Queerness in postcolonialism. Finding an identity using the example of "Cereus Blooms at Night" (PDF)

Pre-University Paper from the year 2019 in the subject Cultural Studies - GLBT / LGBTIQ, grade: 1,0, , language: English, abstract: This seminar paper seeks to answer the question to what extent and in which ways members of the queer community in postcolonial societies can build an identity using the example of Cereus Blooms at Night in order to illustrate the impact that discrimination and injustice can have on the self-esteem and behaviour of individuals.

It will be based upon the influence of British foreign rule with its values and standards on the attitude of indigenous people towards non-heteronormative sexual engagements in order to explain how the current situation has come about. In addition to that, the theory of "Subalternity" by Gayatri Spivak will be incorporated for it shall contribute to the analysis of the queer's trapped position. Two major parallels between the Indian woman - for whom this concept has originally been created - and the queer Caribbean will be carved out: Loss of the indigenous language resulting in the inability to voice one's struggle and the double oppression through both foreign influence and indigenous realities. Concluding the historical background for the scene in which Shani Mootoo's novel Cereus Blooms at Night is set will be a paragraph about the conflict of current western attempts to influence the situation for the LGBT+ community in the Caribbean.