Decentring White, Colonial ‘Feminisms’ through Self-Referential Writing and Transgressive Casting

This final chapter considers how whiteness and coloniality are deconstructed in the feminist theoretical underpinnings of Gunderson&s;s The Revolutionists and Backhaus&s; Wives . Drawing upon the work of Lorde and hooks, in addition to Frantz Fanon and Ania Loomba, this chapter analyses the move towards a decolonial feminist approach in both plays. In The Revolutionists , Gunderson&s;s self-reflective praxis enables her to challenge fellow white feminists who are enamoured with their own oppression, encouraging white women to be better feminists by working towards the emancipation of all. Backhaus&s; Wives challenges the dominance of white, Western historical stories, instead prioritising South Asian stories which have been ignored in American drama. Gunderson&s;s explicit self-reference to the process of writing and Backhaus&s; transgressive racial casting enable both playwrights to question the prevalence of whiteness in contemporary feminism and our understanding of the past.