Decolonial Theory for Modern Languages Researchers

In this session, we will give an overview of some key concepts in decolonial theory and situate these in the specific context of doing research and teaching within the disciplinary area of modern languages, which is itself rooted in colonial histories. We will then explore several examples of decolonising practices as they have been implemented across languages education and research in recent years. These include decolonising fixed notions of gender; decolonial discourse analysis; decolonial literary analysis; and a discussion on the racialisation and gendering of labour practices in universities as they relate specifically to languages and to the wider spaces we inhabit as researchers and teachers. 

Session convenors: Adi Saleem Bharat (Michigan) and Joseph Ford (IMLR)

Please note that this online session will include the use of break-out rooms and we encourage active engagement from participants. Please see recommended reading in advance of the session below. Further reading suggestions will be shared during the workshop.

       - Lugones, Maria (2010). Toward a Decolonial Feminism, Hypatia 25.4: 742—59.
       - Maldonado-Torres, Nelson (2007). On the Coloniality of Being, Cultural Studies 21.2-3: 240-70.
       - Bhambra, Gurminder K. (2014). Postcolonial and decolonial dialogues, Postcolonial Studies 17.2: 115-121.