Post Colonialism

POST-COLONIALISM

Colonialism refers to the period of history in which Britain controlled vast regions of the world, and profited largely through the use of slavery and the exploitation of natural resources.

As, theoretically, no colonial empires remain in existence, the present era is known as a post-colonial era.  However, this term is problematic.  Britain and the USA, for example, diplomatically, economically and militarily, still hold power in many parts of the world.

Post-colonial theory links to theories surrounding globalisation and cultural imperialism in that it suggests the dominance of the white culture (just think of the absence of non-white images in the media).

Edward Said introduced the concept of Orientalism and suggested that:

1. Firstly, that the West tries to speak for the Middle East in texts, as if it has authority over it
2. Secondly, that the West often uses the Middle East in texts to contrast itself against “the Other”

In a post-colonial world, many families have been forced to migrate due to force or economic reasons and have experienced racism and developed a sense of ‘otherness’, which has been termed Diaspora identity.  This is not always negative, as can be seen by the Asian music scene in Britain or the influence of Bollywood in films such as Bride and Prejudice and, arguably, Slumdog Millionaire.

However, it can be argued that many representations of race that have evolved in the media, are founded upon negative historical myths from the colonial past.  Alvarado (1987) has suggested that there are four types of representations for members of the black community.

1. The humorous – e.g. Eddie Murphy
2. The exotic – models such as Naomi Campbell
3. The pitied – representations of needy black communities through charity advertising or films such as Blood Diamond
4. The dangerous – portrayed in news and documentary reports of black inner-city gangs or gun crime.
In fact such representations are usually constructed in terms of binary oppositions, for example the battle between good and evil is the battle between white and Middle-Eastern people in The Kingdom.