The topics of colonialism, post-colonialism and diaspora have always been rather burning in human society. Needless to say, art as one of the basic forms of human self-expression could not but consider these topics in its creations. Such a piece of cinematographic art as the 1990 movie Dances with Wolves is one the most convincing artistic critiques of colonialism as, first of all, violence over personality, originality, and human nature.
Thus, the notion of colonialism can be called a leitmotif of the Dances with Wolves movie. The very plot of the movie develops with one alleged intention: to show the spectators how much grief and suffering colonialism brings to the people that are viewed as its objects. Defined by Loomba (2005) as “the conquest and control of other people’s lands and goods” (pp. 8 – 9), colonialism is in reality much more than this succinct definition can tell about, and the tragedy depicted in the Dances with Wolves movie is a bright example to this point.
The major character of the movie, the American soldier Dunbar, played by Kevin Costner, is a perfect embodiment of the inner conflict that takes place inside of every human being. On the one hand, Dunbar is a soldier, who must fulfill all orders and act according to the needs of his country. On the other hand, purely human relations that Dunbar develops with the members of the Sioux tribe make him change his life values. Thus, Dunbar’s change can be viewed through the prism of colonialism as a political and military phenomenon, as well as a personal tragedy of every representative of the colonized people.
In more detail, serving in the U.S. army, Dunbar understands the necessity to act according to the order, but after living some time with the Sioux, Dunbar sees that the values he lived his life by before that time were mistaken. The Sioux are people with their values, goals, traditions, emotions, and colonialism in their relationship is first of all violence over personality and the whole group of people.
However, if the topic is viewed from perspectives expressed by Loomba (2005) and Mercer (2008), who discuss various theories of colonialism and post-colonialism, the main topic of Dances with Wolves can be seen in another context. Thus, Loomba (2005) considers the view expressed by Bottomore, according to which colonialism accompanied capitalism in their development in the most developed countries of the Western civilization (pp. 8 – 9). Considering the movie from this viewpoint, one can see that it is true as colonialism of the U.S. government coincided in its time frame with the establishment of capitalism in the newly emerging society.
Mercer (2008), at the same time, considers colonialism according to Fanon’s view as more of a cultural than political phenomenon (p. 192). And if one analyzes the movie in this context, one can see colonialism can be viewed as a cultural process only after the military subjugation of a group of people takes place, and there is hardly a nation that drops its values to adopt the values of others.
So, none of the discussed theories address the phenomena of human relations, personal expression, and patriotism in their discussion of colonialism and post-colonialism. The proposed paper will consider namely this, humanistic view of colonialism and post-colonialism.
Works Cited
Loomba, Annie. Colonialism/postcolonialism. New York and London: Routledge, 2005. Print.
Mercer, Kobena. Exiles, Diasporas, & Strangers. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press 2008. Print.