Down With Colonialism
God bless our valiant mosquitoes
Which chased away our foes;
And saved our land from pirates’ hand
Gave Africa a noble stand
To battle with our foes.
God bless those little tiny wings
With venom in their stings,
Which made our land the Whiteman’s grave.
Our heritage from pirates save
With Africans as Kings.
God bless their little thready legs,
That gave the wings their treat,
To beat the pirates with their bags
Which made them look like human hags,
When bidding their retreat.
We thank them for their infectious bites
Which made the invaders mad;
The fever which each bite ignites
Were all protections of our rights
For which we’re jolly glad.
Praise God from whom all blessings flow
And bless our mosquitoes
Praise those insects here below
Which chased the invaders down below
With itchings on their toes.
- I T A Wallace-Johnson
Appleman states that "[t]his colonialist ideology constructs a world that imprisons both sides" (p. 86). I never thought about literature in that way. When I heard that we would be taking up the colonisalist lens, I thought I had it figured out: the opressed's point of view is not present. However, after reading this line, I was left scratching my head. Is this not another validation towards colonialism? Did Appleman really have to state that BOTH sides are hindered by colonialism in literature? She goes on to describe her statement by saying that a Eurocentric position does not allow Western people to garner any new information regarding culture or history from other peoples. Alright, that does make sense, but why did she have to put that little tidbit in? Is it a little snipit just to say "Hello! Colonialism is still here! Don't forget about me!" That is the impression I get. There is no further description pertaining to how this ideology hinders both sides. This may seem like a rant, but to be honest, it has been a long week and I need to vent a little.
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