Post Colonialism and "The Romanoffs""The Romanoffs," an anthology series found on PrimeVideo follows the lives of self-proclaimed descendants of the Russian Romanov dynasty. Episode One, "The Violet Hour," depicts an elderly woman, Anastasia, living in Paris in need of a new caregiver, Hajar. A topic of interest is the treatment of Hajar, a nursing student and Muslim. Various interactions between Anastasia, Anastasia's family, and Hajar reopen the topic of Western Imperialism/Post Colonialism and the Middle East. One particular scene involves Hajar confessing to Anastasia's nephew that their one-nightstand (where Greg pursues a hesitant Hajar) produced a pregnancy, where Hajar's family demands a restitution of sorts at the symbolic invasion of their daughter. (I immediately thought of the symbolic rape of the Nile with the occupation and construction of the Suez Canal by Britain.) Greg responds with "I should be mad, but I'm not…" This also introduces the age-old notion of women bearing the responsibility of unplanned pregnancies. |