The world continuously changes, and the reality existing today differs from the past significantly. However, this past was the main factor that impacted the evolution of society and its acquisition of specific features and shapes that can be seen nowadays. All events, choices, and policies of previous epochs imprint on the history of humanity and impact the lives of future generations. The world we see today, with its problems, complex international relations, and problematic regions, is preconditioned by the existence of giant colonial empires that tried to spread their influence and conquer new areas, establishing their rule, customs, and specific attitudes to local people. With the collapse of these states in the 20th century and the emergence of newly independent nations, the problem of their reintegration became topical, which also gave rise to post colonialism.
Post-Colonial Theory
The post-colonial theory is a branch of knowledge that emerged in the 1960s as the study of political, economic, cultural, historical, and social impacts of the European colonial rule on colonized people and their lands (“Postcolonial theory,” n.d.). The major assumption of the theory is that the understanding of the contemporary world is impossible without the investigation of the history of imperialism as the central force shaping communities and relations between people in different parts of the planet. The acquisition of independence by former colonies promoted their art, which became one of the ways to discuss the effect of imperial power on different lands and their new role in the international society (“Postcolonial theory,” n.d.). At the same time, newly independent nations got a chance to cogitate about the price of their independence and their past market by the strong European presence.
Important Themes
The post-colonial theory includes numerous themes that arise when speaking formed colonies. For me, one of the most resonating and important ones is the belief that relations between nations can be built on the idea of the dominance of one group and its right to civilize other people because their lifestyles or customs differ or seem inferior to others. The importance of this idea comes from the fact that even today, some states pretend to play leading roles in the international discourse and view their value systems as the only possible model to follow. This belief and policies are linked to the imperial past and the obsolete division into civilized nations, and nations that should be guided and ruled, or uncivilized ones. The given is also present in postcolonial literature.
Poetry
In general, the literature of newly independent states became a potent tool to attract attention to problems originating from the past colonial rule and debate on how imperialism influenced numerous peoples in different parts of the globe. The poem Civilization by Oodgeroo Noonuccal is one of the examples of postcolonial art focused on the problems of aboriginal people and their views on a world where they had to play inferior roles. Being one of the Aboriginal Australian political activists, the poet cannot disregard the problems linked to the colonial relations between her motherland and the British Empire (“Oodgeroo Noonuccal,” n.d.). For this reason, Civilization can be viewed as her statement about the visions of so-called uncivilized nations in terms of postcolonial theory.
The poem is a perfect reflection of Aboriginal people’s thoughts on civilization and their role in the world after white people came to their lands. The author’s main message discloses throughout the whole text and becomes clear to readers at the end. Oodgeroo Noonuccal shows the disillusionment of local people in a civilization that colonizers brought to them and the happiness they had living their own lives and their own values. The arrival of white settlers destroyed Aboriginals’ happy world and introduced the ideas of superiority and inferiority, which became topical for decades and changed their lives forever.
The author touches upon an essential theme of hypocrisy and duality that is also linked to ideas of postcolonialism. The poem starts with the line “We who came late to civilization,” showing that Aboriginal people firstly believed that they had a poor understanding of how to live and to evolve (Noonuccal, n.d., 1). They accepted the newcomers and were ready to follow them to become civilized and join the international discourse. However, it was one of the greatest lies and misbeliefs, as Europeans brought “jails and orphanages, / rents and taxes, banks and mortgages,” which were viewed as the vital parts of the civilized society (Noonuccal, n.d., 20-21). Local people were exploited and deceived, they had to work for newcomers and accept their religion and customs “totems of Lord and Lady, Highness and Holiness, Eminence, Majesty” (Noonuccal, n.d., 12-13). The author shows that the white people brought their world to these lands and completely disregarded the already existing one, which became a great tragedy in the future.
The poem also shows the irrelevance and unacceptability of the idea of civilized and uncivilized nations. Noonuccal says, “We had so little but we had happiness, / Each day a holiday, / For we were people before we were citizens, / Before we were ratepayers, / Tenants, customers, employees, parishioners.” (Noonuccal, n.d., 5-9). The lines show that Aboriginal people did not have machines, firearms, banking systems, and technologies, but as compared to the white colonizers, they were happy, which destroys the idea of superiority or inferiority of a certain civilization or a way of life. Happiness and observation of unique culture become more important than technological progress and transformation to become similar to most other nations, which are viewed as leading ones.
The ending line of the poem is extremely strong and reflects some essential views on postcolonialism and the right of some people to interfere with other’s lives. The author states, “but remember, white man, if life is for happiness, / You too, surely, have much to change” meaning, that there is no use in civilization and achievements if people remain unhappy, and emphasizing the importance of every culture and the right for every nation to choose their ways on their own, with no ideas of superiority or inferiority promoted by imperial powers (Noonuccal, n.d., 33-34).
Conclusion
In conclusion, the problems of the post-colonial community and imperialism’s impact on the world remain one of the most disputable ones in the modern world. However, I think that one of the greatest points of this discussion is the fact that any nation has its own unique place in the world and should move in its way to become happy; otherwise, false notions and visions of “civilized” societies might precondition a painful disillusionment and the inability to find a role in a new world with no limits for evolution. The poem Civilization by Oodgeroo Noonuccal perfectly proves this idea, showing that happiness does not depend on civilization, and people have to protect their own culture to remain truly free.
References
Noonuccal, O. (n.d.). Civilization. Web.
Oodgeroo Noonuccal. (n.d.). Web.
Postcolonial theory. (n.d.). Web.