Postcolonial Catalan Literature

What is it about?

This article examines the use of postcolonial theories by Catalan intellectuals, writers and literary critics. It argues that Catalan postcolonial studies largely reinforce nationalist discourse which maintains that Catalan literature is literature written exclusively in Catalan. The article questions the very restricted understanding of postcolonial subjectivity by Catalan critics, arguing that they either ignore entirely or gloss over theories of bi-directional cultural contact, cultural change and hybridity which are a central feature of postcolonial studies. In light of these unexamined theories, the article proposes a framework for understanding Castilian-language writers from Catalonia and situating them within a broader Catalan postcolonial context.

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Why is it important?

The article is important because it attempts to understand the role played by Castilian-language writers from Catalonia within a Catalan literary context.