About the book
Arguing that the major hallmarks of Romantic literature—inwardness, emphasis on subjectivity, the individual authorship of selves and texts—were forged during the Enlightenment, Rajani Sudan traces the connections between literary sensibility and British encounters with those persons, ideas, and territories that lay uneasily beyond the national border. The urge to colonize and discover embraced both an interest in foreign \"fair exotics\" and a deeply rooted sense of their otherness.
Fair Exotics develops a revisionist reading of the period of the British Enlightenment and Romanticism, an age during which England was most aggressively building its empire. By looking at canonical texts, including Defoe's Robinson Crusoe, Johnson's Dictionary, De Quincey's Confessions of an English Opium Eater, and Bronte's Villette, Sudan shows how the imaginative subject is based on a sense of exoticism created by a pervasive fear of what is foreign. Indeed, as Sudan clarifies, xenophobia is the underpinning not only of nationalism and imperialism but of Romantic subjectivity as well.
Editions of Fair Exotics
- Hardcover
- ISBN 9780812236569
- EBook
- ISBN 9780812203769
Read an Excerpt
Arguing that the major hallmarks of Romantic literature—inwardness, emphasis on subjectivity, the individual authorship of selves and texts—were forged during the Enlightenment, Rajani Sudan traces the connections between literary sensibility and British encounters with those persons, ideas, and territories that lay uneasily beyond the national border. The urge to colonize and discover embraced both an interest in foreign \"fair exotics\" and a deeply rooted sense of their otherness.
Fair Exotics develops a revisionist reading of the period of the British Enlightenment and Romanticism, an age during which England was most aggressively building its empire. By looking at canonical texts, including Defoe's Robinson Crusoe, Johnson's Dictionary, De Quincey's Confessions of an English Opium Eater, and Bronte's Villette, Sudan shows how the imaginative subject is based on a sense of exoticism created by a pervasive fear of what is foreign. Indeed, as Sudan clarifies, xenophobia is the underpinning not only of nationalism and imperialism but of Romantic subjectivity as well.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Fair Exotics about?
Arguing that the major hallmarks of Romantic literature—inwardness, emphasis on subjectivity, the individual authorship of selves and texts—were forged during the Enlightenment, Rajani Sudan traces the connections between literary sensibility and British encounters with those persons, ideas, and territories that lay uneasily beyond the national border. The urge to colonize and discover embraced both an interest in foreign \"fair exotics\" and a deeply rooted sense of their otherness.
Fair Exotics develops a revisionist reading of the period of the British Enlightenment and Romanticism, an age during which England was most aggressively building its empire. By looking at canonical texts, including Defoe's Robinson Crusoe, Johnson's Dictionary, De Quincey's Confessions of an English Opium Eater, and Bronte's Villette, Sudan shows how the imaginative subject is based on a sense of exoticism created by a pervasive fear of what is foreign. Indeed, as Sudan clarifies, xenophobia is the underpinning not only of nationalism and imperialism but of Romantic subjectivity as well.
What core themes, tropes, or subjects are explored in Fair Exotics?
Biography, Literature and Literary studies > Literature: history and criticism
Where can I read a sample of Fair Exotics?
You can read an official preview of the few pages here https://www.book2look.com/book/9780812236569
How long is Fair Exotics and how many pages does it have?
Fair Exotics has 208 page(s)
Is Fair Exotics part of a series, and can it be read as a standalone?
Yes it is a part of series New Cultural Studies
Who is/are the Author/s of the book Fair Exotics?
Rajani Sudan
What are the ISBN numbers for the physical and digital editions?
Fair Exotics is available as hardcover(ISBN 9780812236569) and ebook(ISBN 9780812203769)
Where can I buy Fair Exotics online or support local independent bookshops?
You can buy Fair Exotics from below
Where can I buy Fair Exotics?