The Wretched of the Earth

Through taking this class, it allowed me to objectively look at various topics in regards to society, such as the phenomenon of colonialism and the current realities of the developing world. Over the past few weeks, we have been discussing the life of Franz Fanon and his novel The Wretched of the Earth. Fanon wrote this book in order to give a ‘psychiatric and psychological analysis of the dehumanizing effects that colonization had on the natives in order to establish a social movement for the decolonization of the people.’ The Wretched of the Earth was written several weeks before Fanon’s death, but was published posthumously in 1961. In addition to this novel, Fanon also wrote another book, Black Skin, White Masks, in which I will take general ideas from and relate them back to the course as well as the book. Before…

one must consider, is it appropriate to categorize all acts of violence under the same scope of unprovoked response when there are resistance movements who are fighting against foreign occupations of which they consider to be improper and immoral such as those in the Middle East? In other words, why are the acts of physical violence from these “extremists” not considered in relation to the oppressive actions that are being taken by the foreign occupying forces towards these resistance groups? Of…

Can violence ever be justified? This is always a thorny question. During the peaceful era, the answer seems to be rather straightforward— in order to achieve the social harmony, no violence should be justified. However, when the situation complicates, it seems to be reckless to give such a simple reply. After reading Frantz Fanon’s The Wretched of the Earth and watching the Battle of Algiers, I think, in the colonial context, it is justifiable for the colonized to use violence in pursuit of…

Wretched of the Earth by Frantz Fanon is a fierce and direct attack on colonization as a whole. What is stated in this literature can, by extracting Fanon’s main points, help understand the British colonialism that occurred in India. The British took over India, with their goal purely monetary. The powerful British East India Company made India “The jewel of British rule.” They made factories and made major profit off of Indian labour and goods. Although some Indians fought with the British, the…

The Wretched of The Earth. By Frantz Fanon. United States of America: Grove Press, New York. 35-316 pp. paper. The Wretched of The Earth by Frantz Fanon was first published by "Francois Maspero Editeur", Paris, France, under the title "Les damnes de la Terre", in the year of 1961. Later in 1963, "Presence Africaine" published The Wretched of The Earth. From then it published simultaneously in Canada and printed in America. Before I proceed I would like to point the spotlight on the name of the…

Examining the role of violence in the struggle for African liberation During the struggle for African liberation, violence was evident in the following works: The Battle of Algiers and Frantz Fanon’s Wretched of the Earth. In the film The Battle of Algiers, in almost every single scene there is a violent act, whether it is against the French or against the Algerian people. The film makes the violent aspect extremely clear and does not leave various details out partly since the filmmaker wanted…

In Wretched of the Earth, Frantz Fanon argues in favor of anti-colonial violence. When the colonized are forcibly stripped of their culture, language and of its humanity, they will naturally retaliate with violence, because it is the only option left of achieving decolonization. Fanon asserts that the colonizer uses a language of pure violence against the colonized. Because of this, the only communication possible between the colonizer and the colonized is violence. The French colonial policies…

In The Wretched of the Earth, Frantz Fanon alludes to sources of power for both colonizers and colonized. Colonizers gain their power from both physical and psychological violence, whereas the colonized must gain power over the colonizers through physically violent rebellion. Hannah Arendt, in Crises of the Republic, takes a very different view of power. While she agrees that occasionally violence is used to exert power and control, true power comes from the concerted efforts of the group, not…

Frantz Fanon’s The Wretched of the Earth is a powerful text concerning the struggle faced by colonized people on their journey against colonialism and towards liberation. Rooted not only in psychology but also in Marxism and critical theory, the book provides an analysis of number issues related to colonialism and decolonization. Fanon methodically examines a diverse range of issues including, but not limited to, racial identity formation, language, class, and the way in which they interact with…

The main argument in the beginning of The Wretched of the Earth is that decolonization is always a violent situation. When there is a total change in the social structure to a society it becomes a main goal of the native to make a change. Decolonization is a meeting of two opposite forces, the native and the settler, which usually ends up at in some kind of war. According to Fanon, in order for a group that has been decolonized to make a successful change the natives need to take action instead…