The Wretched of the Earth

by

Frantz Fanon

The Wretched of the Earth: Chapter 2: Grandeur and Weakness of Spontaneity Summary & Analysis

Summary
Analysis
The masses of a colonial country and the nationalist political party are usually not on the same page. The colonized intellectuals, who make up most of the political parties, are dedicated to their parties, and they often hold politics above what is actually best for colonial society. The colonized intellectuals that make up the political parties are the most politically-conscious of colonial society. They are the tradesmen and civil servants—the urban proletariat—and they make up less than one percent of the actual population of a developing country.
In short, one percent of the country dictates how the other 99 percent live. This system is rooted in unfairness, and it will have important implications after independence. Once the colonial power leaves, the urban proletariat is still in power, and they continue to exploit the masses, leading to another form of neocolonialism. The urban proletariat operates with Western politics, which, Fanon maintains, must be discarded.
Themes
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Decolonization, Neocolonialism, and Social Class Theme Icon
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The urban proletariat is the most privileged of colonial society, and they have everything to lose by dismantling the colonial power. They are the taxi drivers, nurses, doctors, lawyers, and they are the “bourgeois” of colonial society. This national bourgeoisie is in conflict with the masses. They live Western lives and work Western jobs, and they see traditional native life as a barrier to growth. The national bourgeoisie also has Western political views, and they see the peasant masses as a barrier as well. They believe the masses are not politically conscious and generally disorganized. 
The national bourgeoisie looks at the peasant masses exactly as the colonialists do. They barely acknowledge their existence and nothing that they do is for the benefit of the peasants. The national bourgeoisie lives a very Westernized life, which can’t remain if the nation is truly decolonized. The bourgeoisie know this, and so they keep the peasants at arm’s length and try to maintain their own way of living. 
Themes
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Decolonization, Neocolonialism, and Social Class Theme Icon
The peasant masses are “staunch defender[s] of tradition,” and they distrust those who live in cities. They believe city dwellers to be morally bankrupt, and the city dwellers likewise look at the masses with suspicion. The colonialists know this, and they fan the flames of discontent by mobilizing the peasants against the city dwellers and fueling tribal identities. The political parties make no effort to reach out to the peasant masses, and they even ignore and publically ridicule traditional chiefs.
The peasant masses live fairly traditional lives and do not, as a general rule, live by Western standards as those in the cities do. The colonialists, Fanon implies, are always looking for ways to oppress and control. By playing the masses against one another, the colonialists get what they want (control of the nation) and the colonized move further away from independence.
Themes
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Oppression and Mental Health Theme Icon
Decolonization, Neocolonialism, and Social Class Theme Icon
The nationalist parties, as a general rule, are not against a revolt, but they wait for the peasant masses to do it for them. Nationalist parties don’t get directly involved in revolts, and they do not organize them in any way, but they are not averse to a sustained uprising. They avoid the revolting peasant and tell the colonial police they have nothing to do with rebellion. There are no meetings or talks between any of them, and this serves to reinforce the existing distrust between the masses and the nationalist parties.  
The nationalist parties see the peasant masses as tools at their disposal. They will use the peasants to man their revolution, but they make no effort to help them. Fanon repeatedly implies that the nation must come together to become independent, and he does so here as well. There are many chances to join forces between the peasants and the political parties, but they are not taken. 
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Decolonization, Neocolonialism, and Social Class Theme Icon
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The distrust between the peasant masses and the nationalist parties in the colonial period extends into the national period. Therefore, the nationalist parties are tempted to keep “firm control” of the masses, as their opinion of the masses is much like the view of the colonists. They aren’t sure how the masses will react, and they approach them with extreme caution.
Again, the political parties look at the peasant masses as if the parties are colonialists, not nationalists. The parties want “firm control” of the masses, which again hearkens to neocolonialism. The peasants are not free, even after the colonial power is gone.
Themes
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Decolonization, Neocolonialism, and Social Class Theme Icon
During the liberation struggle, the colonial country usually creates a national labor movement, which is another way for those in the cities to put pressure on the colonial power. Like the urban proletariat, the labor unions are made up of the same privileged workers who do not represent the population as a whole. In the colonial phase, the labor unions have the power to inforce strikes, which cripple the local colonial economy. But even during all this upheaval, the peasant masses remain completely unaffected by such political and economic happenings.   
Again, the peasant masses are unaffected because they do not live Western lives. If the economy crashes, they don’t feel the strain. They will eventually, Fanon argues, but initially it makes little difference to them. As Fanon points out, the political parties of the developing nation often act in ways that are counterproductive to the developing nation and beneficial to only the small urban proletariat. 
Themes
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Decolonization, Neocolonialism, and Social Class Theme Icon
Therefore, Fanon says, the labor unions aren’t exactly in step with the rest of the nation, either. The labor unions are completely isolated from the peasant masses, and they make little headway. Once depression and anxiety set in, in response to the realization that the new nation is going nowhere, the labor unions decide that politics must involve the whole nation, and they move to educate the peasant masses politically. The peasants are not immediately receptive. They are, after all, “the only spontaneously revolutionary force in the country,” and they have thus far been ignored. 
The key to independence, Fanon argues, is using the peasant masses in the right way. Fanon argues that government should be decentralized and moved closer to the peasant masses, and this passage reflects the reasons why. The peasants are easily ignored because they are removed from the cities. This, too, harkens to Fanon’s argument regarding mental health: colonialism is damaging to everyone involved.   
Themes
Decolonization, Neocolonialism, and Social Class Theme Icon
Yet the peasant masses are crucial to the struggle for national liberation. For instance, when the rebels, who have been persecuted by the colonial police, begin to make waves and noise about liberation, they become the targets of colonial repression. They are arrested, convicted, tortured, and released; then they retreat to the countryside, where the peasant masses welcome them. The peasant masses are easily excited by the rebels’ talks of freedom, and the rebels are pleasantly surprised to find that the peasants look at their national struggle in much the same way. They, too, believe their revolt must be violent. They are ready to sacrifice, and, along with the rebels, they “can produce an explosive mixture of unexpected power.”
The rebels are revolutionaries who advocate for freedom and independence. When they start to express ideas of freedom, the colonial power arrests and tortures them, which again underscores the complete control and oppression of colonial rule. This “explosive mixture of unexpected power” is what Fanon says is necessary to win the struggle for nationhood. This again reflects Fanon’s central claim of the importance of violence in decolonization, as both the rebels and the peasants know their revolution will involve violence. 
Themes
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Decolonization, Neocolonialism, and Social Class Theme Icon
Rebellion upends political parties. Some political parties in colonial countries secretly align with the colonists and hope that rebellion fails. They see a rebellion ending only in bloodshed, and this causes the political parties to isolate. Before long, the leaders of the rebellion decide to take their fight to the cities, and they are largely successful because of the peasant masses who had been earlier forced into cities. Peasant life is tough, and it is not unheard of for some peasants to relocate to the cities looking for an easier life.
Bloodshed is not the only reason why the political parties don’t want a revolution. Decolonization will threaten their comfortable, Westernized lives, so they would prefer that the colonial power stay put, and their lives go on as usual. Of course, this sentiment isn’t shared by the peasant masses (99 percent of the population), and the nation is deeply divided by this paramount difference.
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Decolonization, Neocolonialism, and Social Class Theme Icon
Peasant masses who relocate to the cities often find it hard to fit in, so when the rebellion comes to town, they are more than ready to join in the fight. Some of these peasants move from town to town, unable to find a place, living in makeshift shantytowns. These masses are the lumpenproletariat, and they are the “urban spearhead” of the rebellion. The lumpenproletariat are starving men who have no family or tribe, and they are “the most spontaneously and radically revolutionary forces of a colonized people.” 
Revolution, Fanon implies, cannot be accomplished without the lumpenproletariat. His description of them as the “spearhead” again points to the violence of revolution and colonialism. Again, the urban proletariat looks at the peasant in much the same way the colonialists do, which is why the proletariats do not easily accept the peasants into their society and why the lumpenproletariats must sleep in shantytowns.  
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Decolonization, Neocolonialism, and Social Class Theme Icon
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In Kenya, during 1950 and ‘51, the British colonial police increased their tactics against the lumpenproletariat. During this time, there was a massive inflow of Kenyans from outlying rural areas, and they began to steal and debauch. Juvenile delinquency is usually associated with the lumpenproletariat, Fanon says. They are the “hooligans,” and they are a serious threat to the safety of colonial society. They believe in violence, guns, and hand grenades, and there are women among their ranks, too. Prostitutes and domestic workers are all part of the lumpenproletariat.
These “hooligans” are whom Fanon says will win the revolution. The lumpenproletariat is the lowest level of society. They are the violent criminals, which is precisely why they will be useful in the revolution. Revolution will take guns and hand grenades, Fanon says, and it is best to enlist the help of those who have experience using them.
Themes
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Decolonization, Neocolonialism, and Social Class Theme Icon
The rebellion, with “a hatred for ‘politics’ and demagoguery,” mobilizes. The revolt grabs the attention of the colonial regime, which also mobilizes and threatens to diffuse the rebellion. But the rebellion cannot be swayed. They are driven forward by a belief that the nation must exist and that all foreigners must leave. In this heightened state of anxiety, the national cause strengthens and gains traction. “[S]pontaneity rules,” and the people are drawn together against the colonial force. If a nation lives anywhere, Fanon says, it must be here. During this time, there is a sense of unity. Old feuds are resolved, quarrels squashed, and political consciousness is infused with faith in the nation. There is solidarity among tribes and villages, and this unity spills over to the national level as well. Pretty soon, everyone is standing up.   
Fanon puts the word “politics” into quotations as if to imply that this form of politics shouldn’t really be considered as such. Again, he refers to politicians as “demagogues,” which means that their politics are rooted in their personal interests rather than what is in the best interest of the nation as a whole. Fanon frequently refers to “spontaneity” as the force needed for revolution, and he claims that the lumpenproletariat and the peasant masses are the only social classes who possess it. Even though they may be the only ones who initially have spontaneity, they do seem to be able to spread it.  
Themes
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Decolonization, Neocolonialism, and Social Class Theme Icon
Still, despite this optimism, losses to the rebellion are extensive, and those who live feel a massive sense of guilt. The rebellion, it seems, is destined to fail. The rebellion sees their members taken down by colonial machine gun fire, and they begin thinking that maybe rebellion isn’t such a good idea. In 1961 in Angola, Fanon says, the Angolan peasants were attacked by the Portuguese. Countless Angolans engaged the Portuguese, but the Angolans were littered with machine gun bullets. In the end, the Angolan National Army resorted to guerrilla warfare techniques.  Guerrilla warfare, Fanon says, is fighting on the move. Guerrilla soldiers move from town to town, sneaking up on their enemy in the dark. There is no strategy and no position, and just when the colonial police think that they are close to apprehending the guerrilla soldier, he comes from behind and ambushes the colonial forces.  
In the Algerian War of Independence, which Fanon was affiliated with and mentions several times in the book, guerrilla warfare was a major part the Algerian strategy that won the war. Fanon argues that guerrilla warfare is indispensable in the struggle for nationhood. The rebellion does not have the best weapons, or even enough people, by guerrilla tactics prove to be effective. This massive sense of guilt felt by survivors is more deeply explored in Fanon’s chapter on mental health, which implies that this guilt is a very real, and very destructive, force.  
Themes
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Oppression and Mental Health Theme Icon
Decolonization, Neocolonialism, and Social Class Theme Icon
The rebellion soon discovers that they must formally form into an army and establish a central authority. They transform the rebellion into a revolutionary war and establish a clear set of objectives. The newly organized rebellion goes about fighting in a controlled and well-thought-out way, but this does not win national wars, Fanon says.
Fanon lays out several scenarios that won’t lead to independence, such as forming an army in the Western sense of the word. The Europeans can easily wipe out a centralized army and authority. Thus, such ideas should be avoided.
Themes
Decolonization, Neocolonialism, and Social Class Theme Icon
Colonialism has historically found ways in which to use the lumpenproletariat. Any national liberation movement, Fanon says, would do well to pay increased attention to the lumpenproletariat. They can always be convinced to revolt, and they have also been known to take up arms with the colonialists, who are more than willing to exploit the lumpenproletariat.
Essentially, the colonialists are more than happy to exploit the lumpenproletariats. They know what this social class is capable of, and they don’t want the lumpenproletariat to be utilized by the rebellion, either. Fanon portrays the lumpenproletariat in a way that suggests they will fight anyone if given the chance.  
Themes
Colonialism, Racism, and Violence Theme Icon
Decolonization, Neocolonialism, and Social Class Theme Icon
Racism and defending one’s skin are perfectly good reasons to join a struggle for liberation, but racism and hatred will not sustain a revolutionary war. The struggle for nationhood is not one that can be bridged with one step. It is a daily struggle with suffering that lasts far after the exit of the colonial power. Strength and rich reserves are needed, Fanon says, because “the reserves of colonialism are far richer and more substantial than of those of the colonized.”
The revolutionary war, Fanon implies, is deeper than anger and racism. It must be rooted in the struggle for the nation as a whole, which transcends race and is indifferent to anger. Racism and anger can give a boost to revolution, but in the end, it must be a desire for nationhood and nothing else that leads the struggle.
Themes
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Decolonization, Neocolonialism, and Social Class Theme Icon
Quotes
Those who embrace the Manichaeanism of the colonizer and believe in black against white realize that “some blacks can be whiter than whites, and that the prospect of a national flag or independence does not automatically result in certain segments of the population giving up their privileges and their interests.” There are those who will profit considerably from war at the expense of those who sacrificed so freely. While a revolution may banish colonial oppression, there is still another system of oppression building. The people of the nation must abandon their simple view of the oppressor, Fanon says, as it is changing right in front of them. 
Here, Fanon implies that being “white” isn’t necessarily the color of one’s skin, but the desire to subjugate and exploit those one feels are inferior. In this way, even the formerly colonized can behave in a way that is traditionally “white” or Manichaean. In this way, independence is not in the name of the flag or the nation, but in personal interests, and this cannot sustain a revolution or a new and developing nation.  
Themes
Colonialism, Racism, and Violence Theme Icon
Decolonization, Neocolonialism, and Social Class Theme Icon
Quotes