Resistance and Colonialism

Proposes a critical re-examination of resistance in colonial and anti-colonial thought Explores new ways of thinking about resistance and colonialism during the period of modern European imperialism in the light of renewed interest in resistance studies Chapters cover a range of case studies, from ‘hidden’ accounts using oral and written records, to local case studies and transnational perspectives
This volume offers a critical re-examination of colonial and anti-colonial resistance imageries and practices in imperial history. It offers a fresh critique of both pejorative and celebratory readings of ‘insurgent peoples’, and it seeks to revitalize the study of ‘resistance’ as an analytical field in the comparative history of Western colonialisms. It explores how to read and (de)code these issues in archival documents – and how to conjugate documental approaches with oral history, indigenous memories, and international histories of empire. The topics explored include runaway slaves and slave rebellions, mutiny and banditry, memories and practices of guerrilla and liberation, diplomatic negotiations and cross-border confrontations, theft, collaboration, and even the subversive effects of nature in colonial projects of labor exploitation.