The Ambivalence Of V.S. Naipaul's Post-colonial Writing In A Bend In The River

As an Indian descendant writer with distinctively cultural backgrounds and identities, V.S. Naipaul is one of the most world attracting and controversial immigrant and post-colonial writers in the English literary arena. In his novel A Bend in the River, Naipaul invested his post-colonial concern into Africa, describing the chaotic, authoritarian, poverty-stricken and primitive social situations inside the African countries after the European settlers were forced to retreat. Similarly with his most previously published works, in this novel Naipaul demonstrated his deep thinking and close attention to the social history, national culture, economy and politics of the African continent and Third World in the post-colonial era.Naipaul's description of Africa is filled with contradictions. It reflects his ambivalence to a certain extent. He sometimes adds comments from the view of the colonists and defends the colonial rule, while sometimes he stands by the colonized people, criticizing the colonial domination. As a result, ambivalence is apparent in his discourse. Like his other works related to the Third World, A Bend in the River also causes a lot of controversy. This thesis makes an analysis of his ambivalence in the novel A Bend in the River and gives recognition to his deep thought toward the development of the Third World behind his ambivalence, striving to give a more profound, objective and fair assessment for Naipaul. This thesis consists of three chapters.The first chapter elaborates Naipaul's anti-colonial attitudes. In A Bend in the River, Naipaul reveals devastating effects of the culture and economy in the African countries brought by the imperialism, which left a far away distant liberation to the colonial people, and exposes the hypocritical appearance of the colonists,who got what they really wanted behind the musk of protecting the African culture, destroying the local culture to a great extent. In this novel, Naipaul also uses"water hyacinth"as an important image to denounce the occidentally cultural hegemony.The second chapter elaborates Naipaul's colonial attitudes. While giving deep sympathy for the sufferings of the blacks and colored people, he shows his derogatory emotions to those people from time to time as well, and ingratiates the western society's usual awareness of Africa. In the novel he expresses pessimistic and negative attitudes toward the developing prospects of the independent Africa and has obscure fantasy and acquiesce to the colonialism. "Jungle" image repeatedly appeared in the novel further deepens the barbaric and backward image of Africa, suggesting progress made in Arica can only through colonialism.The third chapter makes a further inquiry of Naipaul's ambivalence. All together with his literary approach under the influence of multiple cultural identities and his profound thinking of the problems of Third World countries create Naipaul's literary world full of contradictions. As one of the most controversial post-colonial writers in the world, his reflection on the Third World countries is also worthy of our consideration.