Theoretical / Paper catalogue
Can the Subaltern Speak?
Abstract Spivak critiques Western intellectuals' attempts to speak for the subaltern, arguing that such representational discourse actually reinforces imperialist power structures. By analyzing the double marginalization of subaltern women - silenced by both colonial discourse and native patriarchy - she demonstrates that the subaltern cannot speak not because they lack words, but because they lack platforms and structural conditions to be heard. The article calls for intellectuals to critically reflect on their complicity in knowledge production.
Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak / Read paper