Frantz fanonThe fact of blackness The pitfalls of national consciousnessHAN UL SHIN

1. the fact of blackness

Fanon narratively speaks about his experience as a black man.

TextJust being white, you will win.

Before I move to Fanons first essay, I want to show you an advertisement from Thailand.Not only Thailand, but still many countries (especially in Asia) idolise the whiteness while they neglect the blackness.

This advertisement shows the inferior image of black. You can see from the advertisement, that people want to be white, and not black.Its not only in this advertisement, but even in US, the whitening products were popular among afro-americans during 1950-1970.

Then, is blackness inferior by nature, or is it by social construct?

TextBlackness as a social uniformBlackness as a constructed identityAs long as the black man is among his own, he will have no occasion, except in minor internal conflicts, to experience his being through others.Association of blackness with negativity

In The Fact of Blackness, Fanon argues that blackness is a constructed identity, which has a purpose of distinguishing black and white. That is, a person who is black is not black by nature but, instead of being an innate identity, such a person has in fact been blackened by the society in which the individual lives.

By saying As long as the black man is among his own, he will have no occasion, except in minor internal conflicts, to experience his being through others. he argues that the inferiority of black are made by society. This sentence also shows his idea that the terms black and white have no meaning outside of racial discourse.

He believes that the term black is understood as a negative term, and led to the association of blackness with negativity by whites.

Textfixed image as black man and new identityAnti-semite and the Jew Jean-Paul SartreFixed image as black manNew identity be a man among other men

In his article, Fanon uses Sartres article, The Anti-Semite and the Jew as a means of comparison. By saying that The jew is disliked from the moment he is tracked down, he differentiate the alienation toward black from other alienation. Fanon points out that Jew are not able to be recognised by his look, but as soon as you see a Black man his Blackness is obvious.

He calls this that he has a fixed image, and he is locked into the infernal circle as a black.

I agree with his point, that racism is different from other alienation. Because its obvious, it cant be hidden.

Through his essay, he shows his willingness that he wants to find a new identity other than black. He wants to be a man among other men. So he asks white about the rational reason for racism. When he didnt get an answer, he calls himself as an irrational being. It some like he decided to become illogical himself to respond to illogical racism.It made me of come up with the phrase, eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth..

2. The pitfalls of national consciousness

TextColonisationClass divisions within the colonial societyNational consciousness

Fanon argues that colonisation creates class division within the colonial society. It creates the national bourgeoisies, but this bourgeoisies are not a bourgeoisie in a Marxist sense, because it lacks capital to generate productivity. Bourgeois class run the government for its own benefit.

According to him, colonisation also awakes the national consciousness, and the middle class of the colonial society are the force which motivate its people for decolonisation. But it often emerges in a problematic forms, such middle class are lack of economic resources, and they are geographically concentrated in capital city which cause the economic gap between the capital and other cities.

Textthe middle class nationalist and economyIncapability to seek out new systems of managementsEconomic stagnationSurround artisan class with a chauvinistic tendernessRaw materials or unfinished products

Since the middle class have abstract knowledge and relation to actual material resources and possibilities, they often cause economic stagnation with its false policies.

The middle class also finds it impossible to set up factories that make profit both for themselves and the country, they surround the artisan class with a chauvinistic tenderness in keeping with the new awareness of national dignity, and which moreover will bring them in quite a lot of money.

Also, since there are no single industry in the country, the colonised country is still sending out the raw materials, and unfinished products.

Textnationalism and economiesNationalisation of economyLocal middle class Intermediaries for foreign capitalist concernsNationalised Agriculture without introducing new agricultural methodsProducing unfinished, or raw materials.

The middle class in post colonialism countries lacked the dynamic, transformative character of rise of earlier middle class. Rather than pursuing the national interests, they pursue their own interests and become a intermediaries for foreign capitalist concerns.

For example, Agriculture - they do not try to introduce new agricultural methods, and it obtains privileges even more than the time it was possessed by colonisers.in another industries, they produce same raw materials like under the colonial time

TextPitfalls of nationalismRacismTribalism - failure to enlighten massesReligious conflict - along with tribalism Bourgeoisie focused on its own interest

Racism.

The nationalism often results another racism. The nationalisation of the economy brings the conflict with non-national africans and Fanon argues that from nationalism -> ultra nationalism -> chauvinism -> racism. And Africans kick out the foreigners from the country.

TribalismIn the rural area. Bourgeoisie fails to enlighten public. fails to bond them as a whole. He argues that it is easy for people who are in underdeveloped countries, to develop the social consciousness before national consciousness, and it can bring the danger things like tribalism happens.

Religious conflict - Islam vs Catholic

Bourgeoisie focus on its own interest. Do not consider the profit of whole nation> national bourgeoisie as obstacle. they are opposed to interests of whole Africa.

Fanon was arguing the middle class are selfish, but I didnt fully agree with this argument. That I thought if the middle class was not thinking about national interests at all, what motivated them to be independent from the colonised country, and why they tried to motivate public with national consciousness idea.

TextconclusionWorries about end-product of nationalismMove rapidly from sense of nationalism to political social consciousnessIntellectuals collaborating with the public against the national bourgeoisie

He believed the nationalism itself can not do much so the movement from sense of nationalism to political social consciousness is important.But at the same time he argues that if political, social consciousness comes before the sense of nationalism, it could be dangerous that it can bring the tribalism.

I found it as the limitation of his argument, that he was seeing the nationalism as a necessary evil, but did not pose any alternative options.

Also, he argues that postcolonial nation should not depend on foreign investment or better relations with wealthy countries, but the mobilising of its revolutionary capital, which is the people.

But I question that if the foreign investment and the better relations with wealthy countries cant have any positive effect on the post-colonial countries. As he argues in the article, that bourgeoisie fails to take the industries into the further level, that the colonised countries remain producing raw material, and unfinished products. But even though with the relations with the wealthy countries, if the bourgeoisie understand the strong point of their national economics, I believe that colonial countries can make a better situation and thrive the true meaning of independence than the time it was colonised.

Texthis work and nationalismidentity as blackwhiteto be liberate from the given identitycolonialismnational consciousnessto be independent from colonialismgoalcreatedexternal factor

There are 10 years of difference between two articles. From the first article, he tried to discover the core of self, while in the second article he was trying to discover the core of people and the independence.

I tried to connect two readings together in a sense of nationalism, and post colonialism.

And I came to the conclusion of this.the identity of black was given by white people, likewise national consciousness were created by colonialism. And that as he wants the new identity other than the blackness to be liberated from it, the middle class brought nationalism to be independent as well.

TextDiscussion pointIs foreign investment and the relationship with wealthy countries become tackle for the independence?Can nationalism be a force for good?Can social and political consciousness come before the national consciousness?

2nd question is the title of talking point forum of BBC in 2001.