The Wretched of the Earth

Frantz Fanon's 1961 analysis of colonialism and decolonization — arguing that the violence of colonialism requires a violent decolonization to produce genuine psychological and political liberation.

Violence as decolonizing force: Fanon's most controversial argument: colonial violence has so thoroughly dehumanized the colonized that only counter-violence can restore their full humanity. This is not a moral claim but a psychological-political one — only by actively participating in the destruction of the colonial order can the colonized overcome the internalized inferiority that colonialism instills. The national liberation movements Fanon supports must avoid merely replacing white elites with a national bourgeoisie (Fanon's critique of post-independence African states). The 'Pitfalls of National Consciousness' chapter, predicting the failures of post-colonial African states, is among the most prescient political writing of the 20th century. Sartre's preface to the original edition endorsed the violence thesis.