Refiguring the Postcolonial Imagination: Tropes of Visuality in Writing by Rhys, Kincaid, and Cliff

Othering and Fear

“…The depiction of the move from an undesirable, unrefined Japan to the superior, innovative Britain reflects English attitudes toward Japan developed over the past 400 years of shared history as two islands governed by monarchies (Popham, 2013). Hiro's new homeland is not just different; it is depicted as a preferred Western cultural product (Eguchi, 2013), better for him due to Britain's modernity and industrialization, consistent with tropes of colonialism and imperialism (Emery, 1997; Wilton, 2015); ironically, during the 1980s and 1990s, Japan's own pursuit of modernity signaled a shift toward Westernization (Sekimoto, 2014). No questions are raised about who has moved (enslaved) Hiro from his home or whether he contributed in the decision-making process to migrate.…”

“…Again, the message that Hiro's voice must be mediated through Thomas is shown, as it takes the power of Thomas' affirmation, besides Hiro's acknowledgment, that he would like to spend the rest of his life in the land that houses his actual friends, for Hiro to be allowed to return to his homeland. He may not leave on his own accord; like those in Asian countries colonized by imperial rule (Emery, 1997; Said, 1978), Hiro must receive permission from Sir Topham Hatt to travel outside of Sodor, even though Hiro is older, was forgotten earlier by Sir Topham Hatt and his colleagues, and Hiro nearly dies in providing labor for Sir Topham Hatt's company. The latent message contained herein is that those that are othered have boundaries for their agency that regulate difference within society and that are policed by those in the dominant population (Vats & Nishime, 2013).…”

7. Postcolonial Ekphrasis in the Contemporary Anglophone Indian Novel

“…also Herzogenrath 2012, 2). Like the concept of intermediality, ekphrasis has so far rarely ever been discussed systematically by scholars working in the field of postcolonial literature, even though there are exceptions such as Mary Lou Emery (1997;2007, 180-234) and Tobias Döring (2002, 137-168), who have both done important work in connection with the colonial implications of regimes of vision, visuality and ekphrasis in Caribbean literature. There is also a collection of essays edited by Michael Meyer (2009) on word-image intersections in post/colonial cultures and an essay collection on Salman Rushdie and visual culture edited by Ana Cristina Mendes (2012).…”