Frantz Fanon In The Wretched Of The Earth

Decolonization is the undoing of colonialism, where a nation establishes and maintains its domination over dependent territories. In the words of Fanon, in the reading The Wretched of the Earth, “National liberation, national reawakening, restoration of the na­tion to the people or Commonwealth, whatever the name used, whatever the latest expression, decolonization is always a violent event.” (Fanon, 1). Frantz Fanon was one of many authors who supported decolonization struggles occurring after World War II. He breaks down decolonization into two senses: one being the physical act of freeing a territory from external control of a colonizer, and the other being the psychological act of freeing the consciousness of the native from the alienation caused by colonization. Fanon particularly advocated that violence was justified by overthrowing colonial oppression. In his reading, The Wretched of the Earth, Fanon wrote on why and how colonialism must be stopped. Fanon argued that the colonial infrastructure must be destroyed. “Decolonization, which sets out to change the order of the world, is clearly an agenda for total disorder. But it cannot be accomplished by the wave of a magic wand, a natural cataclysm, or a gentleman’s agreement. Decolonization, we know, is an historical process: In other words, it can only be understood, it can only find its significance and become self coherent insofar as we can discern the history-making movement which gives it form and substance,”

The process of decolonization proved to have its own struggles within those who were seeking their independence from imperialist powers. Evidently, these nationalist movements were different in many regions, but they generally shared the sentiment that “Westernization” had taken something away from them. This proved to be the case in Africa and Asia, where the colonization movement from imperialist powers was of strong presence, and that had trouble weakening during and after the Cold War. Part of this struggle was due to the forms of government that were imposed, and because many of these colonies had been in this position for such long time that they were not able to predict upcoming conflicts after their independence. However, in many cases, the problems were more complicated and often implied a combination of reaction to westernization and internal conflicts. Undoubtedly,

Pooja Patel 5/3/15 AP World History CCOT Essay From 1914 to the present, one of the most powerful trends of the postwar era was the importance of the developing world and their desire for independence. Nationalism was an important factor in the growing independence movements in Sub- Saharan Africa. Regardless of political changes, social conflict and tensions remained a problem. Tensions between Europeans and Africans, which had been a problem since the Europeans’ arrival and social unrest in communities didn’t change.

Decolonization, according to Todd Shepard, can be defined as “merely the end of European states’ formal colonial empires” (p. 9), and in the time period from 1945 to 1965, decolonization became more of an inevitable concept than an unimaginable one. Decolonization intersects with W.E.B DuBois’s ‘color line’, which promoted decolonization by way of the colored side of the line’s desire to: obtain sovereign rights, put to rest the myth of “race”, and be heard and taken seriously.

Colonies have tried to gain their independence from imperialistic countries for hundreds of years. In the case of the Thirteen Colonies and Great Britain, colonists were revolting in the streets and even armed fights with the military broke out. In The Battle of Algiers, Algerians are portrayed as untamable, radical killers from the French standpoint. From the audiences’ perspective, film maker Gillo Pontecorvo wanted to show compassion for the Algerians. He wanted to show that their actions were justified. Nevertheless, Pontecorvo also wanted to show the French point of view, which he did by showing the manner in which high-ranking French handled battle plans and the way they spoke to the FLN.

In his work, Fannon identifies three groups who take part in a revolution. The first group, are the laborers, and according to Fannon, will seek violent revolt when they know the colonial government renders them as useless people and places them outside of the system. As also mentioned by Mark, the working class of the country, are most likely to take up arms and participate in violent decolonization efforts at the request of the natives. The third group, are people that the colonial government favored because of their higher level of education, may try to talk them the first two groups down and accept a compromise into the colonial system. If the natives, Fannon argues, do not desire to share power, they will reject the compromise and continue with efforts to decolonize the country

Capitalism and colonialism’s links as pillars of white supremacy contribute to the racial exclusion and exploitation of certain racial groups, such as Native Americans and Black people. This can be seen through the timeline of North American history, but also farther back in the history of European settler colonialism throughout Europe and into other nearby continents. The methods of decolonization employed by various racial groups affected by colonialism interact with one another in various ways, as each group was affected differently, yet they were affected by the same instigating group of white settlers. It is important when these groups make the move to decolonize themselves to consider other groups outside their own, as interactions

Relationships between the powerful and the powerless are fundamental ideas that drive the need for imperial takeover. Such events can be identified simply as colonization. To say that imperialism leads to positive or negative effects is subjective. Positive effects of imperialism are very limited by definition however, W.E.B Du Bois offers an approach to the issue that highlights the possibility of beneficial aspects of imperialism. Although subjective, there is a need to address the damaging effects that happen as a result of the process that occurs. Poet, playwright, and politician, Aimé Césaire expresses his stance on colonization by reflecting on consequences of colonialism on all parties involved. With the analysis provided by Césaire

Franz Fanon, in his seminal work The Wretched of the Earth, argues that decolonisation alias restoring nationhood is always a ‘violent phenomenon’: “To tell the truth, the proof of success lies in a whole social structure being changed from the bottom up…. If we wish to describe it precisely, we might find it in the well-known words: "The last shall be first and the first last." Decolonization is the putting into practice of this sentence.”

Fanon dissects, in all of his major works, the racist and colonizing project of white European culture. Interestingly, he regards its worldview as both totalizing and hierarchical. To illustrate, it is totalizing because it does not see differences, thus, it has a tendency to generalize. On the other hand, it is hierarchical because there are superior countries at the top of the pyramid, while the others are on the bottom of it. Interestingly, Black Skins, White Masks discusses the psychological dimensions of the "negrification" of human beings and the possibilities of resistance to it. In other words, Fanon's analysis of the psychological dimensions of negrification reveals its phenomenological violence and its traumatizing effects. Firstly,

If postcolonial literature is the “process of dialogue and necessary correction,” of misconceptions concerning colonialism, then a comparative study of colonial and postcolonial works is essential for attaining a full understanding of the far-reaching effects of European imperialism (Groden and Kreiswirth 582). Reading colonial literature in dialogue with postcolonial literature engenders a more complete interpretation of the effects of imperialism by creating a point of reference from which to begin the revelation and the healing of cultural wounds resultant from European colonialism. Postcolonial literature reveals the lie of imperialism by suggesting that colonization was unsolicited by and unjustly administered to

Secondly, Fanon sheds light on the general effects of negrification, which is the heart of the inferior project. At first, it does not only affect the colonized parts of Africa, for example, but it promotes negative attitudes towards blacks in general. Secondly, it normalizes attitudes of desire toward Europe, white people, and the white culture in general. Therefore, the Algerian people have disposed of their Arabic language and adopted the French language in order to be accepted in the French culture.

Wretched of the Earth by Frantz Fanon explores the roles of violence, class, and political organization in the process of decolonization. Within a Marxist framework, Fanon theorizes and prophesizes the successes and failures of independence movements within colonized nations. He exalts the proletariat as a revolutionary class that is first to realize the necessity of violence in the removal of colonial regimes. Yet the accomplishment and disappointments of the proletariat are at the hand of men. Fanon neglects women in terms of the proletariat’s wishes and efforts. In spite of this exclusion, Fanon nonetheless develops a theory that could apply to the proletariat as a whole, women included. For although Fanon failed to acknowledge women’s

In the Discourse on Colonialism, Cesaire illustrates a compelling relationship between colonized states and the proletariat class. He conveys that the proletariat socio-economic class allows for the possible unification of society against the powers of colonialism. Interestingly, the comparison reflects as these elements extend from constructed illusions to unequivocal creeds. By isolating and juxtaposing the two groups, Cesaire is able to elaborate on how he believes that race and class unite to dominate 'inferior subjects' in nations throughout the globe. Throughout the essay, Cesaire provides reasoning for the socially constructed experiences of those dictated by colonial imperialism, particularly Africans, and proletarian conflicts in

Sembene Ousmane’s novel, “Gods Bits of Wood,” gives a highly detailed story of the railway strike of 1947-48 in French West Africa. It contains conflicts of political, emotional and moral nature. Ultimately, Sembene’s novel is one of empowerment. It brings to light the tension between colonial officials and the African community among the railway men as well as the struggle of the African community to free itself from being subjected to colonial power. Frederick Cooper’s article, “Our Strike: Equality, Anticolonial politics and the 1947-48 Railway Strike in French West Africa,” helps reveal the strike’s true meaning and agenda by analyzing the conflicts present in Sembene’s novel. In fact, it paints a very different picture of the railway