Archaeology of Colonisation: From Aesthetics to Biopolitics

This book rethinks the history of colonization by examining how European aesthetic ideas of indigeneity and blackness were formed in the Caribbean and used as markers of biopolitical governance. It challenges the current Social Darwinian theories of race and racism by revealing a new connection between the global origins of colonization and local post-Enlightenment histories.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 202 pages
Publication date: 15 March 2022
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

This book offers a fresh perspective on the history of colonization by delving into the formation of European aesthetic notions of indigeneity and blackness in the Caribbean. It explores how these ideas were utilized as tools of biopolitical governance. By employing Foucault's philosophical archaeology as a methodology, the book argues that the European construction of indigeneity and blackness was founded on the aesthetic portrayal of Aboriginal and African peoples in the Caribbean as monstrous yet possessing a similar level of Western civilization and 'culture. By concentrating on the aesthetics of the initial racial imagery that gave rise to indigeneity and blackness, this work departs significantly from the prevailing Social Darwinian theories of race and racism. It uncovers a novel connection between the global origins of colonization and local post-Enlightenment histories.

This book offers a fresh perspective on the history of colonization by delving into the formation of European aesthetic notions of indigeneity and blackness in the Caribbean. It explores how these ideas were utilized as tools of biopolitical governance. By employing Foucault's philosophical archaeology as a methodology, the book argues that the European construction of indigeneity and blackness was founded on the aesthetic portrayal of Aboriginal and African peoples in the Caribbean as monstrous yet possessing a similar level of Western civilization and 'culture. By concentrating on the aesthetics of the initial racial imagery that gave rise to indigeneity and blackness, this work departs significantly from the prevailing Social Darwinian theories of race and racism. It uncovers a novel connection between the global origins of colonization and local post-Enlightenment histories.

Weight: 503g
Dimension: 229 x 160 x 20 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781538147979