Exploring The Evils of Imperialism and Kleptocracy in O’neill’s The Emperor Jones: A Critical Study (Published)
O’Neill’s 1920 tragedy “The Emperor Jones” criticizes the capitalist-imperialist American society and its occupation and exploitation of other countries. In the play, O’Neill condemns the white people’s dominance and their abuse of power over the non-white people for capitalist and materialistic interests. The play stages the rise and fall of Brutus Jones, an African-American ex-Pullman porter and fugitive convict, who becomes emperor and possessor of great wealth on a small Caribbean island through his knowledge of deception and corruption that he acquires during his ten years of services to the white people in the United States. Jones exercises absolute power over the natives, turns into a powerful dictator, takes on kleptocratic practices and financially exploits and squeezes the ignorant natives dry. The play depicts what happens when a person like Jones internalizes the dominant system of power and then proceeds to continue it in his own territory once he gets the opportunity to do so. The study attempts to explore the evil aspects of imperialism and kleptocracy and their repercussions on the innocent natives of the West Indian island. It also investigates O’Neill’s stance on the white people’s dominance, their hypocrisy and exploitation of the non-white populace around the world.
Keywords: Imperialism, abuse of power, economic exploitation, kleptocracy, social darwinism, white man’s burden
A Fresh Look at Shakespeare’s Dramaturgy: Towards an Orientalist Approach to ‘Othello’ (Published)
Much ink has been spilt over Shakespeare’s Othelloand the controversy over its main concerns, themes and aims. While some critics maintain that the themes of prejudice, love, faith and unbridled jealousy are the focus of the play, other scholars argue that the play is a story about ambition, human frailty and the destruction of an innocent and real love. This paper advances the claim that, through its nuances and subtleties, Shakespeare’s Othello provides much more to ponder and can be equally perceived as a story about the clash and collision of two different cultures, human relationships and racial problems. Using Edward Said’s theory of orientalism and imperialism as a foundation for analyzing and reinterpreting Shakespeare’s Othello, the study will also showcase how through his speech and action, the most intriguing character Iago serves primarily as an agent of orientalism.
Keywords: Imperialism, Othello, Shakespeare, cultural clashes, orientalism
Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness: Debunking the Two Basic Imperial Clichés (Published)
Joseph Conrad’s in his Heart of Darkness has been condemned as a supporter and defender of the imperialist views and in other situations he is thought to be ambivalent, ambiguous and indecisive concerning this same topic. This paper aims at proving that in Heart of Darkness Conrad employs strategy of introducing the long established imperial clichés to debunk them and to show how fake they are. This strategy is successful and convincing in depicting the cruelties that are caused by the power and authority of imperialism especially if we put this novel within its historical context; a time when imperialism and all of its byproducts were acceptable as practices of the white man’s burden theory
Keywords: Congo, Efficiency, Imperialism, Victorian readers, atrocities, clichés, redeeming idea.