Decolonizing Knowledge and the Canon

Decolonizing knowledge challenges the dominance of Western frameworks and literary canons, seeking to recenter the languages, texts, and epistemologies of the formerly colonized.

Definition

The study of efforts to displace Western-centric canons and epistemologies and to center the languages, texts, and knowledge systems of colonized and formerly colonized peoples.

Scope

This topic examines efforts to decolonize the curriculum, the literary canon, and the production of knowledge: Ngugi's argument for writing in African languages, Said's contrapuntal critique of the imperial canon, and the project of valuing postcolonial and world literatures. It addresses contemporary 'decolonize the curriculum' movements and their debates.

Core questions

• Whose works and languages constitute the canon, and why?
• Can knowledge and curricula be decolonized, and how?
• What is at stake in the language of postcolonial writing?

Key theories

Decolonising the mind

Ngugi wa Thiong'o argued that language is central to colonial domination and that African writers should write in African languages to reclaim cultural autonomy.

The empire writes back

Ashcroft, Griffiths, and Tiffin showed how postcolonial literatures appropriate and transform the colonizer's language and canon to assert difference.

History

Debates over the canon intensified through the 1980s and 1990s as postcolonial literatures gained recognition. Ngugi's call to abandon English, Said's contrapuntal readings, and The Empire Writes Back shaped the field, while 'decolonize the curriculum' movements revived these questions in the 2010s.

Debates

Language of postcolonial writing

Writers dispute whether to write in colonial or indigenous languages, with Ngugi favoring African languages and others defending appropriation of English.

Key figures

• Ngugi wa Thiong'o
• Edward Said
• Bill Ashcroft
• Gareth Griffiths
• Helen Tiffin

Seminal works

• ngugi1986
• said1993
• ashcroftetal1989

Frequently asked questions

What does decolonizing knowledge mean?

It refers to challenging the dominance of Western frameworks, canons, and languages in education and scholarship, and recentering the knowledge and voices of colonized peoples.