On Violence, By Frantz Fanon On Violence And Battle Of Algiers

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Recommended: How colonization shaped Algeria

Colonialism in Algeria
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Hamad Haider Imran Khan once said “Colonialism deprives you of your self-esteem and to get it back you have to fight to redress the balance”. This means that violence might be the only way to end colonialism. Chapter 1, “On Violence,” in Frantz Fanon’s The Wretched of the Earth and “Battle of Algiers” directed by Gillo Pontecorvo accurately portray the violence emerging from the French colonialism and the decolonization movement in Algeria. Over a period of 130 years, the most common type of violence in the colonial world was psychological violence. Psychological violence included the social injustices, bullying and most prominently, racial discrimination. All of which were supposed to make colonial subjects …show more content…

It's necessary to create this for ourselves, this excuse... We are soldiers and our only duty is to win… Should we remain in Algeria? If you answer "yes," then you must accept all the necessary consequences.
Colonel Mathieu of the French paratroopers was an intelligent individual and knew his way around words. He was only following his orders to subdue the effort. However, the violence of decolonization wouldn’t come to an end since Algeria was a cash crop for the French motherland.. Furthermore, the press was well aware of the naked truth about the violence of colonialism and of French army’s inhumane interrogation tactics. Some journalists still published in favor of the colonists. In the end, the French army was successful in demobilizing the FLN.
After the arrest of some national leaders, the public took things into its own hands. In Algeria, the public went on a rampage by 1960. Pontecorvo shows this in the scene towards the end when the French try to stop the masses as they burn tires on the streets and fight back. In the last scene, a French cop asks “what do you want?” and a native shouts “We want our Freedom”. After two years of fighting, Algeria gained its independence in 1962. The aftermath of this war for independence is the same as any other third world country which is forced to rebuilt itself from the ground. On the good side, the violence seems to have

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