Frantz Fanon’s Black Skin, White Masks (1952) is a profound exploration of the psychological and social impacts of colonialism, where colonized individuals internalize the cultural superiority of the colonizer, adopting a white mask over their authentic identity to navigate a world that devalues their “black skin.” This framework, rooted in the analysis of racial hierarchies, offers a powerful lens to examine internalized caste oppression in postcolonial India, particularly in the context of the Marathi-Konkani controversy and the Nagri-Romi script imbroglio in Goa. These conflicts, centered on language and script, reveal how caste hierarchies are internalized and perpetuated, mirroring Fanon’s concept of the colonized adopting the colonizer’s values to escape their marginalized identity. This article explores how caste operates as a parallel to Fanon’s racial schema, manifesting in linguistic and cultural struggles in Goa, and how these debates reflect deeper issues of identity, power, and internalized inferiority.
Fanon’s Framework: Internalized Inferiority and the “White Mask”
Fanon argues that colonialism creates a psychological “double process” of economic exploitation and internalized inferiority, where the colonized adopt the colonizer’s culture, language, and values to gain acceptance in a system that devalues their identity. This internalization, or “epidermalization” of inferiority, leads to a fractured sense of self, where the colonized individual is alienated from their authentic identity and compelled to wear a metaphorical “white mask” to align with the dominant culture. In the Indian context, caste operates as a similar hierarchical system, where upper-caste norms and practices are valorized, and lower-caste or marginalized communities internalize their supposed inferiority, striving to emulate upper-caste cultural markers to escape social stigma.
In Goa, the Marathi-Konkani controversy and the Nagri-Romi script debate are not merely linguistic disputes but battlegrounds where caste identities, power dynamics, and internalized hierarchies play out. Just as Fanon’s Black individuals seek validation through the colonizer’s language and culture, marginalized caste groups in Goa navigate linguistic and cultural choices to align with dominant groups, revealing how caste is internalized and perpetuated through language politics.
The Marathi-Konkani Controversy: Language as a Caste Marker
The Marathi-Konkani controversy in Goa centers on the status of Konkani as the official language and the competing claims of Marathi, historically associated with upper-caste Hindu communities, particularly Brahmins. Konkani, spoken by diverse communities including lower-caste groups and Catholics, was recognized as Goa’s official language in 1987, but debates persist over whether Marathi should also be granted official status. This linguistic struggle is deeply tied to caste dynamics, reflecting Fanon’s notion of the colonized adopting the dominant culture’s language to gain legitimacy.
In Goa, Marathi has historically been associated with Brahminical dominance and Sanskritic culture, which upper-caste Hindus promoted as a marker of prestige during and after colonial rule. Konkani, on the other hand, was often stigmatized as a “dialect” or “lesser” language, spoken by lower-caste Hindus, Catholics, and other marginalized groups. I hold this view because Fr. Thomas Stevens had to write Krist Purana in Marathi after writing the first printed book in Konkani. This mirrors Fanon’s observation that the colonized are coerced into adopting the colonizer’s language to escape associations with inferiority. For lower-caste Konkani speakers, the pressure to align with Marathi reflects an internalized caste hierarchy, where speaking or promoting Marathi becomes a “white mask” to gain social mobility and acceptance within a Brahmin-dominated cultural framework.
Fanon’s concept of the “historical racial schema” can be adapted to a “historical caste schema,” where lower-caste individuals internalize the notion that upper-caste culture—embodied in Marathi’s association with Sanskritic tradition—is superior. This internalization is evident in the historical marginalization of Konkani, which was denied recognition as a literary language until the postcolonial period. Upper-caste elites, by promoting Marathi, reinforce a cultural hierarchy that devalues Konkani-speaking communities, compelling them to adopt the “mask” of Marathi to escape their stigmatized identity. Complexity of language politics turns the upper caste especially the Saraswat. Community to Konkani leaving the lower caste Bahujan community With Marathi. The controversy thus becomes a site of struggle, where lower-caste and Catholic Konkani speakers assert their linguistic identity to reclaim dignity, much like Fanon’s colonized subjects seeking to retrieve their sense of self through anti-colonial resistance.
The Nagri-Romi Imbroglio: Script as a Symbol of Caste and Colonial Legacy
The Nagri-Romi script debate further complicates the linguistic landscape in Goa, revealing how caste and colonial legacies intersect. Konkani is written in multiple scripts, with Devanagari (Nagri) being the officially recognized script since 1987, while the Roman (Romi) script, used primarily by Goan Catholics, has been marginalized. This imbroglio reflects not only linguistic preferences but also caste and religious divides, with Devanagari associated with Hindu upper-caste identity and Romi tied to Catholic and lower-caste communities.
Fanon’s framework illuminates how the preference for Devanagari over Romi mirrors the imposition of a “white mask” on Konkani speakers. Devanagari, linked to Sanskritic tradition and Brahminical hegemony, is positioned as the “authentic” script for Konkani, aligning with postcolonial India’s emphasis on “Indian” cultural markers over colonial ones. Romi, introduced by Portuguese colonizers and used by Catholic communities, is stigmatized as a colonial relic, despite its widespread use among Goan Catholics, many of whom belong to lower-caste groups. This stigmatization parallels Fanon’s description of the colonized being taught to see their culture as inferior, prompting them to adopt the colonizer’s language or, in this case, the upper-caste script to gain legitimacy.
The push for Devanagari as the sole script for Konkani can be seen as an attempt to enforce a monolithic, upper-caste Hindu identity on a diverse linguistic community, compelling Catholic and lower-caste Konkani speakers to internalize the inferiority of Romi. This mirrors Fanon’s concept of “epidermalization,” where the colonized internalize the dominant group’s values, leading to self-alienation. By advocating for Romi, Catholic and lower-caste communities resist this imposition, seeking to reclaim their cultural identity and challenge the caste-based hierarchy embedded in script politics.
Internalized Caste and the Reproduction of Hierarchies
Both the Marathi-Konkani controversy and the Nagri-Romi imbroglio illustrate how caste is internalized and reproduced through linguistic choices, much like Fanon’s analysis of racial inferiority in colonial contexts. Lower-caste and Catholic communities, by facing pressure to adopt Marathi or Devanagari, are compelled to wear a “white mask” of upper-caste Hindu identity to escape marginalization. This internalization is evident in educational and cultural institutions, where Marathi and Devanagari are often prioritized, reinforcing the notion that Konkani in Romi or spoken by lower-caste groups is less prestigious.
Fanon’s observation that the colonized seek validation through the colonizer’s culture resonates in Goa, where lower-caste individuals may adopt Marathi or Devanagari to align with upper-caste norms, only to face rejection or incomplete acceptance, as they are still marked by their caste identity. This dynamic is compounded by the postcolonial
System: colonial history, where Portuguese rule in Goa (1510–1961) left a lasting impact on linguistic and cultural practices, particularly among Catholic communities who adopted the Romi script. The postcolonial push for Devanagari reflects a broader project of Indianization, which often aligns with upper-caste Hindu cultural norms, marginalizing Catholic and lower-caste identities.
Resistance and Reclamation of Identity
Fanon’s work emphasizes the potential for resistance, where the colonized reject the “white mask” and reclaim their authentic identity through anti-colonial struggle. In Goa, the advocacy for Konkani and Romi represents a form of resistance against internalized caste hierarchies. Movements to promote Romi script and recognize Konkani as a distinct language challenge the dominance of Marathi and Devanagari, asserting the validity of marginalized identities. These efforts echo Fanon’s call for disalienation, where individuals confront their internalized inferiority and strive to redefine their cultural and social worth on their own terms.
However, resistance is complicated by the entrenched nature of caste hierarchies. Upper-caste elites, who dominate political and cultural institutions, often frame Marathi and Devanagari as unifying forces for Goan or Indian identity, dismissing Romi and Konkani advocacy as divisive or backward. This mirrors Fanon’s description of the colonizer’s narrative, which portrays the colonized as inferior to maintain power. The marginalization of Romi and Konkani thus perpetuates a caste-based cultural hierarchy, where lower-caste and Catholic communities are pressured to assimilate into upper-caste norms to gain legitimacy.
Conclusion
Frantz Fanon’s Black Skin, White Masks provides a powerful framework for understanding how caste, like race, is internalized and perpetuated through cultural and linguistic practices in postcolonial societies. In the Marathi-Konkani controversy and Nagri-Romi imbroglio, we see how caste hierarchies manifest in debates over language and script, with Marathi and Devanagari serving as “white masks” that lower-caste and Catholic communities are pressured to adopt to escape stigmatization. These conflicts reveal the enduring legacy of colonial and caste-based oppression, where marginalized groups internalize the superiority of upper-caste culture, leading to alienation from their authentic identities.
To move toward a decolonized future, as Fanon advocates, Goan society must confront these internalized hierarchies and recognize the validity of diverse linguistic and cultural identities. Promoting Konkani in both Devanagari and Romi scripts, and acknowledging the equal legitimacy of Marathi and Konkani, can challenge the caste-based cultural hegemony that devalues marginalized communities. By embracing linguistic pluralism, Goa can begin to dismantle the “white masks” of caste and create a more inclusive cultural landscape, where all identities are valued equally. Fanon’s final prayer—“O my body, make of me always a man who questions”—calls for a continuous interrogation of internalized oppression, a call that resonates deeply in the struggle for caste and cultural equity in Goa.
