Foundations and Key Figures of Postcolonial Theory

Apuntes

• Subtopic: Edward Said and Literary Studies Edward Said's work in travel writing constituted a system of knowledge that enabled and legitimized imperial domination. His subsequent work, "Culture and Imperialism," expanded this analysis by demonstrating how canonical texts, from Austen to Conrad, were implicated in imperial expansion. Said's insistence on the worldliness of texts fundamentally transformed the field of literary studies. • Subtopic: Frantz Fanon and Postcolonial Thought Frantz Fanon, a psychiatrist from Martinique, made significant contributions to the psychological and political dimensions of postcolonial thought. His works, "Black Skin, White Masks" and "The Wretched of the Earth," analyze the internalization of racial inferiority, the violent epistemologies of colonial rule, and the tensions faced by native intellectuals. Bertens highlights that Fanon called attention to the debilitating psychological effects of colonialism and articulated a theory of colonial literature that distances itself from movements such as negritude, emphasizing instead the revolutionary role of culture and consciousness. • Subtopic: Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak and Subaltern Theory Gayatri...