Relations between Colonial Subjects and Imperial Culture - Essay Example

Relations Between Colonial Subjects and Imperial Culture The term Imperialism came into use in the 1890s, as a development of an older term ‘empire’. This term was primarily used a group of people who advocated the effort to expand the British Empire, as opposed to the policy of directing efforts towards national economic development. Imperialism refers to the policy or act of extending a nation’s authority through territorial acquisition or by establishing political and economic dominance over other nations. It refers to the systems, policies and practices of such a government who tries to extend a nation’s authority. Parenti (1995)1 defines imperialism as, “The process whereby the dominant politico-economic interests of one nation expropriate for their own enrichment the land, labor, raw materials, and markets of another people.” It is essentially the control of one or a number of countries by one dominant nation or power. The control could be political or economic or both and is characterized by a level of dependence on the nation that has been subjugated. Imperialism was carried on and promoted by taking over and monopolizing the external trade of the subjugated nations. The imperial power seizes the raw materials of the subjugated nation and returns to it finished goods, thereby discouraging the development and growth of any manufacturing industry which may compete with its own manufacturing units, thereby monopolizing trade. In this context it is relevant to consider what is known as cultural imperialism. Cultural imperialism is a concept that has evolved alongside the development of imperialism. Tomlinson (2001, p.3)2, defines cultural imperialism as, “The use of political and economic power to exalt and spread the values and habits of a foreign culture at the expense of a native culture.” By importing supportive forms of culture, cultural imperialism merely supported and assisted imperialism. Cultural imperialism believes that cultural factors are highly influential in maintaining political and economic dominance in a subjugated country. Lenin (1999)3 notes that imperialism is the highest and last stage of capitalism. He showed that imperialism is a newer and higher stage of the development of capitalism. He is of the opinion that imperialism is the monopoly stage of capitalism. Lenin gives five basic features or characteristics of imperialist stage of capitalism. Firstly, the concentration production and capital has given rise to monopolies, which play a decisive role in economic life. Secondly, the merging of bank capital with industrial capital has created financial capital which has further resulted in a state governed by a small group of people. Thirdly, the export of capital acquires more importance than the export of commodities. Fourthly, it results in the formation of international capitalist monopolist associations which share the world amongst themselves. Fifthly, it results in the territorial division of the entire world, among the largest capital powers. Having defined, described and elaborated on imperialism and its characteristics, this paper will further analyze the relations between colonial subjects and the imperial culture. This aspect will be examined through C.L.R. James’s book, Beyond a Boundary (1969)4 and many other sources that deal with the concept of imperialism and its effects. C.L.R. James’s Beyond a Boundary is a perfect blend of personal memoir, social history and cricket commentary. His book is considered to be a seminal work on the game of cricket. The underlying subject of his book his cricket. Alongside this he also describes the role cricket has played in his life and in the history of both West Indies and England. He had the unique ability to express in striking prose the beauty and drama involved in cricket. C.L.R. James begins his book with the autobiographical aspect and talks about the role that cricket played in his childhood. Born in 1901 in Trinidad, he was brought up in a household that was greatly influenced by Puritanism. This referred to the Puritanism of religion introduced in the West Indies by the British colonialists. Puritans referred to a group of English Protestants of the 16th and 17th century who strongly believed and followed strict religious discipline along with the simplification of ceremonies in the Church of England. Puritans generally lived according to the Protestant doctrines and believed luxury and pleasure as sins. He felt this Puritanism play a very major role in the formation of his personality and character, even though in later life he ventured away from religion. In addition to Puritanism, James says that the public school sporting ethos that he absorbed, when studying at Queen's Royal College, which is considered to be the most prestigious school in the Island, played a major role in shaping his attitude towards life itself as well as towards the game of cricket. He says that both Puritanism and the school ethos were responsible for creating in him a desire to see and practice fair-play, show moral fibre and continuously practice sportsman-like behaviour in the game itself. These are also the two reasons why it shocked him to encounter the cheating and corruption in the game. He admits that he was shocked to a greater degree to see cheating and corruption in cricket, when compared to the degree of shock he experienced when he encountered the same in business, politics and various other aspects of life. At this juncture he points out the social stratification existing in the West Indian society at that time, i.e., when it was a British colony. Again he uses only cricket to point out this particular aspect. Membership in the various school cricket teams in the colony of Trinidad, consisted of both fee paying pupils which included white and mixed race boys and poorer scholarship boys, predominantly black or Asians. Similarly, he talks about the difficulties he faced as a young man playing adult cricket. In his days, in adult cricket, players without an independent income were heavily disadvantaged. He says that was working as a teacher and admits that he was not quite of the standard inter-island or international games of cricket. He says that he was able to become a teacher and make his way out of the colony only because he had a sound background, with his father being a school teacher and his mother being very well read. However, he notes that many other talented cricketers were from working class or lower middle class background. And these people were greatly disadvantaged and could not make full use of the chance because they lacked independent income. They were mostly dependent on the goodwill of employers, families, friends and extended family. He notes that the wealthy amateurs did not face this problem at any point. He notes that while he developed a bond of friendship with some of the white, mixed race and black boys, there was always a level of discrimination because of social stratification and differing cultural backgrounds. When James was a teacher in Queen’s Royal College he felt the constraints of the colonial world. Although he started two journals with many other intellectual writers, most of whom were white, he left Trinidad and went to England. Here, he says that the reason he left was because he knew that he did not have a chance of a good future in Trinidad, being of black origin. He says that the only future he could have had in Trinidad was to become a civil servant and hand papers from men who were downstairs to men who were upstairs. In England he stayed with his friend Learie Constantine, who was in England trying to make a living out of cricket. It is evident that while he praises some aspects of the English culture, he remains a revolutionary (Cudjoe & Cain, 1995)5. According to Featherstone (2009, p. 22)6, “James’s work describes a complex evolution and mingling of identities, as imperial power dynamics, both political and cultural were put to test by new physical and ideological movements.” In England James tested his own ideas as well as the English culture. He found that despite the amount and levels of education the English had, the average Englishman had high levels of colour prejudice. After this he began decolonizing himself from the English culture. It can be said in this context that he has assumed a position of double consciousness. However, according to James double consciousness is the position one can assume in order to form postcolonial politics. According to him Englishness itself could be radically understood and changed only by people who both shared in it and were a part of it as well as outside it. Through this he symbolizes a cultural hybridism, which investigated and commemorated the process for the development of new emergent nationalisms in both the Caribbean as well as in England itself. This double consciousness represented by James is somewhat similar to the concept of ambivalence. Ashcroft, Griffiths & Tiffin (2007)7, deal with the concept of ambivalence extensively in their book. The term ambivalence was first developed in psychoanalysis to explain a state of mind which was characterized by a continual fluctuation between wanting one thing and wanting the opposite of it. Ashcroft, Griffiths & Tiffin say that this concept was adopted into the subject of colonialism and imperialism by Homi Bhabha, to describe the relationship between the people who were colonized and the colonizers. He says that their relation was most often characterized by a mixture of both attraction and repulsion. Instead of assuming that the colonized subjects are either resistant or subservient it takes on the position that both occur in a fluctuating relation in the mind of the colonized subject. Ambivalence also stresses on the relation between the colonized subjects and imperial culture. Ambivalence suggests that it may be both exploitative as well as nurturing. Hence from this we can say that James was also ambivalent to a certain extent, apart from being in a state of double consciousness. He was caught between the English culture as well as his inherent Caribbean culture. Moving on C.L.R. James then talks about the cultural influence that cricket has had. He observes that cricket was one of the greatest influences of the 19th century. He begins his argument by giving an example of the times in Greece when Olympic Games and Athenian sports played a very vital role in shaping social history. He says that the critical aspect or action that was part of all the drama in those days is that two individuals are made to go against each other in a conflict that is not only highly personal, but also equally symbolizing one or more social groups. According to him, “The cricket field is a stage on which selected individuals played representative roles which were charged with social significance.” James said that cricket was not merely a sport played by a group of individuals or a pastime; it had a far deeper social significance. He criticizes other Trotskyites for believing that cricket was a sport that was a pastime and something that diverted people from participating in active politics. He says that the political and cultural significance of cricket is beyond being a mere pastime. According to him cricket is instrumental in encouraging people in participating in politics. In this context, he ventures into the controversial issue of the captaincy of the West Indian team in the 1950s and 1960s. The West Indian team was initially made up of expatriate Englishmen who occupied the colonies in the Caribbean islands. However, over the years to come several black men of the population joined the team and some of them were highly talented. Despite this the team was traditionally captained by white men although not all of them were appropriate for the position. Furthermore, the black men in the team were forced to formally and respectfully address these captains. For example they were asked to address them as Mr. Alexander” or “Mr. Atkinson”. During this period the West Indian team was made up of players from various cricketing clubs of the Caribbean Island. In Trinidad there were four major clubs, namely, Queens Park, Maple, Shannon and Stingo. Depending on the section or strata of the society one came from and depending on the degree of blackness one was admitted into the different cricketing clubs. This particular aspect tells us of the situation back then and of the stark levels of discrimination and the kind of relations between colonial subjects and the imperialists. Things were going on in this fashion until the defeat against the English team in the year 1959, resulted in a public outcry and the controversial issue of captaincy became more marked and noticed. The discriminatory decisions of the selectors of the team were challenged by the public as a whole. By this time James was respected widely as a popular writer on cricket and he chose this moment to step in and voice the views of the public. He was instrumental in the appointment of Frank Worrell as the first black captain to lead the West Indian team. James considered it as his duty to lay racialism flat and make sure it does not rear its head time and again. His book encourages the readers to reflect on the social changes brought on by cricket. According to Carrington & McDonald (2001)8, C.L.R. James’s book is an archetypal inspiration that encourages people to stand up to any kind of racism and discrimination in cricket as well as in life itself. His book has been highly influential in exposing the ugly attitudes in the heart of the game of cricket. James’s combative nationalism and message conveyed in his book has been instrumental in bringing many an injustice to light and has been successful in bringing about compensation to affected parties. For example, an article in Wisden by Robert Henderson, attacking the black cricketers, brought him to justice and players such as Devon Malcolm etc., received considerable compensations after winning their court case against the magazine. Thus in conclusion it can be said that the relations between the colonized subjects and imperial culture was to a larger extent ambivalent. C.L.R James himself believed that a double consciousness, where one was both a part of the English culture as well as outside, it was necessary to establish postcolonial rule. While many aspects of the imperial culture and policies were accepted and imbibed by the colonized subjects there were others that they could not accept and strongly opposed. A basic example would be the game of cricket. While it was essentially a part of the imperial culture, it was accepted widely in the Caribbean Islands and other British colonies and some colonized subjects were had real talent for the game. They believed it to be recreational and enjoyed it. Some other aspects of imperial culture, for example some developmental policies were accepted and even welcome. However, they could not accept the discrimination that the selectors displayed or the general attitude of the white men towards the coloured men, all of which was a significant part of imperial culture. C.L.R James was again instrumental in fighting against racial discrimination in cricket as he believed, that by challenging discrimination in the cricket arena, the masses can gain confidence to challenge the same in the political arena, as cricket had a major role to play in the culture and politics of the country. Thus the relation between colonial subjects and imperial culture is considered to be ambivalent due the desire for one thing and hate for some aspects of it at the same time. Bibliography Carby, H V (1999). Cultures in Babylon: Black Britain and African America. Verso, 1999. Cain, P J & Harrison, M (2001). Imperialism: critical concepts in historical studies, Volume 2. Taylor & Francis, 2001 Harney, S (1996). Nationalism and Identity: Culture and the Imagination in a Caribbean Diaspora. Zed Books, 1996. McLeod, J (2007). The Routledge Companion to Postcolonial Studies. Routledge, 2007. Porter, A N (1994). European Imperialism, 1860-1914. Palgrave Macmillan, 1994. Science Encyclopedia (2009). Empire and Imperialism - Europe - Causes, Impact Of Imperialism On Europe, Relationship Between Metropole And Colonies, Changing Attitudes To Empire. Retrieved September 18, 2009. http://science.jrank.org/pages/7654/Empire-Imperialism-Europe.html Smith, W D (1982). European Imperialism in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries. Nelson-Hall, 1982. Read More