Toward an animist reading of postcolonial trauma literature : reading beyond the single subject / Jay Rajiva.
| Author/creator | Rajiva, Jay author. |
| Format | Electronic |
| Publication | Abingdon, Oxon ; New York, NY : Routledge, 2021. |
| Description | 1 online resource (vii, 147 pages). |
| Supplemental Content | Ebook Central |
| Subjects |
| Series | Routledge contemporary Africa series Routledge contemporary Africa series. ^A1388464 |
| Abstract | This book uses the conceptual framework of animism, the belief in the spiritual qualities of nonhuman matter, to analyze representations of trauma in postcolonial fiction from Nigeria and India. Toward an Animist Reading of Postcolonial Trauma Literature initiates a conversation between contemporary trauma literatures of Nigeria and India on animism. As postcolonial nations move farther away from the event of decolonization in real time, the experience of trauma take place within and is generated by an increasingly precarious environment of resource scarcity, over-accelerated industrialization, and ecological crisis. These factors combine to create mixed environments marked by constantly changing interactions between human and nonhuman matter. Examining novels by authors such as Chinua Achebe, Jhumpa Lahiri, Nnedi Okorafor, and Arundhati Roy, the book considers how animist beliefs shape the aesthetic representation of trauma in postcolonial literature, paying special attention to complex metaphor and narrative structure. These literary texts challenge the conventional wisdom that working through trauma involves achieving physical and psychic integrity in a stable environment. Instead, a type of provisional but substantive healing emerges in an animist relationship between human trauma victims and nonhuman matter. In this context, animism becomes a pivotal way to reframe the process of working through trauma. Offering a rich framework for analyzing trauma in postcolonial literature, this book will be of interest to scholars of postcolonial literature, Nigerian literature and South Asian literature. |
| General note | 1. Survival's Strange Shape 2. Witnessing at the Limit 3. Nonsentient Insurgence 4. Genres, Possessed |
| Bibliography note | Includes bibliographical references and index. |
| Biographical note | Jay Rajiva is Assistant Professor of Global Anglophone Literature at Georgia State University, USA. |
| Source of description | Description based on online resource; title from digital title page (viewed on August 31, 2020). |
| Issued in other form | Print version: 9780367086275 |
| Genre/form | Electronic books. |
| Genre/form | Criticism, interpretation, etc. |
| ISBN | 9780429659874 electronic book |
| ISBN | 0429659873 electronic book |
| ISBN | 9780429023484 electronic book |
| ISBN | 0429023480 electronic book |
| ISBN | 9780429657436 electronic publication |
| ISBN | 0429657439 electronic publication |
| ISBN | 9780429654992 Mobipocket electronic book |
| ISBN | 0429654995 Mobipocket electronic book |
| ISBN | hardcover |
| Standard identifier# | 10.4324/9780429023484 |
| Stock number | 9780429657436 Ingram Content Group |
| Stock number | 9780429023484 Taylor & Francis |
Availability
| Library | Location | Call Number | Status | Item Actions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electronic Resources | Access Content Online | ✔ Available |