Exploring Power Dynamics in Robert Byron’s The Road To Oxiana (1937) and Jamaica Kincaid’s A Small Place (1988) Travel Writing: a Comparative Study

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Date

2024

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

Université Mouloud Mammeri Tizi Ouzou

Abstract

This dissertation is a comparative study between Robert Byron‟s The Road To Oxiana (1937) and Jamaica Kincaid‟s A Small Place (1988). The objective of the research is to delve into the exploration of power dynamics in travel writing. The subsequent chapters of our discussion have relied on Edward Said‟s theory, mainly the concepts of „Othering‟ and „Representation‟ from his book Orientalism (1979). The basic findings of our investigation reveal in the first chapter the various negative impacts of colonialism observed by the authors of both novels. In the second chapter, we have tried to examine the way both Byron and Kincaid challenge the Western perspectives in the way they depict non-European cultures, people and their towns. Consequently, our comprehensive analysis of the chosen novels has led us to a discerning conclusion which is that Byron and Kincaid share common perspectives towards power dynamics.

Description

54p. ; (+CD-Rom)

Keywords

Colonialism, Orientalism, Othering, Power Dynamics, Representation, Travel Writing, Western Perspectives

Citation

General and Comparative Literature