Secundaire literatuur
Deaf ears and an accustomed music. Colonial criticism in Louis Couperus’ 'The hidden force'
Auteur
Watson, Jenny
Titel
Deaf ears and an accustomed music. Colonial criticism in Louis Couperus’ 'The hidden force'
Bron
Journal of Dutch Literature 4, p.103-127
Datum
2013
Typering
Artikel
Links
Opmerkingen
Engels.
Although other scholars have recognised the sense of doom which permeates the text and the ways in which Couperus signals the inevitability of the failure of colonialism, this has previously been linked to an essentialist perception of incompatibility between the Dutch
and the Javanese. Here, the focus is on how the characters embody and discuss the shortcomings of the Europeans within the colonial system, suggesting that Couperus is communicating a view of imperialism as morally unacceptable rather than simply problematic.
