-
oa Spiegelpaleis Indië
Javanen, Europeanen en Indo-Europeanen in de reisverhalen van Johannes Olivier
- Amsterdam University Press
- Source: Internationale Neerlandistiek, Volume 60, Issue 2, Sep 2022, p. 149 - 174
-
- 01 Mar 2022
Abstract
Rob Nieuwenhuys, one of the most prominent historians of the Dutch East Indies literature, characterizes Johannes Olivier (1789-1858) as a writer who was critical of the European sense of superiority in the Dutch East Indies. Olivier worked in the colony in the service of the Dutch government from 1817 onwards. After returning to the Netherlands in 1826, he became a writer and published several books, including Aanteekeningen gehouden op eene reize in Oost-Indië (1827, Notes taken on a trip to the East Indies), Land- en zeetogten in Nederland’s Indië (3 volumes, 1827-1830, Land and sea expeditions in the Dutch East Indies) and Tafereelen en merkwaardigheden uit Oost-Indië (1836-1838, 2 volumes, East Indies tableaux and curiosities). How did Olivier write about the Javanese and European population of the Indies? According to Nieuwenhuys ‘the Javanese’ is Olivier’s main character, for whom he felt great sympathy. But is this really the case? With a postcolonial rereading of his travel texts, I will argue that Olivier used the Javanese to hold up a mirror to the Europeans in the colony.