COLONIAL DISCOURSE AND MARGINALISATION IN JAMES BARTLEMAN’S A MATTER OF CONSCIENCE

Abstract

Orientalism is affiliated with the representation of Self or Occident and the Other or Orient in which the Self is privileged and has the upper hand to exercise power, to define, reconstruct the passive, silent and weak Other. According to Edward Said, “Other” is the false image of the Orient fabricated by Western thinkers in contrast with the civilized West. He is of the belief that colonialism persists in the colonized nations in the form of racism, chaos, and violence even after decolonization. James Bartleman, Canadian author, and a member of the Chippewas of Mnjikaning First Nation through his works of non-fiction and trilogy of social justice novels, provides the readers an awareness of indigenous history and thus helps in the decolonization of the mind of natives. Through the characters in this novel the writer draws attention to the voicelessness of Indigenous people and persisting colonial mindset among people of Canada. The paper focuses on the postcolonial understanding of the novel “A Matter of Conscience” in the light of Said’s Orientalism. The postcolonial concept of “Self” and “Other” has been used to contrast the settlers and indigenous community in the novel