Deck 10: Postcolonial and Decolonial Approaches

Question 1

Postcolonial approaches involve retrieving indigenous epistemologies and cosmologies with which to think about relations among humans and, often, non-humans.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

'Modernity/colonialty' is a term developed among Latin American thinkers, which argues that, contrary to the conventional view of modernity as progressive, equalizing, and democratic, the philosophical and political project of modernity is foundationally premised on coloniality.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Who argued that, as a system, colonialism represents a totalizing form of violence?

A) Dipesh Chakrabarty
B) Antonio Gramsci
C) Gloria Anzaldúa
D) Frantz Fanon

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Which of the following statements does not describe the common patterns of imperial or colonial control exercised by European powers?

A) Politically, they forced a formal recognition of imperial rule in the area, such as through declaring loyalty to a European monarch.
B) Economically, they often forced indigenous or imported enslaved peoples to work and produce mostly for imperial markets, for little or no reward. They also extracted raw materials and established trade monopolies on key imports and exports.
C) Culturally, they promoted indigenous languages, laws, and religions, rather than imposing those from the West.
D) Socially, they often invented, appropriated, or reinforced racial hierarchies, tribal divisions, and gender norms among people in order to divide and manage them.

Question 5

In 1902, W.B. Du Bois argued that the 'global colour line' was the major problem of the twentieth century, but his work, though prominent at the time, was not retained as part of the canon of International Relations.

Question 6

Decolonialism is more commonly associated with thinkers of Asian and African descent, while postcolonialism has been principally cultivated by Latin American thinkers.

Question 7

Which of the following is not a way in which the Sumac Kawsay/Buen Vivir movement differs from conventional understandings of capitalist development?

A) It emphasizes the community rather than the individual as a subject of well-being.
B) It argues that development must be ecologically balanced rather than growth-maximizing.
C) It asserts that development should be culturally sensitive rather than universalist.
D) It argues that one of the legacies of Spanish colonialism is a recognition of the rights of ecosystems to exist, which must be reflected in any legitimate development policy.

Question 8

Which of the following is an example of a normative concern raised by postcolonial and decolonial approaches?

A) The conventional story of the First World War treats the key players (Britain, France, Germany, and the United States) as themselves nation-states rather than empires.
B) Postcolonial and decolonial approaches emphasize subaltern perspectives as a site for thinking through relations of power.
C) The attitudes, practices, and structures that support Western supremacy in the world are problematic because they tend to elevate Western states and peoples as being fundamentally more important, historically significant, and worthy of attention than non-Westerners.
D) Since 1945, International Relations has understood itself as being concerned with sovereign states.

Question 9

Which of the following is not true of the Haitian Revolution?

A) It began in 1791.
B) It appropriated 'Western' ideals (such as the Rights of Man, national self-determination, and democracy).
C) It retained and cultivated alternative religious, cultural, and political standpoints (such as those rooted in Voodoo or Hindu asceticism).
D) It succeeded in ousting French troops, but not in abolishing slavery.

Question 10

Postcolonial and decolonial international relations are similar to Marxist approaches because they all agree that capitalism is a major organizing structure in world politics and that its tendencies are exploitative and immiserating. However, they differ because postcolonial and decolonial approaches emphasize the roles of racialization and colonial expansion in determining the character and pattern of exploitation.

Question 11

According to Robert Jackson, 'quasi-states', often created by processes of decolonization, have legal or 'juridicial' sovereignty that is recognized by other countries, but not 'empirical' sovereignty, understood as control over their internal affairs.

Question 12

Which author's examination of the political thought and practices of enslaved Africans around the world reveals alternative forms of sovereignty, rights, solidarity, and justice, which are attentive to histories of colonial violence and which serve as a counterpoint to liberal narratives that see many of these ideas as fundamentally Western in their origins and orientations?

A) Rahul Rao
B) Meera Sabaratnam
C) Robbie Shilliam
D) W. E. B. Du Bois

Question 13

'Settler colonialism' involves which of the following?

A) The acquisition of land through a combination of force and agreements (many of which are contested/forgotten).
B) Oftentimes, the claim that land is unoccupied, followed by the encouragement of mass immigration from Europe.
C) A decision to ignore or discourage native rulers, languages, and laws.
D) All of the given answers are correct.

Question 14

Neo-colonialism, as defined by Kwame Nkrumah, refers to…

A) A state that is theoretically independent, but in which the economic system and the political system are in reality directed by an external power.
B) Colonialism perpetrated by non-Western powers.
C) The contemporary policies of China in Southeast Asia.
D) A state which asserts its authority over separatist regions through coercive military and economic policies.

Question 15

In The Wretched of the Earth, Frantz Fanon described the struggle against colonialism based on his experiences in India in the years immediately preceding partition.