Political Theories of Decolonization

Political Theories of Decolonization provides an introduction to some of the seminal texts of postcolonial political theory. The difficulty of founding a new regime is an important theme in political theory, and the intellectual history of decolonization provides a rich--albeit overlooked--opportunity to explore it. Many theorists have pointed out that the colonized subject was a divided subject. This book argues that the postcolonial state was a divided state. While postcolonial states were created through the struggle for independence, they drew on both colonial institutions and reinvented pre-colonial traditions. Political Theories of Decolonization illuminates how many of the central themes of political theory such as land, religion, freedom, law, and sovereignty are imaginatively explored by postcolonial thinkers. In doing so, it provides readers access to texts that add to our understanding of contemporary political life and global political dynamics.

Margaret Kohn is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Toronto.
Keally McBride is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of San Francisco.

Acknowledgements
Introduction: Political Theory and Decolonization
Chapter One: Postcolonial Political Theory and the Problem of Foundations
Chapter Two: Islamic Political Thought and Imperialism
Chapter Three: Grounds of Resistance: Land as Revolutionary Foundation
Chapter Four: Self-Determination Reconsidered: Revolutions of Decolonization and Postcolonial Citizenship
Chapter Five: Colonialism and the State of Exception
Chapter Six: The Philosophy of Liberation
Conclusion: Gandhi and the Critique of Western Civilization