Author: Sujata Kumari, Dr. Sanjeev Tayal

Abstract: The present research paper examines the representation of colonial power in M. G. Vassanji's The Book of Secrets (1994), a significant postcolonial novel that revisits the colonial history of East Africa through the intertwined narratives of memory, history, identity, and power. Set against the background of British colonial rule in East Africa, the novel explores the ways in which colonial authority operates through administration, surveillance, cultural hierarchy, and the control of historical knowledge. Through the figure of Alfred Corbin, a British colonial administrator, and his secret diary, Vassanji presents colonial power not merely as political domination but also as the power to observe, record, classify, and represent the lives of others. The discovery and interpretation of Corbin's diary by Pius Fernandes further expose the limitations of official colonial records and raise questions about whose version of history is preserved and whose voices remain silenced. The novel also examines the complex position of Asian communities in colonial East Africa and challenges a simplistic division between colonizer and colonized. The experiences of marginalized characters further reveal the intersection of colonial authority with cultural and patriarchal structures. Drawing on postcolonial perspectives, the paper argues that Vassanji critically represents colonial power as a system that attempts to control both people and historical narratives. At the same time, the novel demonstrates that colonial authority cannot completely suppress memory, identity, and alternative interpretations of the past. Thus, The Book of Secrets becomes a significant literary exploration of colonial power and its continuing influence on the construction of history and identity.

Keywords: Colonial Power, Colonialism, History, Memory, Identity, Postcolonial Literature, East Africa.

Article Info: Received: 21 Jun 2026; Received in revised form: 18 Jul 2026; Accepted: 23 Jul 2026; Available online: 28 Jul 2026

DOI: 10.22161/ijels.114.20