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Students synthesize multiple critical lenses to analyze a single work of contemporary global fiction.
Imagine looking at a single diamond through different colored filters—one red, one blue. The diamond doesn't change, but what you see does. How does a single story transform when viewed through the eyes of a Marxist economist versus a Post-colonial scholar?
Literary criticism isn't about finding the 'right' meaning; it's about applying different theoretical lenses to uncover layers of significance. In contemporary global fiction, two of the most powerful lenses are Marxism and Post-colonialism. Marxism focuses on the socio-economic power structures and class struggles within a text, asking: Who has the money, and who has the power? Post-colonialism, conversely, examines the lingering effects of imperialism and the struggle for cultural identity in formerly colonized nations. When we analyze a text, we can think of our analysis as a function of the lens and the text , where the interpretation is .
Consider a scene where a servant in a post-colonial city accidentally breaks an expensive vase owned by a wealthy expatriate.
1. Marxist Lens: Focuses on the 'commodity' (the vase) as a symbol of the wealth gap. The servant's fear represents the alienation of labor. 2. Post-colonial Lens: Focuses on the 'expatriate' as a symbol of the former colonizer. The broken vase represents the fracturing of colonial order or the tension between indigenous and foreign cultures.
Quick Check
Which critical lens would be most interested in the 'alienation of labor' and class hierarchy?
Answer
The Marxist lens.
Let's synthesize lenses for a character who is a female doctor in a developing nation struggling to get funding for her clinic.
1. Feminist Lens: Analyzes her struggle against patriarchal medical institutions. 2. Post-colonial Lens: Analyzes how international aid (often from former colonizers) comes with 'strings attached' that undermine local sovereignty. 3. Synthesis: The character isn't just fighting 'men' or 'foreigners'; she is navigating a hybrid identity where gender and colonial history intersect to create a unique barrier to her agency.
Quick Check
In the 'Synthesis Equation' , what does the represent?
Answer
Cultural Context.
At the highest level of analysis, we look for intersections. This is often called intersectionality in a broader sense, but in literary synthesis, it means identifying moments where two theories provide conflicting or reinforcing views of a character. For example, a character might be an 'oppressor' in a Marxist sense (wealthy) but 'oppressed' in a Post-colonial sense (a minority in a Western country). Navigating these contradictions is the hallmark of advanced literary scholarship.
Analyze a passage where a wealthy businessman in Lagos, Nigeria, refuses to speak his native Yoruba, insisting on 'Queen's English.'
1. Marxist Analysis: His language is 'cultural capital' used to maintain class distinction (). 2. Post-colonial Analysis: This is 'mimicry'—an attempt to adopt the colonizer's traits to gain power, resulting in a 'split consciousness.' 3. Synthesis with Context: By acknowledging Nigeria's history as a British colony and its current status as a global oil power, we see the character's language choice as a survival strategy that simultaneously secures his wealth while eroding his indigenous identity.
Which lens is primarily concerned with the 'mimicry' of a colonizer's behavior?
What is the primary benefit of 'Synthesis' in literary criticism?
In a synthesized analysis, a character can be viewed as both an oppressor and oppressed simultaneously.
Review Tomorrow
In 24 hours, try to recall the three components of the 'Synthesis Equation' and explain how they relate to one another.
Practice Activity
Select a news article about a global event. Try to summarize it once through a Marxist lens (focusing on money/power) and once through a Post-colonial lens (focusing on history/identity).