Racism in The Jewel in the Crown and Heart of Darkness The effects of British colonialism are reflected in literature from both early modernism and post colonialism. Racial discrimination tainted both eras portrayed in the British morale of white supremacy over non-European counties unfolded. Heart of Darkness exemplifies early modernism in the British explorers viewed African natives of the Congo as incapable of human equality due to perceived uncivilized savagery. Personal interaction between races was little to none, as the freshly conquered Africans were still viewed as alien. Likewise, Jewel in the Crown, exemplifies of post colonialism, echoes racism from the British Rule in India.
Since the people of England saw Africans as inferior of course it reflected in how they talked and acted towards them. This is what leads to Achebe's stance that Conrad is racist. An Image of Africa is Achebe describing why Conrad was racist. In this paper Achebe says that Africa is "set up" as a foil, opposite to Europe, by Conrad.
The psychological impact of colonialism on the victimization of Africans While the economic and political damage of the scramble for Africa crippled the continent’s social structure, the mental warfare and system of hierarchy instituted by the Europeans, made the continent more susceptible to division and conquest. The scramble for partition commenced a psychological warfare, as many Africans were now thrust between the cultural barriers of two identities. As a result, institutions for racial inferiority became rooted in the cultural identity of the continent. This paper will expound on the impact of colonialism on the mental psyche of Africans and the employment of the mind as a means to seize control. I will outline how the mental hierarchy inculcated by the Europeans paved the way for their “divide and conquer” tactic, a tool essential for European success.
Well, you know, that was the worst of it -this suspicion of t... ... middle of paper ... ... Darkness is that he meant the darkness and wickedness that he saw and associated with European colonialism and imperialistic rule of Africa. Some slight undertones and actions of some of the characters in the novel can show this. The meaning of Heart of Darkness is open to many different interpretations as to what the author means by using the phrase heart of darkness that can easily be linked to different themes. The meaning of the title will more than likely be forever shrouded in ambiguity. Works Cited Aldman, Gary.
In doing so, he highlights, indirectly, the philosophical position of the West in relation to African beliefs considered pagan and perhaps savage. He identifies the rationale for the European conquest of Africa being rooted in the concept that Africans were somehow sub-human and inferior to whites. In addition to that, Johnson advances the post-colonial concept of the “middle man” in Rutherford Calhoun’s character and in the greater context of the mulatto Negro in America. Works Cited Cesaire, Aime. “Discourse on Colonialism” Monthly Review Press: New York and London, 1972.
It had intentions of breaking post-colonial hegemonic forces that portrayed Lumumba as a nationalist dictator. In regards to race and class in Congo, I will refer to the work of Franz Fanon, in particular his book entitled The Wretched of the Earth. In this book Fanon develops a theory of “dual citizenship” required by the colonizers in order to validate the colonization process. We have to view the movie Lumumba as being part of the anti-colonial discourse in the history of the Congo but also as a historical fiction produced in 21st century France. In viewing this movie, we must locate race and class and the intersection between the two, as this is constantly the case in post-colonial states.
In proving this thesis to be a true statement, I will be providing evidence of the how, why and the extent to which stories can fight colonialism. To show how stories can affect colonialism, we will be looking at British authors during the time of colonialism. During this period of British colonialism, writers like Joyce Cary, author of “Mister Johnson” wrote novels about Africa and more specifically, a Nigerian named Johnson. Johnson in this novel is represented as “[an] infuriating principal character”. In Mr. Cary’s novel he demeans the people of Africa with hatred and mockery, even describing them as “unhuman, like twisted bags of lard, or burst bladders”.
In his famous critical essay, “An Image of Africa” (1975), Chinua Achebe takes a strong stance against Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness. He asserts that Conrad was a racist and his novella is a product of his racism. A following quote that is good to show Achebe opinion for Conrad is: The point of my observations should be quite clear by now, namely that Joseph Conrad was a thoroughgoing racist. That this simple truth is glossed over in criticisms of his work is due to the fact that white racism against Africa is such a normal way of thinking that its manifestations go completely unremarked. (An Image of Africa, Achebe, 1975) Achebe comments on Conrad’s work as a hidden product of racism because criticisms for Heart of Darkness mask the racism and it is now the way we [critics and readers] see the novella.
Chinua Achebe wanted to correct the "superficial picture" of Nigeria provided by non-Nigerian authors, and so he resolved to write the novel Things Fall Apart, that viewed his country and the people of Nigeria from the inside. "As a representative of Nigeria's intellectual elite Achebe has been especially concerned about the definition of a new African identity in the post-colonial situation. Achebe's concerns can be discovered in the novelist's literary programme: . "..as far as I am ... ... middle of paper ... ...y truly made a culture of tradition, religion, government, and friendship fall completely apart. Iodence 6 Works Cited Achebe, Chinua.
The personification of both the ‘angry sea’ who ‘snatched’ Africa and of ‘Mother Asia’, enlivens these elements of ... ... middle of paper ... ...s, so as to hone the contrast between Africa's creation, colonisation and post-colonialism periods. In stanza one, Tagore explores the creation of Africa and cleverly establishes a setting so primal and yet so admirable. This is followed by drastic tone changes in the following stanzas which disturbingly make Africa a victim of imperialism, thereby imparting to readers just a morsel of the hardship of African history. The poem also clearly illustrates the hypocrisy of Western imperialism in the final stanza, where Tagore's juxtaposition of images and words amplify this idea. Eventually, we recognise that the only form of redemption for such Western nations is through a plea for forgiveness that will come when they experience their own downfall.