“The condition of the native is a nervous condition introduced and maintained by the settler among the colonized people with their consent.” Frantz Fanon, 1961, The Wretched of the Earth
Fanon’s quote, repeated on the first page of Nervous Conditions by Tsitsi Dangarembga, seems to state that Fanon held the colonized people of Africa partly responsible for the colonial system of governing and, by extension, the oppression of the African people. Fanon notes the silence of Africa in the face of colonialism and her inability or lack of will to act against the colonial governments. However, by blaming the African people for inaction discredits much hard work by Africans at opposing the colonial states. Although a majority of Africans did not actively participate in revolt against the European colonial powers prior to the 1960’s, the colonial system was propagated not by lack of action by Africans, but rather the overwhelming military strength of the European armies. Indeed, many Africans did rebel against the European colonial system to protest increasing inequities of power and were occasionally successful, but only at the high loss of human life.
Fanon depicts this interplay of ‘colonial’ and ‘native’ actors as being largely a one-sided, colonialists’ affair; not only due to the military and political power of the Europeans, but along with the contributing factor of low rates of revolt. Yet, in this reprimand of the African people for their inaction against oppressive government policies and bureaucracy, Fanon also empowers them by exposing their nascent agency to stop these unjust actions by violently rising against the government.
However, contrary to Fanon’s opinion, violent revolt did occur, however the military prowess o...
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...or concurrent trend throughout the colonial period was one towards collusion with the colonial powers. Both violent and more peaceful resistance, while effective in the short term, were unsustainable in the long-term as violent resistance was quashed by the growing European armies and peaceful resistance was taken out of context and became ineffective demonstrations of the exoticism of Africa.
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Similarly, the Fanti people of Africa recognized their need for the British authorities by stating, “we do not for one single moment pretend to be able to carry on a Government in the interior without such recognition and assistance” (Document 4).
The beginning of colonization also marks the beginning of decolonization. From the day the colonists start exploiting the colonized people and belittling the colonized people for the colonists' self-aggrandizement, the colonized ones have been prepared to use violence at any moment to end the colonists' exploitation (Fanon, 3).Decolonization is violent, there is a necessity for violence. This is a point that is repeated again and again throughout The Battle of Algiers and The Wretched of the Earth. Here, the focus will be on The Battle of Algiers to discuss the violence of
Fanon focuses on two related desires that constitute the pathology of the colonial situation: “The Black man wants to be white. The white man is desperately trying to achieve the rank of man” (p. xiii). As an unconscious desire, this can result in a series of irrational behaviors and beliefs, such as the Antillean speaking French, the desire for a white
Gordon, L. R. (1996), ‘Fanon’s Tragic Revolutionary Violence’ in Denean Sharpley-Whiting, T., Gordon, L. R. and White, R. T. (eds.) Fanon: A Critical Reader. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers, pp. 297-308.
Fanon start off his argument with describing how colonialism and decolonization are violent affairs. He describes the colonized and colonizer as old adversaries whose first meeting was rooted in violence and continued relationship was sustained at the point of a gun (Fanon, p. 2). He goes on to state that the colonized person is a fabricated person created by the colonizer and that the colonizer validates themselves, via wealth, through the colonial relationship. Decolonization, therefore, is the destruction of these fabrications and the liberation of ...
In both of his major works, Fanon describes the active involvement in this process as an essential part of the liberation of the self; as in his view, agency was central to self-actualization. However, in Fanon’s model, violence, which could plausibly be manifested on a symbolic rather than physical level, is only the beginning; the first step of a painful and lifelong struggle to overcome the psychological damage inflicted by the colonial aggressor. Hence, violence is not a release of accumulated tension, but rather a reclaiming of subjectivity that moves the colonized from a zone of nonbeing to the zone of being through an act of active self-assertion. Fanon does not promote violence for its own sake. For him violence in never a Selbstzweck; it is a last resort to eliminate a system created and maintained through violence. Moreover, Fanon makes clear that this use of violence could negatively affect the colonized. In the final part of the book, in which he describes the psychological long-term effects violence has on both victims and
Imperialism in Africa took root in the late 19th century when European nations divided up the continent for their own benefit. Each nation practiced a certain type of rule over the Africans of which they conquered. For example, the Germans, the Dutch, and the French used the practice of Direct Rule over their colonies in Africa. This system is characterized by the colonizers need for the colonized to become assimilated into their culture. The purpose of this was to make the African people “civilized” and act like Europeans. The governing administrations forced on the native inhabitants by the colonial power were meant to undermine those institutions set in place by the indigenous people. By taking over the community’s government on all levels,
Introduction The past is another country, where it is only possible to go as a tourist, and which we will never fully understand. We can describe what we see, but it is far more difficult to know why people acted in the way they did, or what they believed, and why they believed it.
After exploring the backgrounds of Joseph Conrad and Alan Paton, we realize the differences in their upbringings and how that may have had an effect on their outlooks of Africa. These authors grew up in completely different settings in completely different time periods; Joseph Conrad in a predominantly white area amongst those who would be the colonists of Africa in the future, and Alan Paton in the Africa itself amongst those who the colonization affected most greatly. These factors contribute to the different viewpoints that are apparent in their respective works. From analyzing the content of their writings, it is apparent that, although, both authors have the same overall opinion of colonialism, these opinions are due to two very different reasons.
In Fanon’s case this refers to the colonization efforts of France, however, this same ideology can be applied to other colonized parts of the world both in settlement colonies, those which were established to maintain and develop a presence or permanent residency and those areas colonized for the purpose or exploiting the resources of the colonized area for the benefit of and exportation to the home country. Either way, I believe the process of colonization, if effect, results in the same type of oppressor/oppressed dichotomy in which the colonizer becomes the dominant or master class. This can still be seen even within modern life such as gentrification projects in major cities established to allow wealthier more desirable people, predominantly white middle to upper class, to ‘colonize’ poorer areas uprooting the original inhabitants, usually poor minority groups, and then claiming the land for themselves. Basically this is another way of the dominant group to continue to maintain their power and authority over
Colonialism has plagued indigenous people worldwide and has spelled disaster for countless cultures, languages, and traditions. Over the past 500 years there have been different phases of colonization in Africa as well as other various parts of earth. There were many reasons behind exploration and colonization including economic and tactical reasons, religion, and prestige. Colonialism has shaped the contemporary understanding of individuals from Niger as well as other parts of Africa and other places too, like the Chambri and Tlingit people; mainly in economics. Because of the colonial past of so many cultures, numerous indigenous people today face many issues. Today colonialism is still active, known as Neocolonialism, which has devastating effects on global cultural groups.
“The sun never sets on the British Empire,” Great Britain often bragged. By 1914, about 85% of the earth’s surface was colonized by Europe. Between 1884 and 1885, The Berlin Conference took place to carve up the African continent (Background Essay). Europeans saw high potential in Africa and thought the continent was empty, even though it was not. It was roughly “untouched” and they thought they could do anything they wanted (Doc.1). Great Britain’s colonization in Kenya affected the country’s religion and culture, education, and government.
While Collins does a succinct job of examining the economic and political factors that heightened colonization, he fails to hone in on the mental warfare that was an essential tool in creating African division and ultimately European conquest. Not only was the systematic dehumanization tactics crippling for the African society, but also, the system of racial hierarchy created the division essential for European success. The spillover effects of colonialism imparted detrimental affects on the African psyche, ultimately causing many, like Shanu, to, “become victims to the white man’s greed.”
An overwhelming majority of African nations has reclaimed their independence from their European mother countries. This did not stop the Europeans from leaving a permanent mark on the continent however. European colonialism has shaped modern-day Africa, a considerable amount for the worse, but also some for the better. Including these positive and negative effects, colonialism has also touched much of Africa’s history and culture especially in recent years.
Okeke, Phil E. "Reconfiguring Tradition: Women's Rights and Social Status in Contemporary Nigeria." Africa Today 47.1 (2000): 49-63.