Colonialism & Postcolonialism

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Kim is a novel by the prolific author and poet Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936), who was the first English-language recipient of the Nobel Prize for Literature. The novel was originally released in a serialized version in 1900-1901, after which it was published in book form. It offers a wide-ranging view of the cultural and religious diversity of British India in the late-19th century, as perceived through the experience of an Indian-enculturated Irish boy named Kim. Along... Read Kim Summary

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Adam Hochschild’s King Leopold’s Ghost offers a substantial overview of the period from 1895 until 1908 when King Leopold II of Belgium ruled the Congo—or at least the very large territory around the Congo River basin that he claimed as his own. The book also addresses the years leading up to Leopold’s acquisition of the Congo and those following the colony’s transfer to the control of the Belgian government. Though much of the book is devoted... Read King Leopold's Ghost Summary

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Joseph Conrad’s Lord Jim is an iconic story about the height—and folly—of the British imperial enterprise. Published as a serialized novel between October 1899 and November 1900, it details the adventures of a sailor turned trade agent who seeks his fortune and reputation on the outskirts of empire. After an incident with the Patna, one of the ships on which he sails, Jim flees to avoid the stain on his reputation. Eventually, he arrives in... Read Lord Jim Summary

Lost Horizon by James Hilton is a utopian novel that introduces the fictional setting of Shangri-La, which would feature in several later utopian works of fiction by other writers. Originally published in 1933, the book was adapted for the screen in 1937 and 1973, as well as for television in 1997. The novel won the Hawthornden Prize, a cash prize awarded for imaginative fiction, and it became an international bestseller under Pocket Books, sometimes credited... Read Lost Horizon Summary

Madam Butterfly is the English adaptation of the tragic Italian opera Madama Butterfly by Giacomo Puccini. It opened in Milan in 1904, and the orchestral score was first published in 1906 by Giulio Ricordi. Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa wrote the libretto (text of the opera). Puccini based his opera on the play by David Belasco and story by John Luther Long, as well as the novel Madame Chrysanthème by Pierre Loti. These sources, and... Read Madame Butterfly Summary

Maria Chapdelaine (1916) is a novel by Breton author Louis Hémon. Maria Chapdelaine tells the story of its titular protagonist, a young woman who lives on her family’s farm in a remote stretch of Québec wilderness. Against the backdrop of a brutal and unpredictable climate, Maria must choose between three suitors who each represent different lifestyles: A trapper, a farmer, and a factory worker who has emigrated to the United States. Hémon explores The Hardships... Read Maria Chapdelaine Summary

“Master Harold”…and the boys, a one-act play by South African playwright Athol Fugard, premiered on Broadway at the Lyceum Theater in 1982. The play, which is set in 1950, draws on Fugard’s own experience growing up during South Africa’s apartheid era. It explores a complex relationship between 17-year-old Hally, a white boy, and Sam and Willie, two Black men who are servants in Hally’s family’s tea room. The play was initially banned in South Africa... Read Master Harold and the Boys Summary

Book Details & Major ThemesMexican Gothic is a horror novel by Mexican Canadian writer Silvia Moreno-Garcia. Set in 1950s Mexico City and the burned-out mining town of El Triunfo, the novel is a horror-tinged thriller that explores the themes of The Feminist Gothic, Colonialism and Imperialism in Mexico, and Death, Corruption and Objectification in the House of Doyle.The novel centers on Noemí Taboada, a socialite with aspirations to become an anthropologist who goes to El... Read Mexican Gothic Summary

Midnight’s Children is a 1981 magical realism novel by British American novelist Salman Rushdie. The story follows Saleem, a child born at the moment of India’s independence who possesses strange powers. The novel won many awards, including the Booker of Bookers Prize, which was awarded to the best all-time winner of the Booker Prize on the award’s 40th anniversary. Midnight’s Children has been adapted for theater, radio, and film. This guide uses the 2006 Vintage... Read Midnight's Children Summary

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