Posttructitalism And Postcolonialism

Society is constructed over different opinions and translations that individuals have over each other. The academic reading, “The Social Construction of Difference”, points out two different views that a group of people may have over another. In the academic reading the author, Allan G. Johnson, defines two different kinds of approaches that are known as privilege and oppression. Privilege is commonly defined as a group of certain people having more value from those who are not consider like one of them. Oppression is defined as privilege groups of people feeling superior in which leads to taking control over those who don’t share common identities with them. Based on the academic reading, “The Social Construction of difference”, the reality of social construction is based upon privilege and oppression.

Privilege and oppression provides a framework for understanding how institutional structures and ideologies shapes individual experiences. Privilege and oppression also explains “how power operates in society” which led to the formation of “a dominant group and a marginalized group” (Launius and Hassel, Threshold Concepts, 72-73). “Oppression can be defined as prejudice and discrimination directed toward a group and perpetuated by the ideologies and practices of multiple social institutions” (Launius and Hassel, Threshold Concepts, 73). While, privilege refers to the “benefits, advantages, and power that accrue to members of a dominant group as a result of the oppression of marginalized group”,

Oppression exists at varying levels and the way in which we choose to view it can have a significant impact on our ability to break down the barriers that continue to oppress disenfranchised groups. Much like the analogy of a caged bird facing both individual cage wires as well as the confining cage as a whole, examining the microscopic and macroscopic levels of oppression is essential in furthering our understanding of social justice. Long-term and persisting injustices towards subordinate social groups can also lead to internalized oppression, creating a complex system of disempowerment and self-loathing. As members of society committed to social change, it is important that we continue to educate ourselves on the issues of oppression and oppressed groups while ensuring we act at allies and advocates in our efforts to tackle these barriers.

Perhaps one of the most disgusting accusations one can receive today is “You’re racist!” However as disturbing as racism is, it is just one of the many mediums in which people use to control others. Whether the motive is race, religion, nationality, financial standing, or even gender, in every society, certain groups of people have always been oppressed. The culprit of seemingly unnecessary and ignorant oppression is human nature itself. Humans will always experience the need to feel superior, and for that reason, similar connections can be made among those people living under oppression thousands of miles and centuries apart from each other. “The Man Who Was Almost a Man” by Richard Wright, “Sweat” by Zora Neale

Bromley’s choice to use real-life situations serves as an excellent means of showing the ordinary occurrences in our day to day life that demonstrate the ways in which hierarchies of power affect our lives in ways we do not realize. She continues by bringing in the reader to the understanding of the belief that these everyday oppressions are acceptable as they are perpetrated by the people who possess “(…) the power to determine “normal”” (Bromley 2012). When Bromley brings

In “The Master’s Tools Will Never Dismantle the Master’s House,” Audre Lorde discusses the idea that as long as movements seeking to dismantle oppressive structures limit their tools to those created by the oppressive structure itself, actual reform will be out of reach. By using these tools, regardless of intention, one is still wielding an axis of oppression, and therefore reinforcing its supremacy.

Classical Colonialism occurs when metropolitan nations fuse new territories or peoples through means which are virtually involuntary such as war, conquest, capture, and additional forms of enforcement and control. (Biauner 1987,150) Classical colonialism is distinguished by economic exploitation, forced entry, and cultural imperialism through the establishment of new institutions and methods of thought. (

Some topics that pertain to postcolonialism can oftentimes be somewhat difficult to grasp because of complexity that is required to describe them. Rudyard Kipling makes understanding a topic a whole lot easier because of his ability to write short stories and connect them to any postcolonial topics that he so chooses. For example, his short stories “Haunted Subalterns” and “The Mark of the Beast” have allowed me to better get a hold on the idea of the postcolonial topic of the subaltern. Along with them, I have found a few scholarly articles that have also contributed to improving my knowledge and understanding of what the subaltern really is. Ultimately, the question that I would like to grapple with is: Can the subaltern theme in Mark of the Beast be compared to that in Haunted Subalterns? The postcolonial definition of the subaltern from a postcolonial lens is the subordination of native people to the point where they are left powerless and without a voice. The subaltern in postcolonial studies is a very interesting topic because it can be intriguing how a native person can be stripped of the credibility that their words have and the power that every human being should be granted due to the way that colonizers can make them feel. Throughout the paper I will include an in depth description of what the subaltern means and other ways that it can be interpreted. Also, as I previously stated, I will analyze two of Rudyard Kipling’s short stories and connect

In our Society, we deal with many form of oppression in our daily lives. Unfortunately, different groups of people are more oppressed than others. Oppression is the unjust treatment of a group of people. I believe, our government is a major culprit as they are responsible for oppressing most of society. This involves many groups, such as single mothers, the working class, African Americans, gays and lesbians. In my paper, my personal views will be addressed incorporating ideas from several readings pertaining to different forms of oppression. A summarization of each article will be provided as well.

Over time, humankind has tried to observe, evaluate, and correct oppressive tendencies between individuals and society. However, they have failed to eliminate the barriers individuals and groups face even today. By oppression, I mean, a set of forces and obstacles that are systematically related to one another, that work to restrict and restraint, and as a result prevent one’s mobility (Frye 85). One theorist, Sandra Bartky, offered her ideas in On Psychological Oppression. She argued that one can be psychologically oppressed by their thoughts and lack of self-esteem due to institutionalized and systematic barriers that exist; causing fragmentation (loss of self) and mystification (blaming oneself) (Bartky, p. 106). I support Bartky’s

When working to determine the causes of oppression, one must first establish a definition of the word. Oppression can be perceived as being a broad, which can lead to disempowerment of the term. For the purposes of this paper, oppression is defined through the lens of both institutional and internalized oppression. Institutional oppression is define as the occurrence of established laws, customs, and practices systematically reflecting and producing inequities based on one’s membership in targeted social identity groups (Cheney, 2012). In regards to institutional oppression, oppressive consequences such as classism, prejudice and discrimination are typically attributed to institutional laws, customs, or practices. Internalized oppression is internalized oppression is the

“Five Faces of Oppression” by Iris M. Young tries to create an idea that we can critique the reality and stages of oppression of different groups. She argues that oppression is structural in the sense that injustices arise from systematic everyday activities, and not from policies or how people act. Since oppression is systematically reproduced and thus ingrained into culture, politics and economics, therefore it cannot be simply removed from our society. She separates the condition of oppression into five different forms: exploitation, marginalization, powerlessness, cultural imperialism, and violence. Young states that exploitation is where oppression occurs in the transfer of one social group’s products of labor to benefit the wealthier class. She also argues that women are also exploited to through this from of

After years of cultural colonialism and controlling people's thoughts and minds by the colonizers, postcolonial writers have struggled to achieve their cultural independence and restore

Colonialism has shaped the lives of about three quarter people in this present day world. Post colonialism refers to the impact that imperial process has caused to the entire culture from the moment of colonialization till today. All through the history the continuation of colonising the minds through imperial rule by the Europeans is the cause of this. The effect of this European imperial domination has spread its impacts on the contemporary literature as well and it is therefore a major concern for the world today. The literature of Canada, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Malaysia, New Zealand, Malta, Sri lanka, the South Pacific, the Caribbean and African countries, comes in the ambit of post-colonial literatures. One characteristic that can be found in common to all these literature despite of

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.