Postcolonial Discourse: Aspects of Conceptualizing Ethnic Issues and the Pitfall of Decolonization

Abstract

The article examines the specific manifestations of postcolonial discourse in social science and humanities research during the second half of the 20th and the early 21st centuries. It aims to analyze the specific nature of postcolonial thought, which is grounded in a fundamental critique of Eurocentric ideology and a re-evaluation of the ontology, episteme, and axiology of the colonial paradigm. A philosophical overview of key postcolonial works is presented. Emphasis is placed on the fact that postcolonial discourse brings issues of ethnocultural identity to the fore, extending beyond the academic or public spheres of contemporary intellectual thought to encompass the realm of art-where the ethnographic heritage of museums is being reinterpreted through the prism of colonial violence. The novelty of this work lies in identifying the internal contradictions of the process of decolonizing thought: the critical re‑examination of colonial rhetoric falls into a discursive trap, as it gradually becomes the conceptual foundation for a new form of colonialism. The study is grounded in a systems methodology, employing methods such as historical-philosophical analysis–which made it possible to trace the logic behind the unfolding of postcolonial discourse – and the hermeneutic method for interpreting the works of key authors. It also utilizes comparative analysis to contrast Western and Soviet interpretations of colonialism, as well as a prognostic method that revealed the “decolonization trap”.