Hello everyone! This week’s upcoming reading is “Jameson’s Rhetoric of Otherness and the ‘National Allegory’” by Aijaz Ahmad. This piece is included in Ahmad’s book, In Theory: Classes, Nations, Literatures, which was written in 1992. Ahmad discusses American literary critic Frederic Jameson’s ideas throughout this piece. I will be comparing Ahmad’s ideals of the piece with a somewhat ongoing and current topic, the Nigerian-Biafra war, also known as the Nigerian Civil War.
The Nigerian Civil War began in 1967 and lasted three years. After Nigeria gained independence from the British, Muslim Hausas began massacring Christian Igbos in Northern Nigeria. Many Igbos fled to different regions of the country, but felt that their lives were still at risk. Lieutenant Colonel Odumegwu Ojukwu and other people who other people who feared for their lives established the Republic of Biafra and created a military force in order to fight the Nigerian government because they would not recognize Biafra as an independent state. In the beginning of the war, Biafra had a fighting chance, but in 1970, Biafra had to surrender to the Nigerian government. Many women and children died during this war, as well as the soldiers who fought, because of lack of resources and malnourishment. It has been 50 years since this war, and there is still a movement to separate Biafra. People who live in Nigeria still remember the heartache that the war caused to the Biafra people and have a ceremony to recognize the lives lost. Survivors of the war feel as though Biafra should still become independent, especially with the Nigerian government refusing to acknowledge the suffering the Biafra (and Nigerian) people went through during this civil war. Overall, Nigeria as a whole is in a state of political unrest. There are religious, political, and ethical tensions circulating in Nigeria, not including what the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) are fighting for. The people who are in support of Biafra feel as though the Nigerian government is purposely shutting their protests down or ignoring their calls to action.
This what Nigeria looks like with Biafra separated.
The conflict of Nigeria brings to mind Ahmad’s discussion of Jameson. Ahmad talks about how Jameson discusses the sense of the “third world” and how the comparison of third world literature would not even be possible without first world literature. Ahmad recalls that Jameson believes that third world literature does not have the same nationalism as first-world literature does. Ahmad mentions that what Jameson does not see is that the idea of colonialism and imperialism affects these so called “third world” countries and creates an environment where being a nationalist for your country may be difficult because the people who are in charge are not really “your people”. I see this on page 14, when Ahmad writes, “Likewise, Jameson insists over and over again that the national experience is central to the cognitive formation of the third-world intellectual and that the narrativity of that experiences takes the form exclusively of a ‘national allegory…’” (Ahmad 14). The pieces that third-world individuals write do not have the same nationalistic views due to the country they are in.
This is what Nigeria looks like today.
I believe this relates to the Nigerian Civil war because the Nigerian government feels as though the people of Biafra have a sense of disgrace for their country, and people try to stand up for the independent state through social media, literature, and images. The Nigerian government has yet to speak in public to recognize the war at all, whether they make a positive or negative statement. But, according to the supporters that want to separate the regions, they believe not saying anything is making it known that that the government has no desire to listen to their people or create a better unity in their country.
This is an image of Nigerian soldiers during the war.
Next, Aijaz Ahmad mentions that he despises the idea that Jameson keeps discussing third world vs. second and first world. He does not believe in the Three World Theory and he believes that it is a way to put certain regions such as the United States or European countries at a higher stance than the countries he was discussing, such as those from Asia. He says this multiple times throughout the piece, but the statement that stands out the most reads, “Ideologically, this classification divides the world between those who make history and those who are mere objects of it, elsewhere in the text, Jameson would significantly re-invoke Hegel’s famous description of the master/slave relation to encapsulate the first/third world opposition…” (Ahmad 7). This stands out, one, because the first assignment was this exact piece, but also because Ahmad is specifically saying that those who live in third-world countries are oppressed and continue to not be taken as seriously as countries in the Eastern regions due to the Third World Theory.
This is an image of protestors in support of separating Biafra.
Similarly, the people of Biafra are consistently marginalized by the Nigerian government. The Biafra people and groups such as the Indigenous People for Biafra (IPOB) continue to call for action and the government pretends they are not saying anything. There are peaceful protests in the streets and they plead for the government to at least recognize that the war occurred, yet the government will not. Their people, whether they were part of Nigeria or Biafra during the war, all suffered and many lives were loss. While the United States has civil war ceremonies (no matter which side), Nigeria continues to pretend it never happened. By doing this, they are putting their own people in the third-world idea and keeping the elite government officials as first-world individuals.
This is another image of protestors, specifically highlighting the Biafra flag. It is very different than the Nigerian flag, but it does pay homage to the soil that both nations are part of.
Additionally, Ahmad thinks it is interesting for Jameson to have such a big opinion on this topic, considering he is not a “third-world” author. Ahmad seems to somewhat allude that Jameson has probably not read the appropriate literature to truly understand what he is arguing. Many works of literature that are from areas which he discusses are normally not translated to English, and there is so much knowledge lost because it does not fit into the “first-world” ideals. Ahmad discusses this, again, throughout the piece, but on page 11 he writes, “To say that all third-world texts are necessarily this or that is to say, in effect, that any text originating within that social space which is not this or that is not a ‘true’” narrative,” (Ahmad 11). He continues this argument on page 15 as follows: “… the vast majority of literary texts produced in Asia, Africa, and Latin America are simply not available in English, their exclusion from the US/British ‘canon’ is self-evident,” (Ahmad 15). Jameson continuously argues this perspective, but because third-world literature, the true pieces that give insight to the country and social climate of where they live are rarely in English, he probably has not read them.
This is the Biafra flag.
This is the Nigerian flag.
Ahmad’s discussion of the exclusion of Asia, Africa, and Latin America from the Us/British canon is similar to the United States’ opinion on the Nigerian Civil War. The United States had no involvement in the Nigerian-Biafra war. They did not supply aid specifically to keep peace with a united country or the divided ones. But now, since the war is over, the United States can comment on how they feel about the IPOB movement. The US government believes that they are not a terrorist group because they are peacefully protesting (even though the Nigerian government has classified them as such) and they can understand why they are protesting, but they still fully support Nigeria as a whole nation. Looking at today’s political climate in the United States, that also shows that Nigeria and the United States are not much different with protesting for something people believe in. In comparison, Ahmad believes that Jameson (like the United States government) should not speak on an issue that they are not properly educated about, nor have any direct involvement in.
After reading “Jameson’s Rhetoric of Otherness and the ‘National Allegory,’” I am interested to hear what my fellow classmates have to say. Do you agree with my analysis? Do you see other perspectives of the piece that I may have missed? Let me know!
I really enjoyed how you conveyed a parallel between Jameson/Ahmad and the US/Nigeria. I completely agree with you and Ahmad’s points that those who are credible and know about what is actually going on should be the one’s that create a narrative about a certain subject. Nigeria and Nigeria alone understand what is going on because Nigerians are the ones actually living this reality. I believe that this is the best form of information: straight from the source of the experience.
Hello Sam,
Thank you for providing some new and interesting points of view. You mentioned that the United States has civil war ceremonies while Nigerian government chose to ignore the call and action of the Biafra people and groups such as the IPOB. My opinion is, the United States is a whole country. This is an unquestionable fact from the government to the individual. But like you said, the situation in Nigeria is quite different, and many people do not agree with this. Therefore, in order to maintain stability and seek better development, a country must temporarily sacrifice democracy, freedom, etc. So some things are feasible in Western developed countries, especially in the United States, which is far stronger than any other country, but it may not be effective in some poor and backward countries. The development and progress of each country must follow its own applicable path.
Yinchu, you bring up a great point. I think it is crucial to focus on the fact that each country has to follow its own path in order to respect the citizens of their country as well as protect their freedoms. However, the reason why I chose to compare the two was to look at how both countries suffered a civil war and how one country (US) is able to acknowledge that their country was divided at one point and the people who live there are able to honor their families who served; whereas the other country (Nigeria) refuses to acknowledge that their people wanted to be separate from their nation. But, I really enjoyed your perspective on the piece and I thank you for commenting!
Yinchu,
What do you think Ahmad would say about the distinction you’ve made between developed countries (First World) like the US and “poor,” “backwards,” (Third World) countries? Before assigning a term like “backward” to a nation (which may perhaps come off as offensive), I would encourage you to think back to Adichie’s TED Talk video about single stories. Not all of Nigeria is poor or underdeveloped in the same way that not all of the US is affluent. What do you think?
Hi Sam, I thought this was great analysis and I really appreciated learning about the current conflicts in Nigeria that I was sadly uninformed about. I also thought using the Nigerian Civil War as a comparison worked very well. I thought it was very poignant and thought provoking when you used the quote discussing how the classification of first-world, second-world and third-world countries “divides the world between those who make history and those who are mere objects of it.” I thought this quote definitely connected to the idea about how a lot of these historical texts are not translated to English so we instantly assume it is not reliable information. I agree that by referring to other nations as less than us, we are really just making ourselves “the One” and those other countries “the Other.” This allows us to say that their history is not accurate and our interpretation of their history is what the world should follow and learn.
Hi Sam. I thought your analysis was well-thought out and informative. You raised many good points about the connections between First, Second, and Third world countries. It is interesting to me that First World countries are usually the root of problems in the lesser developed countries. In this analysis you mentioned how the citizens feel less connected to their nationality because of the influence colonial rulers. I think then it is alarming that the First World countries get involved in the affairs of the Third World countries once again. You mentioned how the United States and European countries are misinformed of the real conflicts and lifestyle in countries such as Nigeria and how Ahmad thinks that Jameson does not have enough information to have such a strong opinion. I think this raises the question of why do the First World countries think they have the right to support or not support governments or policies in these countries? Without reliable information and educating ourselves thoroughly on the struggles of Nigeria, can we truly comment on their state and what would be best for them?
Hi Sam,
I really enjoyed reading this perspective and I definitely saw a connection to what we read in class and the Nigerian Civil War. One part that stuck out to me was when you said that Ahmad mentions that people who live in third-world countries are oppressed and continue to not be taken as seriously as other countries due to the Third World Theory. This stuck out to me because it definitely relates to the “One” and the “Other”. I feel like we are mostly taught about one side of a situation. When we hear “developing country” people automatically assume that those countries can give little contribution to the world, when in reality that is not always true. This just shows that people who are not properly educated about a situation should not assume one way or the other.
Nice to meet you, Sam. Thank you to bring the information about the Nigerian Civil War. In your presentataion, I really find the connection to the reading in our class. I think that this is the “single story” that Nigerain government made to their people and even don’t recognize the occur of war. However, the situation of “single story” is around the world and before we get reliable information and look up relevant information from a variety of sources, I have no right to comment on the sufferings of others.
Hi Sam!
Thank you for the concise analysis of Ahmad’s ideals of the piece with the Nigerian Civil War, I truly enjoyed it! In your presentation, I found that the topic you chose really related to the reading for this week. The part that was most interesting to me, or that stuck out the most was the Nigerian government not mentioning anything that is happening in their country and how citizens believe it is making it “known that that the government has no desire to listen to their people or create a better unity in their country.” By their government doing this I think they are referring to themselves as the “one” and the citizens as “the other” since they are not trying to help.
Hi Sam,
I thought you did very well on this presentation especially for going so early in the semester. I thought your analysis of First, Second, and Third world countries was spot on in saying that the First world countries are usually the cause in the issues going on in the second and third world countries. Your presentation really help connect me to the class reading more and helped me understand the reading more too.
Hi Sam,
I think you provided us with a very well thought out analysis on this topic. This is an issue that I’m very uninformed on, mostly because third world narratives sadly don’t get much attention in first world countries like the U.S. I find it interesting that countries like Nigeria get labeled as the “Other” even though there are the same humanitarian issues and divide between the government and the people in our own first world country, the “One”.
Hi Sam!
Your research was super informative! Prior to reading this, I had very little knowledge about the history of conflicts in Nigeria. The information you had about the “three world theory” was also really interesting and could very well be connected back to last week’s discussions about “the one and the other” as well as Adichie’s Ted Talk about a single story. The fact that US was not involved in the conflict, yet still spoke about it says a lot about the power they have.
Hey Sam,
I found your context research presentation to be very well thought out and informative and appreciate all the effort you put into it! Prior to reading your presentation, I only had minor knowledge about the Nigerian Civil War. It doesn’t really make sense to me why Nigeria would not even recognize the ongoing conflict. Does the nation just choose not to comment or are they afraid to disrupt any peace? Also, do they even teach the Nigerian children about this conflict or is it avoided in its entirety?
Hi Sam!
I really enjoyed the background of Nigeria that you brought into this and how you used it to try and connect and further understand where Ahmad’s argument was coming from. When talking about the reaction to the Civil War, you state that “… Nigeria continues to pretend it never happened. By doing this, they are putting their own people in the third-world idea and keeping the elite government officials as first-world individuals”. Without your presenation, I never would have thought to zoom outward and apply Ahmad’s and Jameson’s literary debate to larger real world issues.
Hi Sam,
I really appreciate you provide the background information of Nigeria, it makes much more sense to me about what Ahmad and Jameson are argumenting about. I feel very “eye-opening” while reading your presentation, I strongly agree with you that people in Nigeria or Biabra should stand out for themself and call for action. Nigerian government should support instead ignore their needs and voices. More, in the end you discussed how Jameson as not “a third world” author should not speak on an issue because Jameson only knew the “single story.” Although English is a universal language, there are histories and cultures that we are not familiar with because of no English translation.
Hi, Sam,
I think your article has a lot of information and great analysis. I am not clear about the situation in most countries, so thank you for sharing the situation about the Nigerian civil war. I think the point you mentioned is very reasonable, that is, big countries take themselves as the main body of history. However, I think every country should treat the history of each country seriously and equally.
Hi Sam! First of all I just want to say that I think the way you connected Nigeria and the Nigerian civil war to Ahmad’s argument was very fluid and comprehensive. I really appreciated the history you provided because it made the connection between Ahmad’s argument and the Nigerian Civil War easier to follow. These past two weeks we have been talking about the One and the Other and I agree with you when you compare the Nigerian government as the elite or the One and the Nigerian citizens as the Other. One point that really struck me was how colonialism and imperialism “creates an environment… people who are in charge are not really ‘your people’” because this is a clear example of the One and the Other. Nigerian citizens have their own narrative that they wish to share however the government has in a sense their own “National Allegory” they are trying to force on their citizens. Ahmad’s argument is how the Third World Theory belittles “developing countries” and are not recognized by the “developed countries”. This same argument can be applied to Nigeria as well with the citizens being oppressed and overall ignored by the government. Overall I really enjoyed reading your post and learning more about this conflict. Thanks for sharing!
Hi Sam!
I thoroughly enjoyed reading your analysis and was super intrigued about learning the connections you made from our reading to the current conflicts in Nigeria. I honestly did not know much about this topic and that made me contemplate this idea of the “one” and the “other” more than before, especially when thinking about myself. I thought your use of the quote discussing how the classifications of the first, second, and third world countries “divides the world between those who make history and those who are mere objects of it” to be thought provoking. It reminded me of how in history classes, I would always learn about the United States triumphs and the negatives of other countries. Learning from a biased perspective in multiple history books, I think I learned to assume that the United States is of the “one” and those other less important, poor countries are considered “the other.” Our interpretation of history has been proven to be biased as certain pieces of information are skewed or left out entirely, but that the United States has taught its citizens from an extremely young age to believe that their version is the only correct version. I think it is important to go directly to the people who are experiencing it and bring attention to their story rather than a false version of it.
Sam, thanks for your detailed introduction of the Nigerian Civil War, and I think your introduction is well related to Ahmad’s article. The Nigerian Civil War made people of Biafra and Nigeria living in a third world. Thanks for your analysis that I understand Ahmad’s purpose of writing this article. It is true some literary critics like Jameson are blind to some extend that they don’t really know and understand the detailed situation.
Hi Sam, I really enjoyed reading about the Nigerian Civil Was and about Biafra cause I had never heard of it actually. The topic tied in very well with the reading by Ahmad wehn you related what the United States was saying about that situation as Jameson was referring to third world nations.
Very cool context presentation about Sam Lewczak. It is exactly what I needed for my research. I love to make sure that I am unique with my ideas before completing my work, so I check https://studyclerk.com/plagiarism-fixer for getting advice to improvements, and it was really nice to read more useful info about literature and how it influences the society. My next subject will be about history of conflicts in Nigeria, so your materials will help a lot.