Colonialism and Postcolonialism, Essay Example

Ania Loomba’s book Colonialism/Postcolonialism is possibly one of the most comprehensive (yet still concisely written) books on this wide-ranging and sometimes confusing subject.  This field of literary/cultural criticism has gained increasing attention in recent decades. It examines the nature and impact of colonization (both on the colonizers and the colonized) and the cultural consequences for nations and people in a post-colonial state.

In her introduction, Loomba she justifies the need for such studies and puts them into a modern context by noting that “since the events of 11 September 2001, and the US invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq, questions of ‘empire’ are more urgent than ever, as advocates of American imperialism exhort the US to learn from European imperialism, while its critics warn that the murderous history of colonialism is being whitewashed all over again” (Loomba 1).

Understanding that there has been much misuse or even abuse of these terms, Loomba dedicates the entire first section of her book to the definitions of terms like “colonialism”, “imperialism”, and “postcolonialism” to set the foundations for the rest of her work.  The next chapter is dedicated to deals with ways that postcolonial nations “reconstruct” various aspects of their national identity – things like notions of race, culture, class, and gender – that have been altered or destroyed by the experience of being colonized.

Her conclusion is just as interesting as the rest of the book, when she discusses the future of colonial and postcolonial studies in relation to globalization.  Ania discusses the pro-globalization book, “Empire” by Hardt and Negri but notes that many critics believe that “globalization has intensified pre-existing global asymmetries, particularly those that were produced by modern colonization” (Loomba 215).

Loomba states plainly that this book is not meant to touch on all possible facets of this complex subject.  However, her research is comprehensive, her writing lucid, and this is certainly an excellent and thorough overview of the major issues involved in this field of study.

Works Cited

Loomba, A. “Colonialism/Postcolonialism”. New York: Routledge Press. 1998. 1-263. Print