Postcolonial world literature : the case for the contemporary Anglophone novel -

Abstract

In this thesis, I suggest that contemporary Anglophone literature have the potential to perform passive resistance to global misconceptions regarding underprivileged peoples and cultures. I situate contemporary Anglophone novels as a possible leeway between the fields of World Literature and Postcolonialism, and suggest that studying these novels through a postcolonial framework is beneficial in realizing their didactic potential. I provide a close reading of We Need New Names (2013) by NoViolet Bulawayo and The White Tiger (2008) by Aravind Adiga in order to show the application of the postcolonial framework suggested in the thesis that focuses on plotting the aesthetics of Prize culture found in contemporary Anglophone novels and juxtaposing it with the narrative resistance inherent to the texts. The Introduction will discuss the aspect of contemporary Anglophone novels that allow for their inclusion in such a study, mainly the inclusion of contemporary Anglophone novels in the field of World Literature, the increased use of the English language as a global language, and the close relationship between institutions of literary production and the book market. Chapter 1 sets up the framework of the thesis and discusses the concept of literary aesthetics through the art of storytelling. The chapter aims to shed light on the importance of aesthetics in the field of World Literature and on its use as a literary device to focus attention on problematic constructions of specific cultural productions, as well as discuss the concept of a narrative resistance using Jasbir Jain’s contemporary application (2007) of Stephen Slemon’s theory of resistance (1990). Chapters 2 and 3 will provide a close reading of We Need New Names and The White Tiger respectively, utilizing the framework set up in Chapter 1 to illustrate the application of the reading this thesis is suggesting. In the concluding chapter, I provide a discussion on the importance of contemporary Anglophone novels with respect to dissemination of rect