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Theorizing Coloniality: History and Main Concepts

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”Nomadity of Being” in Central Asia

Part of the book series: Politics and History in Central Asia ((PSPSCA))

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Abstract

The relational dynamics between the various global and regional discourses of feminism demand a theoretical framework that would allow further analysis of the established power relations. Critical Theory can be considered foundational for this objective as the school of thought that had engendered different strands pertinent to the discussion: feminist theory, Foucauldian theories of knowledge and biopower, and postcolonial and decolonial theories, which were influenced by both the Foucauldian analysis and development theories in explaining the discursive formation of colonialism through political, epistemological, and economic hegemony. These theories are predicated on the Critical Theory’s dissection and analysis of Enlightenment as that singly identifiable point in the history of European thought that binds together the colonization of non-European lands, production of truths for the sake of disciplinary power, as well as cultural imperialism of Euro-American feminism in the non-Western contexts. As such this chapter provides an overview of Enlightenment from a Critical Theory point of view, before moving into coloniality and its analysis by postcolonial and decolonial schools, which is complemented by an overview of Soviet postcolonial studies and writings. This is followed by an overview of feminist concepts that are presented as universally applicable to the position of women around the globe. The chapter concludes with an overview of the main concepts from the previously discussed theories that are used in the analysis of the narratives of respondents.

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  1. University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan

    Syinat Sultanalieva

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Sultanalieva, S. (2023). Theorizing Coloniality: History and Main Concepts. In: ”Nomadity of Being” in Central Asia. Politics and History in Central Asia. Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-5446-7_3

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