Influence on social theory from movements of decolonisation that challenged colonial rule against the third world. One of the key thinkers of these movements was the Martinique-born intellectual and revolutionary Frantz Fanon. Frantz Fanon (1926-1961) is widely considered one of the most important theorists of the twentieth century on race, racism, and colonialism. Fanon supported the Algerian war of independence from French colonialism as he worked in Algeria as a psychiatrist during the war, and he was a member of the Algerian National Liberation Front (FLN). This essay will attempt to critically discuss Fanon’s account of the development of the colonised intellectual’s consciousness and the relationship to the struggle for national liberation, …show more content…
“The colonised man finds his freedom in and through violence” (Fanon, 1963). Fanon’s idea of praxis is “the counter-violence of the colonised is a form of “praxis” or human action that negates the violence of colonisation” (Fanon, 1963). Fanon was a thinker who engaged critically with ideas of Marxism. Contrary to Marx’s assertion of the proletariat as the motor force of history and the peasantry and lumpenproletariat as counter-revolutionary, Fanon asserts that the peasantry and urban lumpen in third world decolonizing countries like Algeria constitute the main revolutionary force. Algeria did not have an industrial working class like what existed in Europe, but rather a large unskilled and casual workforce. Fanon called this class the lumpenproletariat, those residing in the shantytowns and slums. He saw an important political role for them. These were just some of the ways that he rethought and expanded the Marxist ideas in the colonial context. Going further, Fanon argued that the primary contradiction in colonial society is not just between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat, as Marx had outlined in the Communist Manifesto, but between the European white rulers and the Arab population. For Fanon the divide is not just class, but also racial. After independence, Fanon argues that the situation of poverty …show more content…
“When it comes to the colonial situation, the Marxian analysis must be slightly stretched to deal with these realities” (Fanon, The Wretched of The Earth, 1963). When he states this he is not saying that the Marxian analysis should be abandoned, revised or ignored. He was trying to deal with realities that the Marxist tradition often overlooked, such as the role the peasantry that is more than simply an auxiliary to the working class, a critique of the national bourgeoisie and its relationship to the proletariat and his rejection of a two staged theory of revolution. On these issues, Fanon may be said to be more in tune with Marx than many of Marx’s followers. After Marx published volume one of his greatest theoretical work, he denied that he had ever developed a universal theory that is applicable to every society on earth. He also specifically limited his delineation of the historical tendency of capitalist accumulation to Western Europe alone and in his white writings on Russia and elsewhere, he emphasised the possibility that these non-Western underdeveloped societies could get to socialism without having to go through capitalist industrialisation. When you look at Marx’s work you find that he is not simply adopting a formula that he extracts from his earlier work in studying Europe, and then simply tries to put it on to the rest of the developing world
This thesis seeks to examine the manner in which the interaction between the NAACP and Haiti unfolded between 1915 and 1922 by posing for central question: in what context has the NAACP, through figures such as W.E.B. Du Bois and James Weldon Johnson, voiced its concern in a question of American foreign policy which dealt specifically with a “coloured” nation? This thesis will argue that while the NAACP’s activism might have been predicated by feelings of racial solidarity, the association utilised the occupation of Haiti both as a mean to bring broader attention to domestic issues affecting black Americans but also, to itself.
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,
Through the late nineteenth century to the early twentieth century individuals of places like German East Africa and Vietnam fought under, and contributed to, the rule of imperial power in order to receive benefits such as money, women, and the mere possibility of becoming "big men" in society. This was portrayed in Violent Intermediaries, "Sacrifices, sex, race: Vietnamese experiences in the First World War," and sections from "The Mexico Reader. " It was not until the middle of the twentieth century when people of distinctive lands began to rebel against these colonial forces in order to obtain independence. Documentation of these occurrences both came directly from Ho Chi Minh and Frantz Fanon due to their ability to capture these moments
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.
People try to help people when sometimes, no help is needed. During the 1800's, the more developed countries wished to expand and help to develop other nations. They did this by the process called imperialism. One of these developed countries was France, who imperialized Algeria. They did this for many reasons such as nationalism and the White Man's Burden. French Imperialism on Algeria was harmful during and after Algerian independence politically, socially and economically. It was harmful during because politically, the French took over Algeria by force and forced them to do their work. Socially harmful because the Algerians morals and way of life depleted. And economically because they were given jobs equal to lower class citizens, and did not help their economy. After independence, Algeria did not keep the changes that France had previously made politically, socially and economically. Making the whole process harmful to Algeria
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.
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
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
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
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,”
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.”
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
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
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.
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,