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Representing Burma: Narrative Displacement and Gender

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 October 2020

Tamara C. Ho
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When I was young, it seemed that most Americans had never heard of Burma. Since communication with Burma was constrained, I was curious about its culture, which my family carried so near to their hearts. My first memory of seeing “Burma” involved watching The King and I (1956) on television. I was captivated by Rita Moreno playing Tuptim, a Burmese girl who is given to the king of Siam by the prince of Burma and is secretly having an affair with her escort. The new British governess gives Tuptim Uncle Tom's Cabin to improve her English. The Burmese concubine articulates her frustration by staging an adaptation of Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel for the king and some European visitors. During the performance, Tuptim attempts an escape with her Burmese lover.

Information

Type
Theories and Methodologies
Information
PMLA , Volume 126 , Issue 3 , May 2011, pp. 662 - 671
Copyright
Copyright © Modern Language Association of America, 2011

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