Beginning Postcolonialism

by John McLeod

Postcolonialism has become one of the most exciting, expanding and challenging areas of literary and cultural studies today. Designed especially for those studying the topic for the first time, Beginning Postcolonialism introduces the major areas of concern in a clear, accessible, and organized fashion. It provides an overview of the emergence of postcolonialism as a discipline and closely examines many of its important critical writings.

Genres: Nonfiction, Theory, Post Colonial, Politics, Philosophy, Essays, Literary Criticism

256 pages, Hardcover

First published July 7, 2000

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Professor of Postcolonial and Diaspora Literatures at Leeds University.

Reviews

[Bookadmirer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beginning Postcolonialism is a very informative and interesting book. This book helped me a lot during my undergraduate dissertation. It's a bit tough to understand the book but once you understand its enjoyable.

[Isabel J · Rating 1 out of 5]

Paradoxically, McLeod's repetitious monotony makes this book a difficult read.

[Leo Cook · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent introduction to postcolonialism and a great launchpad for investigating the many texts in this field. The list of works for further reading is very helpful and this is a book I’ll be adding to my personal library.

[Dinar "Ika" · Rating 5 out of 5]

reading this book will give us new perseption about "postcolonialism" in relationship with text reading. In a very basic, or in a literary context, it stated that postcolonialismm involves one or more of the following:

* reading texts produced by writers from countries with a history of colonialism, primarily those texts concerned with the workings and legacy of colonialism in either the past or the present.
* reading texts produced by those that have migrated from countries with a history of colonialism, or those descended from migrant families, which deal in the main with diaposra experience and its many consequences.
* in the light of theories of colonial discourses, re-reading texts produced during colonialism; both those that directly address the experiences of Empire, and those that seem not to.

this book is very recommended for writers who wants to write a story (fiction) with a background of colonialism.

[Ann Bjerregaard · Rating 5 out of 5]

By textbook standards this book is really accessible. It deftly explains the most important theories, theorists and concepts within the academic disciplines that deal with postcolonialism, and uses plenty of literary examples to underscore the analytical approaches. I particularly enjoyed the very accessible listings og stereotypes etc. McLeod is very meta-aware and guides his readers through the different academic problems and critical positions in relation to postcolonialism.

[Eddie Matthew Pagtakhan · Rating 3 out of 5]

pretty nice read for a good general overview of postcolonial literature and where to venture from. if you want a basis to go off of for postcolonial theory this would be a good choice. that said, due to its structure it does not explore many topics in detail since it does just explain it succinctly and moves from one to another. but i'm glad it understands what its purpose is and doesn't feel like it diverges from it

[Emma-Louise Ekpo · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first read this text in 2018 as I began my studies In Postcolonialism and this was an essential starting point. Accessible and covers the basics well. I reread recently as a refresher, and it really helps to frame the discipline and give any reader a starting point for research and awareness. I can only hope an up to date edition is republished soon, this should be on all bookshelves.

[•Paula• · Rating 3 out of 5]

READ ONLY A PART FOR UNI. It was a bit complex at parts due to my lack of knowledge in the field yet I highly enjoyed it, it provided my with a general overview of what postcolonialism is, some ways in which I should approach the branch, and various corrections of misconceptions I had deeply-rooted within me.

[Anna Tan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little heavy going. I'm not sure I got everything there is to get from one reading, but it's a good start? Was especially interested in the chapter on diaspora.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Useful overview with good mix of illustrative examples.

[Zeeshan Manan · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent piece of work to understand not only colonialism but also the post colonialism.

[Craine · Rating 1 out of 5]

I did enjoy large parts of the two first chapters where they give definitions and a basic introduction to the study of postcolonialism. This is however despite the fact that they keep referencing works only to give a summary of the influence the work has had in the development of the academic field pertaining to postcolonialism without giving insight into the core of the works themselves. This strikes me as rather poor as I would have preferred a much stronger handling of the arguments themselves to the works in question. There are gladly some exceptions to this such as the discussion on Edward Said's orientalism which I have also read, but these are unfortunately far in between.
I will also give a positive shout-out to the last chapter in the book, namely " Postcolonialism and the critics" which gives a nice handling of a critique of the field and explains nicely the difference between postcolonialism and neocolonialism. This is the only in chapter in the book I can fully heartingly recommend unfortunately.

I will lastly state that large portions of the book which pertain to literary criticism again does very little to convey a wide selection of arguments for whatever work in question they are discussing. It would also been nice if they had stated clearly what one traditionally weights in terms of a novels contribution as a helpful aid to literary interpretations. Too much time is again here spent on relating the novels/text influence it had when being released.

Overall, nowhere near as helpful of a book as I would have wanted. It also doesn't help that the writing is rather average and hopelessly monotonous.

Note: I don't like the star rating and as such I only rate books based upon one star or five stars corresponding to the in my opinion preferable rating system of thumbs up/down. This later rating system increases in my humble opinion the degree to which the reader is likely to engage with a review instead of merely glancing at the number of stars of a given book.)

[Beatriz · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful introduction to Postcolonial theory. In the beginning I though it would be terribly boring but fortunately I was wrong! The ideas are well-written, organised and interesting. It covers basic postocolonial theory but also provides many articles and books for those who wish to expand their knowledge on the subject. This book has really helped me to understand my Postocolonial course at university and I would really recommend it for beginners.

[Tineke Dijkstra · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's interesting to read this again - from the perspective of a lecturer. I am offering my students an introduction in postcolonial analysis of speculative fiction, using multiple chapters from this work (and more, of course). I remember that it really explained a lot to me as a student and encouraged my own critical thinking. I hope it will also do so for my students.

[Nidhi Mahajan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has been my companion throughout my undergraduate and postgraduate years. An accessible and sound introduction to the theoretical assumptions and debates that comprise postcolonial theory today.

[DoctorM · Rating 4 out of 5]

Execllent, thoughtful, accessible introduction to postcolonial theory. A very good first book on the topic in all its complexity. Worth having.

[Heidi · Rating 3 out of 5]

it was a nice book to read. had to read it for class so nothing spectacular

[Laurie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Actually, there's a second addition to this. It makes a good contextual and theoretical support text for an upper level seminar in Postcolonial Literature.

[Andini Utari · Rating 4 out of 5]

this is very a good book, i love it.i wanna make a paper with it, so i can have the bibliography

[Jo · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book, offering a clear introduction to the field, its major contributors, its strengths and limitations.

[Shazia Rahman · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is by far the best textbook in the area.