LFU:online

The aim of this course is to familiarise students with key concepts of postcolonial theory for the analysis of plays written during the abolition period dealing with the enslavement of African slaves.

The Image(s) of African Slaves in Eighteenth-Century British Drama introduces you to the postcolonial key concept of the ‘Other’ used in the analysis of African slaves in various plays of the abolition period. In order to get an overview of African characters in plays, we will also include Edward Young’s Revenge (1721), James Miller’s Art and Nature (1738), Mrs. Weddell’s Incle and Yarico (1742), and Isaac Bickerstaff’s The Padlock (1768). Edward Young’s Revenge is particularly important as it deals with the theme of revenge in William Shakespeare’s Othello. We will take Othello as the actual starting point for the analysis of the African ‘Other’ enabling students to scrutinise, compare, and contextualise the African character in the colonial discourse. At the same time, we will take into consideration Aphra Behn’s short novel Oroonoko (1688) and its dramatic adaptations - Thomas Southerne (1696), John Hawkesworth (1759), Francis Gentleman (1760), and John Ferriar (1788) – as the image of Oroonoko was crucial in the portrayal of African slaves in literary texts. The introduction will address issues of British colonialism, the history of the slave trade/slavery, Restoration Theatre, and the genre of drama in general.

lecture, group discussions, presentations

active participation, discussion, presentation, written paper

Döring, Tobias. Postcolonial Literatures in English. UNI-WISSEN

Anglistik/Amerikanistik. Stuttgart: Klett, 2008. Print.

McLeod, John. Beginning Postcolonialism. Manchester: Manchester UP, 2000. Print.

Fanon, Frantz. The Wretched of the Earth. Trans. Constance Farrington. New York: Grove Weidenfeld, 1963. Print.

Said, Edward. Orientalism. 1978. London: Penguin, 1985. Print.

Bhabha, Homi. Location of Culture. London and New York: Routledge, 1994. Print.

Spivak, Gayatri Chakravorty. “Can the Subaltern Speak?” Marxism and the Interpretation of Culture. Ed. Cary Nelson, and Lawrence Grossberg. Urbana: Illinois UP, 1988. 271-313. Print.

Castle, Gregory, ed. Postcolonial Discourses: An Anthology. Oxford: Blackwell, 2000.

Print.

Balme, Christopher B. Decolonizing the Stage. Theatrical Syncretism and Post-

Colonial Drama. Oxford: Clarendon, 1999. Print.

Gilbert, Helen, and Joanne Tompkins. Post-Colonial Drama: Theory, Practice,

Politics. London and New York: Routledge, 1996. Print.

Gilbert, Helen, ed. (Post)Colonial Stages. Critical Views on Drama, Theatre &

Performance. Hebden Bridge: Dangaroo Press, 1999.  Print.

Barthelemy, Anthony G. Black Face, Maligned Race. The Representation of Blacks

in English Drama from Shakespeare to Southerne. Baton Rouge and London:

Louisiana State University Press, 1987. Print.

Worrall, David. Theatric Revolution. Drama, Censorship and Romantic Period

Subcultures 1773-1832. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2006. Print.

Boulukos, George. The Grateful Slave. The Emergence of Race in Eighteenth-

Century British and American Culture. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2008. Print.

Dellarosa, Franca. Slavery on Stage. Representations of Slavery in British Theatre,

1760s-1830s. Bari: Edizioni dal Sud, 2009. Print.

BA Programme: positive completion of compulsory modules 3 und 16

Teacher Training Programme: VO 2: Introduction to British and Postcolonial Literary Studies

BA "old" (2009): PS 2: British and/or Postcolonial Literature

Teacher Training Programme "old" (2001): PS 2: English Literature and Culture

Due to substantial differences in the allocation of ECTS-Credits in various curricula (teacher training program - BA/MA English and American Studies), the requirements for this course vary. Information will be provided by the instructor at the beginning of the course.