what is post-colonial literature and post-colonial theory?

Answer 1

It deals with the notion of a dominant power over a weaker one. An example is British rule in India or Fiji. A more powerful country goes to another one to "colonize" it, usually imposing its own religion, educational system, customs, etc.

So Post Colonialism is what exists after the colonizer leaves the country, how the people deal with it. For example, in Fiji, there are language issues because of this--such as what will the official language be? English? Or the indigenous Fijian language? It is controversial because English is a good langauge to know (because so many people speak it) but then you have people who want to preserve their native heritage.

It's a bit complicated to really get into here ... you should read some literature about it to learn more.