Gender, Sexuality, and Empire: Imperialist Feminism in Culture

Professor Kumar argues that “Imperialist Feminism” (a rhetoric based on the appropriation of women’s rights to justify empire) benefits neither women in the East nor women in Imperial centers. She analyzes the cultural representations of gender and sexuality in cultural products such as Orientalist paintings, early Hollywood films, and contemporary TV shows in order to deconstruct Imperialist Feminism.