FROM SUBALTERN SILENCE TO NATIONAL CONSCIOUSNESS: RE-READING FANON AND SPIVAK IN POSTCOLONIAL NATION-BUILDING

Abstract

The relationship between postcolonial nation-building and the representation of
marginalized voices remains a significant concern in postcolonial studies.
While Frantz Fanon views national consciousness as a product of psychological
decolonization and collective resistance, Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak questions
the inclusivity of nationalist projects by exposing the persistent silencing of
subaltern voices. Although scholars have extensively examined Fanon's theories
of race and liberation and Spivak's concept of subalternity, limited attention
has been given to the intersection of these frameworks in discussions of
nation-building. This study undertakes a comparative textual analysis of
Fanon's Black Skin, White Masks (1952) and Spivak's “Can the Subaltern Speak?”
(1988) to explore the tensions between national consciousness and subaltern
agency. It argues that while Fanon emphasizes collective empowerment through
psychological decolonization, Spivak reveals the exclusions embedded within
nationalist discourse. The study contends that postcolonial nation-building
involves not only the recovery of collective identity but also the negotiation
of representation, voice, and inclusion. By placing Fanon and Spivak in
dialogue, this article offers a nuanced understanding of the possibilities and
limitations of postcolonial nation-building.