HISTORISM AND POST COLONIALISM

Historicism is an explanation for things, particularly cultural and social practices

(including ideas and beliefs), through analysing its history, or the process by which they
were created. It is frequently used in anthropology, sociology, and philosophy. This
historical explanation approach varies from and complements the functionalism
explanation approach, which aims to explain a phenomenon, such as a social form, by
giving rational justifications for how that social form serves some purpose in the
framework of a society. The historical approach, on the other hand, asks "Where did this
come from?" and "What factors led up to its creation?" This means that historical
explanations frequently place a greater emphasis on the role of process and
contingency. Instead of taking the phenomenon as a given and then trying to defend it
from reasoned principles. Historicism is a useful approach to understand how cultural
and social phenomena came to be and is frequently used to contextualize theories and
narratives. According to Hamilton (2003), historicism is a critical approach that
emphasizes the crucial role that historical context plays in interpreting all sorts of
writings. It has had a long history of influencing many viewpoints, and has recently
undergone a vibrant renewal in contemporary literary criticism. Postmodernism and post
structuralism, the two most well-known critical movements of the late 20th century are
now best understood in relation to the historical images they entail. Nonetheless, this
historical turn continues a moment historical practice.

Post-colonialism is the term used to define the historical era or present situation that
follows Western colonialism. It can also refer to the continuous effort to recover and
reimagine the history and power of those who were subjected to different forms of
imperialism. Post - colonialism suggests a future in which colonialism may be defeated,
but after such changes, new forms of dominance or subordination, even new kinds of
global empire, may arise. Post-colonialism does not claim that colonialism never existed
in the world in which we currently live. Post-colonialism primarily deals with literary
works that has been written by the colonized in colonized countries. Post-colonialism,
seeks to analyze what has been missing from literary interpretations, by emphasizing on
the interests of the colonized and the destructive powers of the colonizer's dominance
as imposed on the colonized. Post-colonialism consequently becomes less of a
formalized school of literary criticism and more of a reading approach, similar to how
deconstructing is. According to Guevara (1964), some of post-colonialism's detractors
contend that if post-colonialism is to aid colonized peoples and improve their lives, then
those who have been colonized, not academics from the West, should carry out its
reading methodology. According to some critics, post-colonialism must consequently
work to strengthen individuals who have been deprived of their authority, dignity, and
sense of worth rather than continuing to marginalize the colonized through language
that is only accessible to the culturally privileged. Some opponents speculate that post-
colonialism may only be radical in its rhetoric and not in its ability to alter people's lives.

Guevara, C. (1964, December 11). Postcolonialism.

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REFERENCES

Hamilton, P. (2003). Historicism. Psychology Press.

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