The Importance Of Colonialism In Literature

Since the dawn of the written word, authors have used it as a tool to comment on the social and political aspects of the human condition. Throughout history, writers have demonstrated the “pen is mightier than the sword” by critiquing their society, leaders, or governments through a mix of satire, fiction, and exposé. Often, these authors had to disguise their works to remain safe from persecution by either writing under a pseudonym or camouflaging their critiques as humor. Then there are writers who do not need to escape their own governments, but instead need to get their words to the rest of the world as a way of shedding light on their culture to an otherwise ignorant world. In this essay, the works of Lu Xun, Nawal El Saadawi, Leslie Marmon Silko, and Ama Ata Aidoo will be discussed as well as each author’s corresponding social and political situation. While each of these writers have different life experiences, all of them have the common thread of experiencing an alien culture, either through colonialism or travel, and having that experience alter their worldview from the norm of their own culture’s view. The first author, Lu Xun, was considered a revolutionary modernist, firmly against traditional Chinese society. “Lu Xun” was the pen name for Zhou Shuren, a classically educated scholar and teacher. Though he was educated in the classic Chinese tradition, Xun sought higher education in Japan, a country that appealed to young Chinese intellectuals because “it