The Wretched of the Earth

Frantz Fanon's seminal work on the trauma of colonization established him as a leading anti-colonialist thinker of the twentieth century. This Penguin Modern Classics edition, translated by Constance Farrington and introduced by Jean-Paul Sartre, was written during the Algerian war for independence and first published in 1961. Fanon's classic text has inspired anti-colonial movements, analyzing class, race, national culture, and violence in the struggle for freedom. With power and anger, he highlights the economic and psychological degradation inflicted by imperialism. As a psychotherapist, Fanon revealed the connection between colonial war and mental illness, advocating that the fight for freedom must be paired with the development of a national culture. He proposed revolutionary violence as a path to socialism. While many calls to arms from the decolonization era are now historical, Fanon's passionate analysis of the dynamics between great powers and the 'Third World' remains relevant today. Born in Martinique, Fanon was a French author, essayist, psychoanalyst, and revolutionary who supported Algeria's independence and became a member of the Algerian National Liberation Front. His works have inspired anti-colonial liberation movements for over four decades. If you appreciated this text, you may also enjoy Edward Said's Orientalism, available in Penguin Modern Classics.