Humanism with a Difference

Universality and Cultural Difference in Postcolonial Theory

Abstract

One of the central claims made on behalf of postcolonial literature by critics and theorists of postcolonial literature is that this literature highlights the cultural identity of the different nations and communities it represents. In opposition to the idea of the universality of cultural values, which was long upheld in Western literary criticism, particularly in what is defined as liberal humanist criticism, postcolonial writers and critics emphasise the need to recognise and respect cultural differences among and between people. Imposing a single set of cultural norms upon all the people in the world, they argue, is unjust and unfair and leads to domination of the many by the few. From this perspective, all communities and nations have the right to live by their own cultural values and norms and no culture is superior to
any other. This emphasis on cultural difference has given prominence to the idea of cultural relativism, which sees each culture as distinct and whole in itself and, therefore, not open to be judged and evaluated by the values and norms of another culture. Thus, in postcolonial literature, universalism is rejected in favour of cultural relativism. This paper discusses the possibility of reconciling universalism with cultural difference in postcolonial theory and literature and refers to the works of such pioneering critics of postcolonial literature as Franz Fanon and Edward Said to develop it. In light of the views of Fanon and Said, the paper offers a reading of Achebe’s Things Fall Apart to highlight the interplay of cultural difference and universality in the novel. Fanon and Said were both very eloquent and committed critics of
colonialism and the universalist ideology colonialism had espoused to undermine colonised cultures. However, both also remained committed to humanism and argued for redefining and reasserting humanism to counter colonialism. It is in their humanist thought that this paper aims to find the grounds for bringing together cultural difference and universalism in postcolonial literature.

Keywords: Cosmopolitanism, culture, humanism, postcolonial theory, universalism