Films, world politics and the International Relations classroom: Learning to do a postcolonial analysis of The Breadwinner

Abstract

This article presents and evaluates an activity developed in an area studies course on the Middle East. Learners must use postcolonialism and the theory of Orientalism in the analysis of a film about Afghanistan. The activity's general purpose is to teach students to read the film in terms of the truth effects it creates rather than its trueness. It develops in several stages and combines active (e.g., collaborative learning) and traditional (e.g., lecturing) learning methods. Throughout, data are gathered for analysis, mainly short reflections written by students at several stages in the process. A thematic and narrative analysis is conducted of the data set. The article contributes to the literature in teaching international relations with films by offering insights into an active learning process. Results show that the activity helps students to improve critical thinking skills, most visible in the evolution from plot-focused readings of the film to readings in which questions are formulated around the film's Western-centrism. It also accomplishes to raise awareness on postcolonialism's potential as an international relations approach but fails short to systematically address postcolonialism's limitations.