Second Year Hons. Mention: Counter-Hegemony In Historical Fiction: A Babel; Or The Necessity Of Violence Case Study

COMN 2700, Media, Culture and Society. CD: Shirley Roburn.

Abstract

In the insightful essay “Counter-Hegemony in Historical Fiction”, the author deftly utilizes the novel Babel or the Necessity of Violence as a compelling case study to confront colonialism and its oppressive legacy. The author convincingly reveals the power of such fiction to motivate the reader to recognize the on-going repressive effects of colonialism and its erasure from contemporary life. By extension, as the author cogently explains, by focusing on the consequences for the oppressed themselves, the novel, and through it the essay’s author, we come to realize that giving voice to the silenced provides hope for overcoming these oppressions. The essay is certainly a thought-provoking pleasure to read and most deserving of a second year writing award.