Features of Post Colonialism and Its Application on Four Post Colonial Novels

Initially, the concept of colonisation will be explained, including the forces that were driving the colonisation and the usual ways it was achieved. At a general level, the ideologies underpinning the colonisers’ interactions with indigenous peoples will also be described. A comparison will then be made between the experiences of colonisation for Aboriginal peoples

Resurgence in the Indigenous context is crucial because it is the resurrection of indigenous life because there is a “danger to allow colonization to be the only story of Indigenous lives”; but more than that it recognizes that the story of resistance is not the only one that matters, Indigenous people have their own history. (Salah, “Seeing & Speaking”). Moreover, it is a movement to address the “harms done to indigenous peoples” with the focus being: reclaiming traditional knowledge, renaming the histories of the colonial state, and reoccupying the land and space that was taken. (Concordia University, “What can Universities do”). Then, identity is the sense that a person has about themselves. It is made up of the various characteristics that can include but is not limited to gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, and class. (Salah, “Intersectionality”). In creating and labelling identity people “draw on culturally available resources… which is why an individual may find difficulties describing the source and nature of [their] identities.” (Mullay, 146). Meanwhile, decolonization put simply is “getting rid of colonization” however, it is more than that. (Google) Decolonization is a goal, but it is a never-ending process as it exists as a reframing of Indigenous thought to understand in addition to dismantling colonization while rediscovering historical

Canada was colonized by the British in the 17th century for economic exploitation purposes. Postcolonism looks the impact of colonixation on native settles after the colonizers rule is abolished. In Canada, Aboriginals were forced on to reserves, their land was taken through deceit and their children were sent to residential schools in order to assimilate them and end the ‘Indian Problem’.

Colonized people across the globe were the ones responsible for their own destiny as they pushed for their independence from controlling empires. In the 1850’s to the 1900’s, there were many powerful countries, particularly in Europe, Asia and Africa that ruled through their colonial empires. This control was important as mother countries benefitted from their colony’s raw materials and labor. It didn’t take long for populations in these colonies to feel used as they started to realize that they had no control in the land where they lived. Groups started to develope, lead by the elite and upper class, looking for change.

It therefore becomes difficult to integrate a country’s ‘independence’ and post-colonialism. On one hand post-colonialism is used to refer to the following periods after independence gained by the colonized nation and on the other hand post-colonialism is associated with opposing and resistance moves against colonial rule by the colonized nation. In this case, independence is only used to refer to the setup of a free government by the local people without the influence of the imperial power. It is however argued that even though the period of obtaining independence for a country is considered as a post-colonialism historic movement, it does not necessarily imply full independence from the influence of colonial rule (Ashcroft et al.,116). This takes into consideration that currently some countries even after obtaining independence in terms of the time period, they still rely on their colonial masters mainly for financial aid.

Postcolonial critiques of literary works are often accomplished by reading and interpreting the work with a specific theme in mind or a ‘lens’. By allowing oneself to use a ‘lens’ when reading specific works, it allows the reader to interpret the effects of the themes and the changes throughout the writings. The goal of the critical lens is to seek to understand the behavior of characters or the society ("Post Colonialism," 2016). A few of the most popular themes used to view literary works are identity, oppression and power; applying this ‘lens’ can give the reader a different perspective and experience while reading the writings.

Through research, you can learn that postcolonial discourse is an “academic discipline that analyzes the cultural legacies of colonialism and of imperialism.” It is made up of theories found amongst “history anthropology, philosophy, linguistics, film, political science, architecture, human geography, sociology, Marxist theory, feminism, religious and theological studies, and literature.” An understanding of postcolonial discourse could be what colonized societies handed down to succeeding generations after them that has become significant to their culture.

In regions of colonization, a significant issue that emerges in the native community is a disruption of identity resulting from an influx of colonial European ideals. As a result of colonization, the native identity is subjected to threats of marginalization by the invasion and domination of European cultural practices and language. The detrimental impact of colonization on the indigenous people of Rhodesia in Nervous Conditions is illustrated by the dominance of the British Empires colonial European identity, which is perpetuated by the conception that “Englishness” will civilize the population. In Tsitsi Dangarembga’s Nervous Conditions, the natives of Rhodesia, Tambu and Nyasha, illustrate a hybrid identity crisis as a result of imperial oppression over the language and educational system of the nation. The role of English language and culture, imposed by colonial education, emphasizes the movement for natives to abandon their indigenous cultural and linguistic roots. The mental colonization of the colonized by the means of English language, education, and European cultural values results in a state of displacement, alienation, and identity confusion in the individual.

In the world, as a result of colonisation, many Indigenous communities had been impacted intensely. Cunningham, Chris;Stanley, Fiona (2003) defines an indigenous by the experiences shared by a group of people who have inhabited a country for thousands of years, which often contrast with those of other groups of people who reside in the same country for a few hundred years. In 1788 since the European invasion of Australia, for thousands of years the aboriginal peoples have been oppressed into a world unnatural to their existence. This essay will discuss on how most Indigenous peoples have suffered as a result of colonisation. This essay will firstly focus on colonisation of indigenous peoples, when and who was involved in doing so. How the ideologies underpinning colonialism have informed interactions between non-Indigenous and Indigenous peoples will be addressed at a general level. Furthermore, this essay will also discuss a comparison of how each groups of indigenous Australians experienced colonization together with the issue of dispossession from land, cultural and sovereignty and Christianity.

The colonial efforts of an imperialist power leave a wake of suffering and death, usually for the mere purpose of propagating political, economic or military advantages. The culture and status of the colonized is forever altered by the often cruel and violent actions taken by the colonizers during their initial struggle for influence, along with the long-term impacts that slavery, subjugation, cultural appropriation and linguistic imperialism have over a colonized region. Hegemonic rule and full-scale imperial endeavors defined English and France foreign affairs during the 19th and early 20th centuries. As the two largest imperialist superpowers of the time, France and Britain made countless imperial acquisitions, not the least of which

labor and only wanted quick profits. That would be leaving out the southern economic colonies of North America and other factors as well . I could just come down to the fact that North America switched from conquest to colonization faster which pushed its frontiers further, faster and more efficiently than its southern cousin . This could be seen in the popular culture of the time as well. The tails of the American cowboy ever expanding power and territory could be seen as another embodiment or maybe even a replacement of the mountain man as the symbol of American nationalism .

In the late 1800s, third world countries, primarily Africa, were infiltrated by European colonizers. In Things Fall Apart, Heart of Darkness, and “Shooting an Elephant”, we see the direct impact of the colonizers on the beliefs of the natives. Post-colonial literature centres mainly around how beliefs are questioned and eventually altered; a transformation that can manifest in numerous ways as it is not fixed. In each of the stories, a different form of colonization is elucidated. In Things Fall Apart, the curiosity of the natives with regards to the culture of the europeans leads to colonization. The oppression of the natives exerted by the europeans in Heart of Darkness leads to colonization as well. Finally, in “Shooting an Elephant”, the roles of the colonizers and the colonized are reversed as it is the natives who take on the position of the oppressors.

Through the study of post colonialism, the audience gains insight to both the perspectives of the colonisers and the colonised, which subsequently broadens our views. Through this understanding, the audience is able grasp the culture of the colonised and to feel empathetic towards the “other” which ultimately leads to acceptance of diversity. Differences must be embraced for social cohesion to achieve positive interactions and a balanced and strong society. In addition, an individual is made aware of the actions of themselves and others and can refrain from applying a detrimental and impartial attitude towards other human beings

In literature, post colonialism is the study of post-colonial theories that ask the reader to notice the effects of colonization on people or the extension power into other nations. In post-colonial theories, the term subaltern is the nickname to populations which are far cry from the power of the colony that has hegemonic on social, political and geographical prevalence. The present research aims at analyzing Spivak's essay "Can the Subaltern Speak?" in the light of her question whether or not the possibility exists for any recovery of a subaltern

The postcolonial era presents various issues for the decolonized nations, like the reconstruction of a government and the maintenance of an economy. In addition to that, the individual identity of the colonized people is a complex issue that they must cope with as well, and it is an issue that is still present today. Compared to the other issues of postcolonialism, the construction of one’s identity might appear trivial; however, there are many problems of postcolonial identity, including the obligation of one to perceive themselves as people do from the outside through stereotypes, and the difficulty of unifying two conflicting identities: one that is created by outside sources, and one that is created through personal experiences.