Una sombra colonial: representaciones del oeste colonial americano a través de las postales ilustradas
Una sombra colonial: representaciones del oeste colonial americano a través de las postales ilustradas
Abstract
This study investigates the role of picture postcards in perpetuating Orientalist and colonial narratives during European imperialism and U.S. westward expansion. Using Edward Saïd’s concept of Orientalism and Homi Bhabha’s theory of colonial stereotypes, it explores how these postcards functioned as tools of symbolic domination by portraying colonized peoples through reductive and static representations. In the American context, postcards of Native Americans often adhered to the "noble savage" stereotype, emphasizing traditional practices while erasing historical and social nuance. Such imagery reinforced a dichotomy of civilization versus savagery, framing indigenous peoples as incompatible with modernity and legitimizing their dispossession. By contextualizing these postcards within broader colonial ideologies, this study underscores their role in sustaining systems of domination and shaping enduring perceptions of colonized and Indigenous peoples.References
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