Post-Colonial Re-writings

Active learning is crucial for exploring post-colonial re-writings because it moves students beyond passive reception. By engaging in collaborative investigation and analysis, students can actively grapple with the complexities of perspective and voice that define this literary movement.

• Year 11
• English
• 3 activities
• 20 min–50 min

Learning Objectives

1. Analyze how a post-colonial text reinterprets a canonical Western text by altering character perspectives and narrative focus.
2. Explain the specific linguistic strategies First Nations writers employ in English texts to assert cultural identity and sovereignty.
3. Evaluate the effectiveness of subverted narrative structures in challenging Western historical and temporal frameworks.
4. Compare and contrast the thematic concerns and stylistic choices of original and re-written literary works.
5. Synthesize findings from textual analysis to construct an argument about the political and cultural significance of post-colonial literature.

Inquiry Circle

⏱ 50 min·Small Groups

Inquiry Circle: The Perspective Shift

Groups are given a scene from a classic colonial text. They must identify a 'background' character who is silenced or stereotyped and then 're-write' the scene from that character's perspective, giving them a voice and a history.

Prepare & details

Analyze how shifting the perspective to a marginalized character changes our understanding of a classic story.

Facilitation Tip: During the Collaborative Investigation, ensure groups are explicitly tasked with identifying the power dynamics inherent in the original scene before they begin their re-imagining.

Setup: Groups at tables with access to source materials

Materials: Source material collection, Inquiry cycle worksheet, Question generation protocol, Findings presentation template

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Self-Management
• Self-Awareness

Think-Pair-Share

⏱ 20 min·Pairs

Think-Pair-Share: Reclaiming Language

Students read a passage where an Indigenous author uses traditional words without a translation. In pairs, they discuss how this 'forces' the reader to respect the author's culture and how it challenges the dominance of English.

Prepare & details

Explain in what ways authors use indigenous languages within English texts to assert cultural identity.

Facilitation Tip: In Think-Pair-Share, circulate to listen for student interpretations of the untranslated Indigenous words, guiding them to consider the author's intent in preserving linguistic integrity.

Setup: Standard classroom seating; students turn to a neighbor

Materials: Discussion prompt (projected or printed), Optional: recording sheet for pairs

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Awareness
• Relationship Skills

Gallery Walk

⏱ 30 min·Small Groups

Gallery Walk: Subverting the Canon

Display covers and summaries of famous post-colonial re-writings (e.g., 'Wide Sargasso Sea' or 'The Yield'). Students move in groups to identify which 'classic' is being challenged and what the 'new' version is trying to say about history.

Prepare & details

Evaluate how the subversion of traditional narrative structures challenges Western concepts of time and history.

Facilitation Tip: During the Gallery Walk, prompt students to move beyond simply describing the re-writings and instead ask them to articulate how each re-writing actively engages with or critiques its source text.

Setup: Wall space or tables arranged around room perimeter

Materials: Large paper/poster boards, Markers, Sticky notes for feedback

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Create
• Relationship Skills
• Social Awareness

Teaching This Topic

When teaching post-colonial re-writings, focus on the 'conversation' these texts have with the Western canon, rather than presenting them as mere opposition. Emphasize that authors are not just critiquing, but actively rebuilding narratives and asserting cultural identity through their creative engagement with existing stories.

What to Expect

Successful learning looks like students confidently articulating how re-written texts challenge dominant narratives. They should be able to identify specific techniques authors use to reclaim and subvert the canon, demonstrating a nuanced understanding of intertextuality and cultural reclamation.

Watch Out for These Misconceptions

Common Misconception

During the Collaborative Investigation, some students might focus only on changing plot points without considering the underlying power dynamics or the 'background' character's suppressed voice.

What to Teach Instead

Redirect students by asking them to explicitly identify the power imbalance in the original scene and then consider how their re-written version actively dismantles or challenges that imbalance, reflecting the authors' intent to assert their own narratives.

Common Misconception

In Think-Pair-Share, students might assume the author is 'hiding' meaning by not translating Indigenous words, rather than seeing it as an act of cultural preservation and assertion.

What to Teach Instead

Guide students to discuss the author's choice not to translate as a deliberate act of reclaiming linguistic and cultural space, emphasizing that understanding the untranslated words is secondary to recognizing their significance in challenging the dominance of the colonizer's language.

Common Misconception

During the Gallery Walk, students may view post-colonial re-writings as simply 'better' versions of the originals, rather than appreciating the complex dialogue and engagement they foster.

What to Teach Instead

Prompt students to articulate how each re-writing specifically 'talks back' to its source text, identifying moments of subversion or reclamation that go beyond mere replacement and demonstrate a nuanced conversation with the canon.

Assessment Ideas

Discussion Prompt

After the Gallery Walk, facilitate a class discussion where students debate how shifting the narrative perspective from the colonizer to the colonized, as seen in the displayed re-writings, fundamentally alters our understanding of historical events.

Quick Check

During the Gallery Walk, provide students with a handout asking them to identify one key difference in characterization or plot between a canonical text cover and its post-colonial re-writing, explaining its significance in challenging the original text's message.

Peer Assessment

After the Think-Pair-Share activity, students work in pairs to analyze a specific instance of linguistic innovation (e.g., use of Indigenous words) in the passage they read. They then present their findings to another pair, who offer feedback on the clarity and persuasiveness of their analysis.

Extensions & Scaffolding

• Challenge: Ask students to begin drafting their own short scene that re-writes a moment from a classic text, focusing on the perspective of a marginalized character.
• Scaffolding: Provide sentence starters or a graphic organizer to help students structure their analysis of the intertextual links during the Gallery Walk.
• Deeper Exploration: Encourage students to research the historical context of the original text and the post-colonial re-writing, considering how socio-political events influenced both.

Key Vocabulary

Canonical Text	A work considered to be a standard or authoritative example of a particular genre or literary tradition, often reflecting dominant cultural values.
Intertextuality	The relationship between texts, where one text references, echoes, or transforms another, creating layers of meaning.
Subversion	The act of undermining or overthrowing established norms, power structures, or traditions, often through creative or indirect means.
Cultural Hegemony	The dominance of one cultural group over others, often achieved through the widespread acceptance of its values, beliefs, and practices.
Sovereignty	The supreme power or authority of a state or governing body, particularly in the context of self-governance and independence.