Postcolonial criticism bears witness to the equal and uneven forces of cultural representation involved in the contest for political and social authority within the modern world order. Postcolonial perspectives emerge from the colonial testimony of Third World countries and the discourses of ‘minorities’ within the geopolitical divisions of East and West, North and South.

Commonwealth literature otherwise known as the Third World literature has paved the way for the origin of postcolonial literature owing to the inadequacy in dealing with the creative writings of the Third World. Commonwealth literary studies focus on the form and style of British literature, thereby marginalising the writings of the formerly colonised nations.

Postcolonial writers, who follow the native traditions and values have contributed to its origin and thereby dismantle the hegemony of the West. The European yardstick has proved to be fatal to the cultural traditions of the Third World. The West categorises the Third World based on their race, colour, gender, culture and economy. Resistance to these subjectivities and discriminations has led to the origin of postcolonial literature which celebrates the plurality of the cultures of the previously colonised societies. Rushdie himself celebrates this new genre as he says that the writers from these societies which include the poor countries and “deprived minorities” contribute new writings to world literature. He further rejoices saying, “it’s time to admit that the centre cannot hold”.

Postcolonial writing is an international field which focuses on cultures which are alienated across borders. Indian Writing in English has earned fame across the globe through a number of literary giants like V.S.Naipaul, Rushdie, Amitav Ghosh, Anita Desai, Jumpa Lahiri, Vikram Seth, Vikram Chandra, Arundhati Roy, Shobha De and others. Their novels are great sociological records which reflect the cultural changes and the socio-political turmoil in the Indian society - “The global nature of post-colonial literature means that the reader needs to be aware of a variety of contexts. Because of the influence of migration and the availability of global travel, writers may not belong to or identify with one geographical region, but cross both regional and cultural boundaries through their writing”

Culture is a strategy with a broader capacity to capture the ways of life. Cultural studies have thrived as a contemporary segment of world literature in cutting across various socio-political interests. It is a location which holds on the differences between nations and races thereby estimating the plurality of cultures in a global platform. Cultural studies have been influenced by the vast cultural domain of the whole world. This genre can never be asserted into a specific area as its coverage is vast and diverse. It encompasses multiple trails and imbibes different disciplines. The mass movements and migration of people from their nations are evident historical truths of colonisation and induce tremendous changes in the Third World  societies. This further instigates cross-cultural exchanges which have happened throughout history. Colonialism has generated migrants, labourers and refugees giving rise to cross-cultural crisis. These diasporic populations substantiate their cultural flows and facilitate the changing social relations, thereby defining the complexities of home and nation.

Postcolonialism projects a challenge by writing back to the imperial centre. This postcolonial approach is crystallised in The Empire Writes Back by Ashcroft, Griffiths and Tiffin. They plan the cultural hegemony of the colonised countries which is manifested in postcolonial writings. The socio-historic pressures of the Third World nations have made the postcolonial writings an outlet for contemporary realities. The Empire Writes Back exposes the rejection of the aged colonial rules. Their new “english” is completely different from the English of the imperial powers. These different linguistic practices assert the empowerment of the varied vernacular tongues of englishes from the Third World.

Ashcroft, Griffiths and Tiffin focus on the intricate ways in which language has been made different in postcolonial societies. They add up their views on the differences between the English of the British and the englishes of the Third World countries. The Standard English usage is rejected by the postcolonial communities and they adorn “transformed and subverted” english to state their sense of difference. The english of the postcolonial societies has shattered the original essence of English by displacing the original value system of the language. The postcolonial writings offer new values and identities declaring their separation from the “Received Standard English” which radiates from the centre. The antiquity and rich cultural tradition of the English literary writings face serious challenge from the postcolonial world:

In practice the history of this distinction between English and english has been between the claims of a powerful ‘centre’ and a multitude of intersecting usages designated as ‘peripheries’. The language of these ‘peripheries’ was shaped by an oppressive discourse of power. Yet they have been the site of some of the most exciting and innovative literatures of the modern period and this has, at least in part, been the result of the energies uncovered by the political tension between the idea of a normative code and a variety of regional usages.

The power structures and social hierarchies set by the imperial authorities cast their influence over the Third World. A long history of colonial influence has reshaped the cultural norms of the formerly colonised societies. The major features of postcolonial studies deal with issues on diasporic displacement of the native migrants across the globe. This displacement challenges the cultural belonging of the migrants and places them in the grip of alienation and identity crisis. Issues like hybridity, transculturalism, transnationalism, mimicry, ambivalence and creolization capture the in-between status of the migrants. These issues churn the cross-cultural crisis of the migrants in alien countries. Colonisation and imperialism have forwarded the 10 displacement of natives and this generates new identities and unprecedented changes over the Third World. The new social spaces created by displacement expose the mixing of various cultures affecting the migrants’ identity.

Reference:

https://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/bitstream/10603/193335/6/06_chapter%201.pdf