Historicising the colonial narratives
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Rokeson Nongmaithem
Colonialism is obliviously studied through the lens of a distant past, particularly in our history books. It is often theorised but never fully understood, and it would only be once post-colonial societies get vaccinated to be immune to colonial modalities. The decades-long process of theorisation fails to decipher the ludicrous yet tantalising colonial narratives; instead, the decolonisation itself is in the past. Nothing emanates wrong from this colossal arena of theories unless they fail to rescue the crumbling societal frame. When these societies get utterly engulfed by foreign masks, is colonialism responsible for it or these impractical theorisations ?
Ignited as the product of the one-sided desire for power and domination of certain classes, colonialism didn’t fail to inject lies and hoax the colonised. Impressions were inserted so much that the colonised were forced to feel like aliens in their own milieu. Acknowledging that the colony was not an extension of the metropole, colonialism needed experimental practices that fluctuated the identities of both colonisers and the colonised. It would be impossible to generate such articulation without fabricating an ecosystem, and that system would've been fuelled by the incorporation of the colonised.
How does one define himself while his consciousness is being mechanised by the past’s self-proclaimed cultured and civilised lawgivers? The colonial vacci- nation worked only when the colonised accommodatingly entertained it. Studies were done, history was reinvented, and the colonial subjects had to be fractionally Europeanised; such a grand adventure would echo the inner self of the neo-colonised. The contem- porary, well-educated, neo-colonised fail to reject the muddy path paved by the colonisers, unconsciously yet confidently heading towards uncertainty. The perception of the past is ridiculously set and limited by the seductive but deranged colonial narratives. The perennial romanti-cisation of such imprudence will haunt the lingering self-victimisers. The past is dismantled and bulldozed, yet the colonial fixity remains untouched. To avoid being tagged as ‘radical’, parroting has to displace the folklore.
To sneak into the ditch of education, inculpate the racine. Isn’t it facile to dehumanise someone through the occidental glasses ? Such glasses won’t feel sorry for being themselves; that’s what they are supposed to be. But the eyes ? Wouldn’t it be ludicrous to loan the conscious- ness of such a loony ? Winning the epitome of back- wardness, danger, and the title of being an imminent threat to the civilisational natural order remains the only spot where an educated neo-colonial subject could sneak into. Identity against Identity ! Indigenous against Indigenous ! The nature of Homo Econo-micus with colonial equipment! While the old stories were masked and the colonial miracles were injected, the selective spiels were circulated to disrupt the societal framework and fabricate ludicrous justifications. In such a way, the rapport between the boundary and identity is perilously rearticulated, facilitating the involvement of foreign entities. Who isn’t against colonialism or colonial practices ? Contem- porary issues, including the border and socio-political issues, still require colonial endeavours to solve the problems or justify one’s legitimacy. Now, these colonial endeavours become the ultimate history of the neo-colonised. When the justifications roll in from colonial experiments, the decolonisation itself can be critically reexamined.
Most of the intellectuals, if not all, remain inseparable from the colonial narratives, believing that their society no longer understands them. Perhaps they don’t comprehend their society. Thus, these masquerading intellectuals are less concerned about their society and become less enthusiastic about being part of their people. Doesn’t this justify the success of existential deviation imposed upon the colonised by the colonial masters? Fanon (2004) precisely said, “At the level of the unconscious, therefore, colonialism was not seeking to be perceived by the indigenous population as a sweet, kind-hearted mother who protects her child from a hostile environment, but rather a mother who constantly prevents her basically perverse child from committing suicide [...] protecting the child from itself [...].” The West-sponsored education was nothing but to “hammer” the mentality of the Indigenous and inject malicious colonial narratives. Yet the neo-colonised are still dancing in the rhythm of the neo-colonisers as much as the colonised did in the venomous rhythm of the colonial masters. Such narratives within the so-called education, deceitfully gifted by these colonisers, cause such a long-lasting headache even in this contemporary world, putting the post-colonial intellectuals completely in a state of hangover.
There is nothing to romanticise or embrace about such narratives in a post-colonised society. The more a society allows itself to be engulfed by colonial narratives, the longer the civilisational hibernation continues. Whenever the West-introduced norms pop up over the traditional ones, it’s better to critically examine whether a tradition is being replaced by someone else’s tradition.
Work cited
Fanon, F. (2004). The Wretched of the Earth (C. Farrington, Trans.). Grove Press.
The writer is MA Centre for French and Franco-phone Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University and can be reached at [email protected]
Colonialism is obliviously studied through the lens of a distant past, particularly in our history books. It is often theorised but never fully understood, and it would only be once post-colonial societies get vaccinated to be immune to colonial modalities. The decades-long process of theorisation fails to decipher the ludicrous yet tantalising colonial narratives; instead, the decolonisation itself is in the past. Nothing emanates wrong from this colossal arena of theories unless they fail to rescue the crumbling societal frame. When these societies get utterly engulfed by foreign masks, is colonialism responsible for it or these impractical theorisations ?
Ignited as the product of the one-sided desire for power and domination of certain classes, colonialism didn’t fail to inject lies and hoax the colonised. Impressions were inserted so much that the colonised were forced to feel like aliens in their own milieu. Acknowledging that the colony was not an extension of the metropole, colonialism needed experimental practices that fluctuated the identities of both colonisers and the colonised. It would be impossible to generate such articulation without fabricating an ecosystem, and that system would've been fuelled by the incorporation of the colonised.
How does one define himself while his consciousness is being mechanised by the past’s self-proclaimed cultured and civilised lawgivers? The colonial vacci- nation worked only when the colonised accommodatingly entertained it. Studies were done, history was reinvented, and the colonial subjects had to be fractionally Europeanised; such a grand adventure would echo the inner self of the neo-colonised. The contem- porary, well-educated, neo-colonised fail to reject the muddy path paved by the colonisers, unconsciously yet confidently heading towards uncertainty. The perception of the past is ridiculously set and limited by the seductive but deranged colonial narratives. The perennial romanti-cisation of such imprudence will haunt the lingering self-victimisers. The past is dismantled and bulldozed, yet the colonial fixity remains untouched. To avoid being tagged as ‘radical’, parroting has to displace the folklore.
To sneak into the ditch of education, inculpate the racine. Isn’t it facile to dehumanise someone through the occidental glasses ? Such glasses won’t feel sorry for being themselves; that’s what they are supposed to be. But the eyes ? Wouldn’t it be ludicrous to loan the conscious- ness of such a loony ? Winning the epitome of back- wardness, danger, and the title of being an imminent threat to the civilisational natural order remains the only spot where an educated neo-colonial subject could sneak into. Identity against Identity ! Indigenous against Indigenous ! The nature of Homo Econo-micus with colonial equipment! While the old stories were masked and the colonial miracles were injected, the selective spiels were circulated to disrupt the societal framework and fabricate ludicrous justifications. In such a way, the rapport between the boundary and identity is perilously rearticulated, facilitating the involvement of foreign entities. Who isn’t against colonialism or colonial practices ? Contem- porary issues, including the border and socio-political issues, still require colonial endeavours to solve the problems or justify one’s legitimacy. Now, these colonial endeavours become the ultimate history of the neo-colonised. When the justifications roll in from colonial experiments, the decolonisation itself can be critically reexamined.
Most of the intellectuals, if not all, remain inseparable from the colonial narratives, believing that their society no longer understands them. Perhaps they don’t comprehend their society. Thus, these masquerading intellectuals are less concerned about their society and become less enthusiastic about being part of their people. Doesn’t this justify the success of existential deviation imposed upon the colonised by the colonial masters? Fanon (2004) precisely said, “At the level of the unconscious, therefore, colonialism was not seeking to be perceived by the indigenous population as a sweet, kind-hearted mother who protects her child from a hostile environment, but rather a mother who constantly prevents her basically perverse child from committing suicide [...] protecting the child from itself [...].” The West-sponsored education was nothing but to “hammer” the mentality of the Indigenous and inject malicious colonial narratives. Yet the neo-colonised are still dancing in the rhythm of the neo-colonisers as much as the colonised did in the venomous rhythm of the colonial masters. Such narratives within the so-called education, deceitfully gifted by these colonisers, cause such a long-lasting headache even in this contemporary world, putting the post-colonial intellectuals completely in a state of hangover.
There is nothing to romanticise or embrace about such narratives in a post-colonised society. The more a society allows itself to be engulfed by colonial narratives, the longer the civilisational hibernation continues. Whenever the West-introduced norms pop up over the traditional ones, it’s better to critically examine whether a tradition is being replaced by someone else’s tradition.
Work cited
Fanon, F. (2004). The Wretched of the Earth (C. Farrington, Trans.). Grove Press.
The writer is MA Centre for French and Franco-phone Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University and can be reached at [email protected]