A presentation on important terms by Fanon

1. The Wretched of the
Earth – Franz Fanon
Prepared by – Vaidehi Hariyani
Research Scholar
Department of English, MKBU

2. Manichaeism
 Manichaeism is a dualistic worldview. In the colonial context, it divides the
world into just two classes of people: the colonized and the colonist. To the
colonist, the colonized are black and evil whereas the colonist is white and
good. The revolutionary opponent of colonialism flips this opposition: to him,
the colonized is virtuous, and the colonist is evil and must be overthrown.

3. Role of violence in colonialism
 Violence is the original means by which the colonist subjugates the colonized.
Through violence, it teaches the colonized that they are powerless. But when
the colonized begin to use violence against the colonial powers, they unlearn
their submissiveness. Through violence, they develop a new post-colonial
consciousness.

4. Role of the “popular leader” after
independence
 The popular leader is a charismatic figure, usually a veteran of the
anticolonial violence. His charisma and stories of war impress the rural
masses. As a result, the national bourgeoisie, who are elites based in cities,
turn to the popular leader in order to gain the consent of the rural masses.
But unfortunately, this leads the nation in an authoritarian or dictatorial
direction, similar to how things were under colonialism.

5. “the infrastructure is also a
superstructure”
 In Marxism, the infrastructure is the economy and the superstructure is the
sphere of culture and society. The infrastructure is supposed to determine the
superstructure, which means that social inequalities are determined by
economic realities. Fanon says that is not true in colonialism. In colonialism,
racial inequality creates economic inequality. The infrastructure (economy)
does not determine the superstructure (racial inequality): rather, they are
one and the same. Economic equality is maintained through racial inequality.

6. “racialization”
 The racialization of culture means turning all of culture into matters of race.
The colonized intellectual, in reaction to the denigration of African culture by
the Europeans, racializes culture in order to assert the legitimacy of culture
across Africa. But this means fighting a cultural battle on the colonist’s terms.
Instead of lumping everything into a category based on race, ignoring national
and ethnic differences, Fanon argues for a national culture that is about a
people asserting their own nationhood, rather than race.

7. The national bourgeoisie
 The national bourgeoisie are those who are in charge of the economy after
independence, when the colonists are no longer in power. They are the
African elite in a given nation. But they are “useless” because they end up re-
creating the same colonial conditions of exploitation. They are mere
“intermediaries” that sell the resources of the country back to Europe.
Instead, Fanon calls for a new direction in nationhood that is truly
democratic.

8. Culture and Combat
 For Fanon, culture and combat must be intimately connected. Culture should
be produced by and through the fight against colonization. It does not
precede combat, but absorbs the rhythms of combat into itself. In turn,
intellectuals need to be on the front lines of the fight along with the
revolutionaries. That is where culture is made.