Chapter 12: Postcolonialism by Siba N. Grovogui

1. Chapter 12: Postcolonialism by Siba N. Grovogui

2. Learning outcomes After this lecture you should be able to: Understand the key principles of postcolonial writing Understand the key principles of Said�s Orientalism Understand the applications of postcolonial thinking in international relations theory and international politics

3. Postcolonialsm Postcolonialism Highlights that in celebrating reason, science and technology, the Europeans have degraded the culture, arts and science in non-European societies Implicates academic disciplines with this process and contests the Western rationalist, humanist and universalist modes of thinking Draws on a multiplicity of perspectives from different regions, historical contexts and academic disciplines

4. Knowledge and power Postcolonialism notes that knowledge and power are intertwined knowledge power Postcolonialism is sceptical of everyday knowledge, expert knowledge as well as Western efforts to save the underprivileged as hiding colonial categories and tendencies

5. Challenging the Western canon Postcolonialists challenge classical Western canon and draw three conclusions: We must note the political effects of categories such as international order, society or ethics derivative from colonial history There are double movements of presence and erasure in Western moral debates 3) Postcolonialism is sceptical of the objectivism and neutrality implied by Western disciplinary narratives

6. Postcolonialism and International Relations Postcolonialism points to the forms of violence that went with the European creation of international order In International Relations, postcolonialism harbours a suspicion of the universalisms and rationalizations of the liberals and the mutuality and co-constitutions of norms emphasised by the constructivists Postcolonialism is associated with the study of identity and culture in their fluid contexts. They see both dangers and opportunities in their transformation

7. Said and Orientalism Said�s Orientalism emphasised the techniques of power at work in Western language and representations of the Middle East One can utilise Said�s framework in analysing today�s images of the Middle East as well as those from the past The war on terror can be seen to embody particular definitions and discourses of terrorism that arise from Orientalism existence of separate hierarchical spheres of civilisations, need to defend Western values against corrupt ones and necessity of moderate Arabs to join the Western framework These, however, present a particular view of history and present that distorts historical co-dependencies and cultural nuances

8. Postcolonialsim on imperial legacy Postcolonial thinking requires that one is able to challenge the disciplinary common sense. The notion of Pax Britannica expresses British empire in a positive light. Postcolonialism notes that the experiences of the colonized differ substantially from those of the colonisers A postcolonial understanding of nuclear non-proliferation treaties reveals that the treaties, while inhibiting the ability of weaker post-colonial states to gain arms, allow the proliferation of nuclear arms in the possession of the western states to go unnoticed.

9. Case study: Suez Canal The accounts of the Suez Canal War still read as stories of superpower balance of power and recklessness of third world nationalism To postcolonialists the decision of Britain, France and Israel to wage war on Egypt was illogical, and reckless in its own way: Nasser was right that the internationalization of Suez was a throwback to European notions of imperial sovereignty and went against the post-war notion of self-determination

10. Conclusion Postcolonialism Seeks contingent and empathic understandings of human trajectories and favours egalitarianism, social justice and solidarity Advances a different kind of universalism based on deliberation and contestation amongst diverse political entities Notes the failure of the international system to fully include postcolonial nations in decision-making and is sceptical of hegemony, unilateral rules and memory of international relations Recognises the fluidity and hybridity of culture and identity