This seminar paper seeks to answer the question to what extent and in which ways members of the queer community in postcolonial societies can build an identity using the example of Cereus Blooms at Night in order to illustrate the impact that discrimination and injustice can have on the self-esteem and behaviour of individuals.
It will be based upon the influence of British foreign rule with its values and standards on the attitude of indigenous people towards non-heteronormative sexual engagements in order to explain how the current situation has come about. In addition to that, the theory of “Subalternity” by Gayatri Spivak will be incorporated for it shall contribute to the analysis of the queer’s trapped position. Two major parallels between the Indian woman - for whom this concept has originally been created - and the queer Caribbean will be carved out: Loss of the indigenous language resulting in the inability to voice one’s struggle and the double oppression through both foreign influence and indigenous realities. Concluding the historical background for the scene in which Shani Mootoo’s novel Cereus Blooms at Night is set will be a paragraph about the conflict of current western attempts to influence the situation for the LGBT+ community in the Caribbean.
At a glance
- Grade: 1.0 (1.0 is the best grade)
- Applies Spivak’s theory of subalternity to queer identity in the postcolonial Caribbean
- Analyzes discrimination against Tyler and compares characters’ ways of coping
- 17 sources in the bibliography
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Queerness in postcolonialism: Finding an identity in Cereus Blooms at Night
2.1. Historical Background
2.1.1. British attitude towards queerness during the time of colonialism and its influence on the Caribbean natives
2.1.2. Gender roles and the mati practice: A picture of the indigenous Caribbean attitude towards same-sex relationships
2.2. Spivak’s theory of Subalternity applied to the question of sexual and gender identity in the postcolonial Caribbean
2.3. Shani Mootoo: Cereus Blooms at Night
2.3.1. Characters
2.3.2. Methods of discriminating against members of the queer community experienced by Tyler
2.3.3. Ways to deal with the experienced injustice as shown by characters from Cereus Blooms at Night
3. Conclusion
Objectives and Themes
This seminar paper asks to what extent and in what ways queer people in postcolonial societies can build an identity. Using Shani Mootoo’s Cereus Blooms at Night, it examines how colonial history, discrimination and social expectations shape the characters’ experiences and responses.
- British colonial influence on Caribbean attitudes toward sexuality and gender
- Caribbean gender roles and the mati practice
- Spivak’s theory of subalternity and double oppression
- Discrimination experienced by the novel’s narrator, Tyler
- Characters’ responses to exclusion and injustice
Excerpt from the Book
2.2. Spivak’s theory of Subalternity applied to the question of sexual and gender identity in the postcolonial Caribbean
Gayatri Chakravorti Spivak, a woman from Indian decency has now come to teach at Columbia University in New York and influence the whole field of postcolonial studies with her major theory of Subalternity. It is based upon the concept of essentialism which serves as the source for exclusion: One can classify things as simply ‘right’ or ‘wrong’, so consequently everything may only exist in one correct version. When Spivak introduced the theory, it was intended specially to describe the dilemma around the Indian practice of widow-sacrifice during her husband’s funeral called sati. The rite was abolished by the British in 1829 as, with western view, the tradition had to be labelled intolerable and inhumane. Previously, the practice has been established by the privileged indigenous men without the women’s permission. Nevertheless, putting an end to the self-sacrifice has yet again been a decision made for them. Consequently, one can describe their situation as a “double oppression”, first of all by the native males and additionally on the part of the coloniser. Unfortunately, the Subaltern, in trying to voice her sufferings finds herself in a further predicament: Adapting to the forced use of the British language and style would be to give in to the foreign rule, but writing a text which demands different theoretical approaches would be at risk to be read through established lenses and consequently remain misunderstood or even discounted.
Just as Spivak applied the theory to the subaltern female in the Indian (post-) colonial society, it appears to be applicable to the queer struggle for identity and acceptance in the Caribbean. The “double oppression” finds a parallel in the previously discussed traditional gender-based differentiation on the one hand and the introduction of the heteronormative British gender and sexuality conception on the other. Again, the position and rights of the - in this case queer - subaltern are set by either an indigenous elite or a foreign power. The inability to utter the injustice one faces originates again from the loss of inherent terms for non-heteronormative sexual and gender identities. To this date, the concept of Subalternity is - in contrast to Homi Bhabha’s Hybridity - hardly ever touched upon in modern Caribbean literature, or, as Shlensky would argue: “Subalternity, as we might say, is itself the subaltern of Caribbean postcolonial discourse”, at least, no “specific historical and cultural conventions” are written about in order to illustrate the discrepancies within the current society.
Chapter Summaries
1. Introduction: The paper introduces its research question and explains how colonial history and Spivak’s theory will inform its reading of the novel.
2. Queerness in postcolonialism: Finding an identity in Cereus Blooms at Night: The main chapter examines British colonial attitudes, Caribbean gender roles and subalternity before analyzing the novel’s characters. It considers the discrimination Tyler experiences and compares characters’ responses to injustice.
3. Conclusion: The conclusion brings the historical discussion and literary analysis together, considering the relationship between colonial legacies and the characters’ approaches to identity.
Keywords
queerness, postcolonialism, Caribbean, identity, British colonialism, gender roles, sexuality, mati practice, subalternity, double oppression, Shani Mootoo, Cereus Blooms at Night, discrimination, literary analysis
Frequently Asked Questions
What is this paper about?
It explores queer identity in postcolonial Caribbean societies through a reading of Shani Mootoo’s Cereus Blooms at Night.
What are its central themes?
The paper addresses colonial legacies, gender and sexuality, subalternity, discrimination and responses to social exclusion.
What is the main research question?
It asks to what extent and in what ways queer people in postcolonial societies can build an identity, using the novel to explore the question.
What method does the paper use?
It combines historical and theoretical discussion with a literary analysis of the novel’s characters and their experiences.
What does the main chapter cover?
It discusses British colonial attitudes, Caribbean gender roles and Spivak’s theory before examining the novel’s characters, discrimination against Tyler and ways of responding to injustice.
Which keywords characterize the paper?
Key terms include queerness, postcolonialism, Caribbean identity, colonialism, subalternity, gender, sexuality and discrimination.
How is Spivak’s theory used?
The paper applies subalternity and the idea of double oppression to the struggle for queer identity and acceptance in the postcolonial Caribbean.
Why does the paper focus on Tyler?
Tyler encounters several forms of discrimination in the novel, allowing the paper to examine different expressions of prejudice through one character.
What is the significance of the mati practice?
The historical discussion considers mati in relation to relationships among women, mutual support and Caribbean approaches to gender and sexuality.
- Quote paper
- Anonym (Author), 2019, Queerness in postcolonialism. Finding an identity using the example of "Cereus Blooms at Night", Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/536768
