On Postcolonialism
Postcolonialism is the critical academic study of the cultural legacy of
colonialism and imperialism, focusing on the human consequences of the control
and exploitation of colonized people and their lands. More specifically, it is a
critical theory analysis of the history, culture, literature, and discourse of
(usually European) imperial power. Postcolonialism encompasses a wide variety of
approaches, and theoreticians may not always agree on a common set of
definitions. Raja, Masood (2019). "What is Postcolonial Studies?". Postcolonial
Space. Masood Raja. Retrieved 16 July 2019. Postcolonialism states that
universal claims are mistaken since they assume that a certain white, Western
identity or position is the template for all people and that cultural
differences are ignored. It is more of a set of interests or viewpoints than a
single theory. Postcolonial theory is related to political struggles in various
parts of the world – the fight for racial and ethnic equality around the globe.
It has also been pointed out that postcolonialism doesn’t refer only to the
effects of the colonizers on the colonized nation’s culture but also on the
effect of the colonized to the colonizer’s ways and culture, say, for example,
the use of cummerbund by the Europeans has been an influence of the Sepoy
military of British occupied India back in the days, in other words, it’s an
interchangeable discourse between cultures.
One of the most notable writers or thinkers of postcolonialism is Edward Said who wrote about Orientalism. Said is a Palestinian academic who happens to be part of the political activities of some sorts during his time. He criticized the Westen way of depicting and defining the Orient. According to Said, the division of the West and East is not a natural phenomenon per se, but a mere intellectual choice since the time of the early western thinkers. “In Said's analysis, the West essentializes these societies as static and undeveloped—thereby fabricating a view of Oriental culture that can be studied, depicted, and reproduced in the service of imperial power. Implicit in this fabrication, writes Said, is the idea that Western society is developed, rational, flexible, and superior.” (Mamdani, 2004). Said argues that Orientalism has also been a means of domination - in an intellectual way, wherein the East has been represented distortedly by the West according to their standards disregarding the actual cultural importance of the Eastern countries. For me, this is really problematic especially when the wrong depiction and interpretation will continue to persist throughout time. It will mislead the people or worst, it will exploit cultures of the East. Edward Said said that “the Orient is not only adjacent to Europe; it is also the place of Europe’s greatest and richest and oldest colonies, the sources of its civilizations and languages, its cultural contestant, and one of its deepest and most recurring images of the Other.” then he added, “The Orient has helped to define Europe (or the West) as its contrasting image, idea, personality, and experience. The West used the Orient, basically, to define themselves as being the absolute opposite of the negativities of the Orient.
Another notable thinker on the topic of postcolonialism is Linda Nochlin. She is an American feminist art historian who is notable for her feminist essay ‘Why Have There Been No Great Women Artists?’ (1971). In line with the topic of postcolonialism, she wrote an article called ‘The Imaginary Orient’ (1983) where she stated her viewpoints regarding Orientalism and postcolonial impact in the field of the arts - because unlike Said, Nochlin’s article is about art and art history. Nochlin noticed the paintings in Parisian salons and criticized it as being a mere fantasy, those depictions are far from the real-life situations and experiences of the Oriental people. Nochlin also defined the term ‘Other’ - a group of people who are the opposite of the moral French, this came to be after her critique regarding the depiction of the East in the Western paintings. In theory, this term, the ‘Other’ defines those people who are not part of the ‘moral’ and ‘civilized’ Western society. They tend to believe that the civilization of the world must be formatted in their standards - a very colonial position for the West. Nochlin noticed also that the paintings are showing immoral scenes but there were no European in the painting at all, it’s as if the West did not meet the East. I find it disturbing in a way. There is a political motive in these paintings, according to Nochlin, and that political motive is to depict the West as the ‘savior’ of the Orient - the Other. Art has been used to justify their intervention with the Eastern colonies and cultures, to save them from the inextricable decline if they will not be civilized in the Western standard. According to Nochlin, no matter how truthful it seems, they only surface the beliefs and ideologies of the Europeans - it surfaces Eurocentric fantasies.
Another notable person in the study of postcolonialism is Professor Annie Coombes of Birkbeck, University of London. Her propositions are more focused on curatorial practices and display. Coombes wrote an essay ‘Inventing the Post-Colonial’ (1992). She argues that it is simply not enough to add another set of items to the museum, one needs to consider the fundamental principles of the museum itself - and that fundamental principle is that a museum is a place where all men, from different walks of life, can have equal access and the museum is apparently a neutral territory and is seen as a common meeting ground for children of different backgrounds. However, if the museum made a political stand, it will defeat its purpose, just like what the museum in her essay did when the institution accepted a commercial sponsorship. according to Coombes, hybridity is often presented as a happy ending and celebratory, by doing so, it covers up the main issues or underlying problems in the display. Postcolonialism has made a great impact in different fields of studies for it encompasses different facets and schools of thought, and the study of this topic will give us a certain level of awareness and understanding, and maybe give answers regarding our historical questions - especially us, Filipinos, who are also a formerly colonized nation.
One of the most notable writers or thinkers of postcolonialism is Edward Said who wrote about Orientalism. Said is a Palestinian academic who happens to be part of the political activities of some sorts during his time. He criticized the Westen way of depicting and defining the Orient. According to Said, the division of the West and East is not a natural phenomenon per se, but a mere intellectual choice since the time of the early western thinkers. “In Said's analysis, the West essentializes these societies as static and undeveloped—thereby fabricating a view of Oriental culture that can be studied, depicted, and reproduced in the service of imperial power. Implicit in this fabrication, writes Said, is the idea that Western society is developed, rational, flexible, and superior.” (Mamdani, 2004). Said argues that Orientalism has also been a means of domination - in an intellectual way, wherein the East has been represented distortedly by the West according to their standards disregarding the actual cultural importance of the Eastern countries. For me, this is really problematic especially when the wrong depiction and interpretation will continue to persist throughout time. It will mislead the people or worst, it will exploit cultures of the East. Edward Said said that “the Orient is not only adjacent to Europe; it is also the place of Europe’s greatest and richest and oldest colonies, the sources of its civilizations and languages, its cultural contestant, and one of its deepest and most recurring images of the Other.” then he added, “The Orient has helped to define Europe (or the West) as its contrasting image, idea, personality, and experience. The West used the Orient, basically, to define themselves as being the absolute opposite of the negativities of the Orient.
Another notable thinker on the topic of postcolonialism is Linda Nochlin. She is an American feminist art historian who is notable for her feminist essay ‘Why Have There Been No Great Women Artists?’ (1971). In line with the topic of postcolonialism, she wrote an article called ‘The Imaginary Orient’ (1983) where she stated her viewpoints regarding Orientalism and postcolonial impact in the field of the arts - because unlike Said, Nochlin’s article is about art and art history. Nochlin noticed the paintings in Parisian salons and criticized it as being a mere fantasy, those depictions are far from the real-life situations and experiences of the Oriental people. Nochlin also defined the term ‘Other’ - a group of people who are the opposite of the moral French, this came to be after her critique regarding the depiction of the East in the Western paintings. In theory, this term, the ‘Other’ defines those people who are not part of the ‘moral’ and ‘civilized’ Western society. They tend to believe that the civilization of the world must be formatted in their standards - a very colonial position for the West. Nochlin noticed also that the paintings are showing immoral scenes but there were no European in the painting at all, it’s as if the West did not meet the East. I find it disturbing in a way. There is a political motive in these paintings, according to Nochlin, and that political motive is to depict the West as the ‘savior’ of the Orient - the Other. Art has been used to justify their intervention with the Eastern colonies and cultures, to save them from the inextricable decline if they will not be civilized in the Western standard. According to Nochlin, no matter how truthful it seems, they only surface the beliefs and ideologies of the Europeans - it surfaces Eurocentric fantasies.
Another notable person in the study of postcolonialism is Professor Annie Coombes of Birkbeck, University of London. Her propositions are more focused on curatorial practices and display. Coombes wrote an essay ‘Inventing the Post-Colonial’ (1992). She argues that it is simply not enough to add another set of items to the museum, one needs to consider the fundamental principles of the museum itself - and that fundamental principle is that a museum is a place where all men, from different walks of life, can have equal access and the museum is apparently a neutral territory and is seen as a common meeting ground for children of different backgrounds. However, if the museum made a political stand, it will defeat its purpose, just like what the museum in her essay did when the institution accepted a commercial sponsorship. according to Coombes, hybridity is often presented as a happy ending and celebratory, by doing so, it covers up the main issues or underlying problems in the display. Postcolonialism has made a great impact in different fields of studies for it encompasses different facets and schools of thought, and the study of this topic will give us a certain level of awareness and understanding, and maybe give answers regarding our historical questions - especially us, Filipinos, who are also a formerly colonized nation.
The goal, the preconceptions and the
prejudices have been exposed to all - these two underpins other cultures. It
demonstrates the bias of the historians through the years, they have been
misrepresenting the cultures of the orient philosophically and politically
because the fundamental beliefs such as race, beliefs, and culture are being
represented using the western standards.
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