Nanyo Colonialism/postcolonialism: a Comparative Literary and Cultural Study on Representations of the Pacific in Japanese and English Language Fiction
Sudo, Naoto (2003). Nanyo Colonialism/postcolonialism: a Comparative Literary and Cultural Study on Representations of the Pacific in Japanese and English Language Fiction (Thesis). University of Wollongong.
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Abstract: A key argument of the thesis is that the three-way interactions of colonial/postcolonial representations of Japanese in the Pacific region produce a ‘colonial subject’ different from Eurocentric colonial models and more complex than dominant Self-Other theories have allowed. In considering colonialism and postcolonialism in the Pacific, the thesis points out that the ‘Japanese’ subject as coloniser/colonised is used in contemporary texts from Japan and Pacific islands to intervene not only in colonial myths of ‘southern earthly paradise’ but also anti-colonial binarism of oppressor/oppressed.
The text examines works such as “An Abridgement of Things South Sea,” highlighting its efforts to rewrite colonial narratives, resist Japanese assimilation policies, and critique colonial power dynamics through fiction [3]. Sudo discusses how artists depicted the Pacific, often employing stereotypes but also subverting them, thus providing a nuanced critique of colonial attitudes. Additionally, the thesis addresses the inner conflicts and contradictions in Japanese modernization, which attempted to mimic Western civilization, and the literary resistance to this trend.
The document also highlights the narrative techniques used to challenge centralized narratives and how fragmenting the plot can offer satire and critique of political and social situations. Through these discussions, the author underscores how literary works from the period reveal tensions between local identities and colonial influences, integrating contemporary Japanese elements into their visions while acknowledging shared experiences and conflicts.
Extra details:
MAG: 2227903680 OpenAlex: W2227903680 CorpusID: 162868430
