Slave-master relationship and post-colonial translation and teaching

Abstract

Two hundred years after Hegel, his Master-Slave Dialectic theory is still one of the most controversial philosophical theories. Some believe that such a relationship does no longer exist, nor is it acceptable in the face of abolishment of slavery in the world. In this study, it has been tried to form an understanding of the Hegelian Master-Slave Dialectic and bring into light the presence of the Master-Slave relationship in our modern day world. As Crossley (1996) points out, the power relation in Hegelian dialectic philosophy is ever-present in a more subtle manner in the Post-colonial era; one which utilizes an intersubjective relationship, sustaining the other as a subject of action rather than attempting to negate them (p. 147). To establish this kind of power relation, the west has been employing language, literature and translation in a much more effective way than military might to assert her control and dominance, and move the wheels of colonization and an asymmetrical power relation forward.