Out of Place: Englishness, Empire, and the Locations of Identity [Kindle Edition]

Ian Baucom (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

Out of Place is an impressive volume, ambitious in its scope, sophisticated in its argument, and elegant in its execution. -- Ranu Samantrai, MLR: Modern Language Review

Review

An interesting, original, and elegant book on the emergence of 'Englishness' within the British Empire. . . . [T]his work proves Ian Baucom to be a superb writer and thinker. (Patrick Brantlinger, Indiana University )

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Product Details

• Format: Kindle Edition
• File Size: 3685 KB
• Print Length: 280 pages
• Publisher: Princeton University Press (January 25, 1999)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services
• ASIN: B001SN8OFQ
• Average Customer Review: 2.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #743,779 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

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5 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars jargon overrides fidelity to the primary texts, July 11, 2005

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This review is from: Out of Place (Hardcover)

Mr Baucom likes the falsely scientific vocabulary of theory so much that he both occasionally says the obvious in a way that sounds precious and also sometimes follows the logic of a wrongly framed argument far away from the primary text he purports to discuss.

For example, instead of writing the obvious fact that maps were important to the Raj, the reader finds this: "Within that archive, the map occupies a position of privilege."

A few paragraphs later, the reader learns that Kim's becoming a British intelligence agent somehow erases Kim's identity as the little friend of all the world. Kim is then resurrected as "the zombielike R17." Nothing can be further from the actual depiction of Kim in the novel. Kim's identity as a British agent remains as vivid as it was before he takes service with the Raj and his devotion to the lama as intense. And even at the book's opening Kim unwittingly enforces British dominance in bullying an Indian child.