My research investigates the struggle of trying to analyse and incorporate the Baltic states in postcolonial studies. I argue that since its inception, postcolonial studies have been concerned with various cultural, political and geographical binaries like coloniser/colonised, modern/traditional, North/South, etc. This feeds through to the contemporary discourse of the discipline. By focusing on the West/East divide, I showcase the difficulty of applying the postcolonial theory to the Baltic States context as Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia do not fit into the concept of most distinguished binaries.
Baltic postcolonial scholars strive to overcome this by examining and interrogating:
Through two examples of adapting postcolonial theory in the Baltic context, I show that it is a difficult task but possible and worthwhile. I conclude that acknowledging the postcoloniality of the Baltic states serves in securing their geography both physically and culturally, as it impedes their further subjugation by imperial powers and nails their place in the academic landscape. I also refer to implications of Baltic postcolonialism that ought to be examined by future scholars.