Postcolonial Criticism and Theory: A Critique

Contents: Part I: 1. The rise of postcolonial criticism and theory. 2. Edward said and postcolonial theory. 3. Edward Said: Resistance and reconciliation. Part II: 4. Language, reality and criticism: a critique of Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak. 5. Who is a subaltern and what language does s/he speak? Interrogating Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak. 6. Homi K. Bhabha’s ambivalent speculations. Part III: 7. Postcolonial criticism and the aesthetic dimension. 8. Postocolonial criticism and culture. 9. T.S. Eliot and postcolonialism: a reading of the cocktail party. Appendix: Colonialism, postcolonialism and English teaching and research in India.

The book is a comprehensive and critical account of postcolonial criticism and theory by an Indian. This is particularly significant as the Orient, of which India is a segment, is at the centre of postcolonial critical engagement. The book does not simply state facts and outline ideas but also attempts an evaluative critical appraisal of the three major practitioners of this critical trend – Edward Said, Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak and Homi K. Bhabha.