The Rhetoric of Empire: Colonial Discourse in Journalism, Travel Writing, and Imperial Administration (Post-Contemporary Interventions Series)

Rating:
Summary: a very fine guide....
Review: ....to how imperialist/colonialist assumptions work their way into our writing and other media. I've been using it as a kind of checklist of assumptions while writing my doctoral dissertation on the history of colonialism in California, and in spite of an occasional smattering of post-colonial terminology I've found it an invaluable check on my own writing as well as a useful sensitizer to how "third world" peoples are portrayed in the news (e.g., photographs of hordes of children and gun-toting parents in portrayals of the Arab world--as opposed to the suits and neckties of America; in the West we invent things, in China they "stumble upon them"; places like Africa and Indonesia are "underdeveloped" and "mysterious" and even empty--implicit invitations to makeovers by industry and big business; and so forth).

Highly recommended for readers with the courage for a straight look at how pernicious the logic of domination remains in "free" societies.