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UNRAVELLING POST-COLONIAL IDENTITY: AN ANALYSIS OF WALCOTT’S “DREAM ON

Khurram Shehzad1, Muhammad Mubashar Nawaz2

Original Article

1. M.Phil in English Literature, Senior English Teacher at International School of Pakistan,

2. PhD Scholar, International Islamic University, Islamabad & Assistant Professor, Govt.
Graduate College, Jhelum. Email: [email protected]

Abstract
The article explores how the Caribbean natives struggle for their indigenous identity in the face of
dominating colonial challenges. It examines how the colonial concepts of ambivalence, mimicry,
and hybridity shape the subaltern identity of the colonized people, who are forced to adopt the
culture and values of the colonizers. The article also analyzes how the native resistance and
reaction to colonial domination leads to a process of identity formation that is complex and
dynamic. The paper draws on the works of Derek Walcott who offers a deep insight into the
psychology of the Caribbean natives. Walcott uses his poetic and dramatic skills to deconstruct
the colonial discourse and reconstruct a post-colonial identity that is based on a fusion of different
cultures and histories. The study illuminates the resistance and reactive measures employed by
the indigenous population in their pursuit of authentic identity, thus contributing to a broader
understanding of postcolonial identity formation. It brings to light Walcott’s use metaphors and
symbols to convey his post-colonial vision of a new Caribbean society.
Keywords: Colonialism, Ambivalence, Mimicry, Hybridity, Subaltern Identity, Post-colonial
Discourse

Introduction
The world is a matrix--- a mosaic where, because of globalization, cultures and values of different
societies and communities have been amalgamated and interwoven. This game of interlocking
cultures and values started almost in fifteenth century when Spain, England, Portugal and France
moved forward, in the masks of torch bearers, and extended their empires. Britain became the
biggest power in 19th century. Her domination over almost three fourth of the earth brought about
plenty of changes which were less considerate and more harmful for the natives; for they thought
themselves to be inferior and subjugated both mentally and physically under the colonial yoke.
The colonizers, using the tools of language and literature, sought to present themselves
‘sophisticated’, refined, civilized, and superior and natives to be ‘savage’, uncivilized and
backward and inferior.
Post-colonialism is a sort of revolt against the colonizers and Eurocentricism. It deals with the
aftermaths of colonizers and colonization and puts a substantial light on the cultures, values,
religion and identity which have been affected by the power rule of the colonizers.
Along with that the post-colonial writers attempted to bring forth the salient issues of
colonial ideology, rule, and cruelty by delineating characters physically subjugated, dominated,

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and psychologically imprisoned in the shackles of imperialism and colonialism who are either
hybrid or considered uncivilized and inferior. The major issues taken by post-colonial writers are:
They discuss the perturbation of both indigenous people and cultures, show the treatment pf
the colonizers to natives whom they deem inhuman and barbarous and how the feelings of
ambivalence is developed when the natives are called ‘others’. The fascination with the
colonizers forces them to mimic them while the loathing stimulates natives’ quest for identity.
They also discuss how the natives develop the feelings of “unhomeliness” in their own country.
Derek Walcott, the major West Indian poet and dramatist, is one of those post-colonial
writers who took all the above mentioned topics into consideration. He had keenly grasped ‘the
heritage of European and West Indian culture from slavery to independence’ (Ramchand, 1988,
p. 96). Walcott was a mulatto. He is said to be the voice of the Caribbean, though he rejected the
title, we can cite his love for his land and people in his works. In an interview when he was asked
why he had not emigrated to Europe or America, he said, “I still have a subliminal fear of Europe;
I think I would feel dislocated, alienated, or uprooted------it really was a kind of fear, a kind of
determination to make sure I was valid in the place where I was born” (Hirsch, 1979, p. 281).
In his Omeros (1990), an epic poem, he has attempted to exhibit Caribbean culture by
retelling the dramas of Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey using the Caribbean setting. The major themes
of the epic are exile with all its Scones and Scourges and indigenous Caribbean life. In “The
Schooner flight”, the Odyssean figure gives vent to his feeling of disgust against racism and
eloquently condemns colonial culture.
“I’m just a red nigger who love the sea
I had a sound colonial education
I have Dutch, nigger and English in me
And either I am nobody, or I’m a nation” (Walcott, 1986, p. 346).

In the play, “Dream on monkey Mountain”, Walcott expresses his disgust for racism. The native
black people are considered inhuman and beasts. They have no personal identity and the
inferiority complex has battered them to an extent that they have no other option than to mimic, at
least to be accepted. It is a dream play like Strindberg’s “Dance of Death”. It does have allegorical
implication of racial identities. Makak, the protagonist’s vision and spiritual experience create a
trance which blows the other characters into a schizophrenic atmosphere where they gain the
Caribbean identity.

Study Objectives
The objectives of the research article are:
 To explore the struggle faced by Caribbean natives in maintaining their indigenous
identity in the face of dominant colonial challenges.
 To examine how concepts such as ambivalence, mimicry, and hybridity influence the
subaltern identity of the colonized people in the Caribbean.
 To analyze the complex and dynamic process of identity formation that occurs as a result
of the native resistance and reaction to colonial domination.
 To illuminate the resistance and reactive measures employed by the indigenous
population in their pursuit of an authentic identity, contributing to a broader understanding
of postcolonial identity formation.
By addressing these objectives, the research article aims to contribute to the understanding
of the struggles, complexities, and processes involved in the formation of indigenous identity in
the Caribbean in the context of colonial challenges.

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Literature Review
Critics have opined differently about Walcott’s “Dream on Monkey Mountain”. Haney
(2005) expresses his views in these words, “those victimized by globalization in Walcott’s drama
try to adjust to the dominant culture of the West by transforming, reinterpreting and indigenizing it”
(p. 82). Fox and Brown (1995), though both having different insights and approaches to the play,
emphasize the multifaceted metaphoric implications of the play. Brown, by comparing Makak’s
dream or delirium with Leos John’s “The slave” (1994), argues that both the plays are reactionary
having an amalgamation of symbols and Fantasy, and rates Walcott to be more explicit. Fox
(1995), on the other hand, underlines the mythological sides of the play and asserts that the
“dream goes beyond redeeming the downtrodden to dramatize the disparities between a
conscious that is creative and metaphoric, and one that is straightforward and imprisoning” (p.
204). Walcott’s own estimation about the play in his “Note on Production” (2005) is:
The play is a dream, one that exists as much in the given minds of its principal character
as in that of its writer, and as such, it is illogical, derivative, and contradictory. Its source is
metaphor and it is best treated as a physical poem with all the subconscious and deliberate
borrowing of poetry (p. 277).
This note puts light on the psychodrama within Makak, the protagonist’s conscious, and
affects the conscious of other characters of the play as it becomes the “collective consciousness”.
This spiritual uplift, as Taylor (2001) shows, is the beauty of the play which is deeply embedded in
Rastafarian tradition. Taylor (2001) says, “Rastafari ‘reasoning’ lays claim to an ancient African
biblical tradition of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, as expressed in thirteenth-century Kebra
Nagast, the narrative of Ethiopian national identity that is fundamentally African yet forever
marked by European and India” (p. 9).
Turning to post-colonial context, Hogan’s (1994) comment about Walcott’s “Dream on
Monkey Mountain” would be helpful. He (1994) says, “Walcott presents blacks as prisoners in the
cave and the shadows they see on the wall are not images of others, but of themselves” (p. 108).
He (1994) further says, “Walcott speaks about ‘racial despair’, by which he seems to mean the
sense of complete human denigration which drives Makak mad” (p. 109).
This is where my contention starts. The black who have been imprisoned for a long time are
considered such inferior creature that their view about themselves is distorted. They penetrate
into their ‘self’, which is nothing but a shadow, and get reply in the heralding voice of the white;
“you are savage, you are black, ugly beasts!” Do they really exist? Have they got identity? Even
God appears to them as “a big white man” (Walcott, 2005, p. 292).

The play “Dream on Monkey Mountain” has already been discussed in terms of
mimicry, hybridity and identity. I have tried to link these three. My research will find: where does
Ambivalence stem from? Why do natives mimic? Why are hybrids ambivalent? Why are natives
dissatisfied with their subaltern identity? In the beginning, I mentioned the metaphoric dimension
of the play. I will also try to find a link between the dream sequence and the reality of the
Caribbean natives.
Theoretical Framework
The researcher has used the mirror of post-colonial theory to reflect the process of
ambivalence, mimicry, hybridity and identity among the Caribbean natives. But before plunging
into the major issues of post-colonial discourse, he takes into account the question, what is post-
colonial theory? Generally speaking post-colonial theory is a framework which attempts to

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scrutinize and analyze the literature written by the authors belonging to the countries that had
been subjugated and colonized. The post-colonial theorists substantially analyze the literature of
the colonized and discuss the problems and damaging effects of mixed acculturation and
unavoidable conception of superior/inferior. Young (2001) says, “Post-colonial theory is always
concerned with the positive and the negative effects of the mixing of people and cultures” (p. 69).
The post-colonial theorists also focus how post-colonial writers try to create their own
discourse. In this article, the researcher tries to access Walcott’s tools; the concepts of
ambivalence, mimicry, hybridity and identity, with reference to different characters to analyze how
these concepts enable Walcott resist and dismantle colonial power.
Ambivalence in the post-colonial context refers to the complex and contradictory feelings,
attitudes, or responses that individuals or communities may experience towards colonialism and
its aftermath. It involves a mixture of opposing emotions, beliefs, or perspectives, resulting from
the intersecting dynamics of power, culture, and identity in the colonial and post-colonial societies
(Ashcroft et al., 2007).
In the context of post-colonial studies, ambivalence is often explored as a psychological
and cultural response to the imposition of colonial ideologies, values, and institutions. It can
manifest as a simultaneous attraction and repulsion towards the dominant culture, resulting in a
sense of internal conflict and tension within individuals or communities (Bhabha, 1994).
In the post-colonial context, mimicry refers to a process through which colonized
individuals or communities imitate and adopt the cultural, social, and behavioral patterns of the
colonizers. It involves a form of imitation or replication of the dominant culture, often driven by a
desire for acceptance or assimilation into the colonial society. Mimicry can be seen as a strategy
employed by the colonized to navigate the power dynamics and negotiate their place within the
colonial system (Fanon, 1963).

In post-colonial studies, the concept of hybridity refers to the blending and mixing of
different cultural elements that occurs as a result of colonial encounters. The term was
popularized by Homi K. Bhabha, a prominent post-colonial theorist, in his influential work “The
Location of Culture” (1994). Bhabha argues that hybridity emerges from the cultural intersections
and interstices created by colonialism, challenging the notions of fixed identities and cultural
purity. According to Bhabha, hybridity disrupts the binary oppositions of colonizer/colonized and
self/other, highlighting the ambivalence and complexity of colonial subjectivity. It represents a
form of cultural resistance and negotiation, allowing the colonized to assert their agency and
subvert dominant power structures. Bhabha writes, “The colonial stereotype is based upon the
absolute difference of the colonial subject…Hybridity, on the other hand, signifies a revaluation of
the assumption of colonial identity through a process of disavowal and discrimination” (p. 56).

Another influential theorist in post-colonial studies, Stuart Hall, also addresses the
concept of hybridity in his essay “Cultural Identity and Diaspora” (1990). Hall suggests that
hybridity is a consequence of the diasporic experience, where individuals and communities
negotiate their identities in the context of migration and displacement. He argues that hybridity
challenges fixed notions of cultural authenticity and promotes a fluid understanding of identity that
is constantly in flux.

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Analysis
A) Ambivalence
Ambivalence is the offshoot of psychoanalysis. Literally, ambivalence stems from divided
attitude or divided self. An ambivalent person may desire for one thing, and at the same time, his
attention is divided to its opposite. This concept was introduced by Homi K. Bhabha in colonial
discourse theory. It discovers the complicated merger of magnetic attraction and repugnance.
The relationship between the colonizers and the colonized is ambivalent because there always is
a fluctuation --- the colonized subjects are either ‘complicit’ or ‘resistant’. Bhabha, further in his
theory, makes the issue of Ambivalence complex rather controversial when he says that this
ambivalence can cause riot, disturbance and disruption for the colonial authorities. In this way,
this imperial or colonial theory of ambivalence, in Robert Young’s view, turn the table on colonial
discourse. I am taking the first layer of the concept of ambivalence, where does this ambivalence
stem from? In fact, this ambivalence is the product of ‘social stratification’ and ‘introspection’. The
colonial discourse aimed at presenting the black to be inferior, savage and uncivilized. The black
started to see themselves inferior which developed an anxiety, confusion and ambivalence. As
corporal snubs Tigre and Souris saying, “Animals, beast, savages, cannibals, niggers/ stop
turning this pace to a stinking zoo!” (Walcott, 2005, p. 217). Look, how ridiculously he pictures
Makak, the protagonist.

“I will spare you the sound of that voice which has come from a cave of darkness, dripping with
horror. These hands are hands of Esau, the fingers are like roots, the arteries as hard as twine,
and the palms are seemed with coal. But the animal you observe is tamed and obedient” (p. 223).
Where is his identity? Is he not human? He is taken to be an ugly beast. What feeling will
he have about himself? It is nothing but anxiety and ambivalence. The view he develops about
himself is “I should not live so anymore, here in the forest, frighten of people because I think I
ugly” (p. 237). And Mostique says, “Man together of us is minus one” (p. 238). Makak is confused,
on one hand he thinks to leave the place, the place where he feels unhomed, and, on other hand,
he goes to get charcoal. He sells charcoal; his going to fetch charcoal connotes his stay at this
non-desired place when he is going for his day to day activity. Mostique remarks, “Man together
two of us is minus one” is pregnant with nihilism, he shows a revolting attitude when a white
spider bites him. He exclaims, “I not no savage. Every man have to die. It have a million ways to
die. But no spider with white eggs will bring it” (p. 238).

Metaphorically, the white spider stands for the colonizers who have left their eggs in the
colonies the occupied. Mostique does not want to die, mercilessly, like a savage in the hands of
the colonizers. This is where Homi Bhabha’s remark that ambivalence can be riotous for the
colonizer fits. Ambivalence is first rung of the ladder which leads to identity. Walcott is using the
colonizers’ gun to kill their soldiers---as colonizer want the colonized to be ambivalent so that, in
confused state of mind, they may not be able to construct their identity. Walcott, here, dismantles
the discourse which leads to mimicry.

B) Mimicry
Mimicry simply means parody or copy. It is a significant term in post-colonial context as it
foregrounds the ambivalent relationship between the colonial oppressors and the colonial subject.
The colonial discourse aims at making the colonial subject to mimic. They want their subjects to
follow their culture, values, habits, assumptions etc. as Huddart (2006) says, “Colonial discourse
wants the colonized to be extremely like the colonizer, but by no means identical. If there were an

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absolute equivalence between the two, then the ideologies justifying colonial rule would be
unable to operate” (p. 40).

Discussing ambivalence, it was highlighted that ambivalence creates a riot for the
colonial as well indulging them in an anxiousness and anxiety. This anxiety on the part of
colonizers crystallizes and elucidates a way for the colonized and gives them a space to resist
colonial discourse. Bhabha’s post-colonial theory, in fact, ridiculously approaches colonial
discourse as it ridicules the pretentions of the colonizers. Bhaba (1984) says in his articles “Of
Mimicry and Man”

“Colonial mimicry is the desire for reformed recognizable other, as a subject of a difference that
is almost the same, but not quite. Which is to say that the discourse of mimicry is constructed
around ambivalence; in order to effective, mimicry must continually produce its slippage, its e
excess, its difference” (p. 126).
One of the questions of my contention was, “why do natives mimic?” they mimic, as
Bhabha (1984) puts, to be ‘recognizable and reformed’ like that of the white—the so-called
superior, civilized white people. The researcher may digress while illustrating this relevantly
irrelevant analogy. But when humans watch superstars in movies, they like to mimic and copy
them. Why? Actually, they wish to be like them; for the superheroes have constructed their
identity on a high pedestal and are appreciable everywhere. Similarly, the colonizers are
superstar for the colonized. They want to be like them but they can only mimic them.
With reference to “Dream on Monkey Mountain”, Makak, the protagonist, is the one who
suffers more from ‘racial despair’. First of all, his name “Makak” or “Monkey”, according to racists’
ideology, is the identification of the black with monkeys. He demonstrates at the very command of
Lestrade corporal--- the one representing colonial authority. Makak imitates every action of
Lestrade; for he says,
“I kneel down, monkey kneel down too,
I don’t know what to say this monkey won’t do
I praying, monkey praying too
I don’t know what the hell this monkey won’t do” (Walcott, 2005, p. 224).

Significantly, the most appropriate example of mimicry is Makak’s wearing the white mask---the
mask of mimicry---the mask which the black children wear. Moustique, when finds the mask in
Makak’s hovel, exclaims “Cheep stupidness black children putting on” (p. 240). Later, when
Moustique puts on the mask to impersonate Makak--- the leader, Basil, Corporal and the people
ask him to show himself if he is Makak by delivering some revelation of his experience. Mostique,
to avoid oppression explicitly says “You all want me, as if this hand hold magic, to stretch it and
like a flesh of lightening make you all white!” (p. 272). Definitely, he cannot perform this miracle.
He can only train them in mimicry. He pulls out the mask and says by showing them the mask,
“All I have is this black faces, white masks! I tried like you” (Walcott 272). When he says he tried
like all other black men who are psychologically bound to imitate the white. He expresses the
collective desire of all black natives to be recognizable.
Moreover, mimicry is not exhibited in relation to authority but it also manifests the desire.
Hogan (1994) says, “Within a racist society, the dominant racial group assumes official authority
for all evaluation, and enforces that authority” (p. 111). This is the case in which the imitator looks
for the respect of the super-ordinate. It is constructed as definite truth that the respect comes
from the white whom they imitate. Similarly, love is absolute and certain if it comes from the

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white. There develops a desire to be loved by a white woman. This desire is directly similar to the
desire to be recognizable--- to have some values. In the play, the moon metaphorically stands for
white woman. Tigre says to Makak, “I can imagine your dreams. Masturbating in moon light
(Walcott, 2005, p. 226). This shows that he is fantasizing white woman for whom he does have
sexual desire. This can only be fulfilled in dream. As Makak expresses his despair by explaining
that he cannot reach that moon (white woman), that’s why he is lost. He can only achieve that
love in dreams.
Mimicry leads to subaltern identity is one of the points of my contention. Moustique
identifies the white woman with white mask. It connotes that the values she allows Makak to
enjoy are mimic. Makak, in his hallucination, is visited by a white woman whose love inspires him
in such a way that he seems to be getting his identity. As he says, “She call out my name, my real
name” and “she did know my age, where I born” (pp. 236-37). The white woman’s love gives him
prestige, pride and inheritance. He says, “She says that I come from the family of lions and kings”
(p. 237). Talking about the twin ideas, Walcott presents the metaphor of ‘lion’. This metaphor
becomes more explicit when Walcott presents analogues of ‘day and night’, ‘milk and coal’ and
‘lion and monkey’. In each binary set one, metaphorically, signifies whiteness and the other
blackness. Makak, the monkey is made to be lion by the white lady--- the king of jungle. By
making him lion, she makes him white. Thus, the white lady gives him some worth. Walcott,
again, dismantles colonial discourse which does not equalize the colonized to the colonizer. The
worth given to him is not his own but given by a white lady. This is what Walcott abhors. He wants
the natives to get their real identity.

C) Hybridity
Hybridity can be defined in terms of biology, ethnicity and culture. Etymologically, it is
derived from the word hybrid, an offspring produced by “A tame sow and wild boar” (Easthope,
1998, p. 145). A hybrid is a person “having access to two or more ethnic identities” (p. 145). Barry
(2002) has stated that hybridity is the situation whereby individual and groups belong
simultaneously to more than one culture. The concept of hybridity has been quite significant and
disputed in post-colonial context since colonial power created an environment in which the
colonized were compelled to adopt themselves accordingly because of colonizers’ strength. From
“Dream on Monkey Mountain”, the researcher discusses Lestrade Corporal, a mulatto--- an
officer who has adopted the language and culture, of the colonizers and is proud to be part of
them. He snubs and abhors the natives just like the colonizer do. He behaves as if he were
English person. When Makak tells his name in creole language, he gets infuriated and exclaims,
“English, English! For we are observing the principle and precepts of Roman law and Roman law
is English law” (Walcott, 2005, p. 220). He exactly follows the colonizers’ policy when he says,
“The pistols not to destroy but to protect---- to protect people from themselves” (p. 260).

The colonizers did the same as they colonized people to make those savages civilized----
the savages, as they thought, were cause of menace for their own ‘self’. But they used the tools
(guns and pistols) to tame them. A question in my contention is, “Why are hybrids ambivalent? In
fact, as Easthope (1998) puts, “Hybridity is ontologically prior to any notion of unity, or identity” (p.
146). It is prior to identity but not the real identity. The colonial presence in form of language,
culture or as an imperial force causes ambivalence. As Bhabha (1984) also differentiates
hybridity and identity “The colonial presence is always ambivalent, split between its appearance
as original and authoritative and difference” (p. 107).

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Another reason for hybrids’ ambivalence can be that they are not fully accepted by the
superiors. Though Lestrade succeeds in attaining identity by mimicry, imitating, following, and
finally getting hybrid, yet this identity is subaltern – the second hand identity. As Makak says to
Lestrade, “They reject half of you. We accept all” (Walcott, 2005, p. 301).
Justifiably, it can be said that mimic Makak and the hybrid Lestrade attain some worth---
the former by mimicking and latter by submitting himself to the super ordinates. But the debate is
not over yet. Walcott does wish to remove the longing to be white or to follow the white. He
resists against colonial discourse and yearns that the natives should turn to their ‘self’ to achieve
their nation identity, tradition and real culture. As he says, “Once we have lost our wish to be
white we develop a longing to become black” (Quoted in Hogan, 1994, p. 110). He does so
through the Visionary experience and dream of Makak.
Makak, in the prologue, is investigated by Lestrade who asks him about his race and
name. Makak replies that he has forgotten his name and his race is ‘tired’. The pre-formation of
his identity is processed when he narrates his dream to the Lestrade in which he is told to be a
descendant of the family of kings, “healer of leprosy and Savior of his race” (Walcott, 2005, p.
240). The structure of the play takes expressionistic turn of a dream as the prison cage rises out
of sight. Later, in scene 1 he explains his dream to Moustique turns a deaf ear to it taking it to be
a nightmare. He is, in fact, preoccupied with the idea of his identity and psychologically bears in
mind Africa as his homeland where, as he thinks, he really belongs.
This feeling springs from the Bhabha’s concept of unhomeliness. He is being trapped in a
culture where he is called ‘Other’. This ‘otherness’ pinches him and he, being a mimic, imitates
the white --- to be accepted. But the indifference causes psychological disorder. This instigates in
him a desire to imagine a homeland. He tells Moustique that he will leave the place and will go to
Africa--- Africa is an ‘imaginary homeland’ as he has never been there. He only has reminiscence
of that place as the voice informed him that he belonged to the family African kings. Huddart
(2006) says, “To imagine a homeland is actually to imagine something very solid that will ground
and guarantee your identity, feeling like your home is elsewhere can lead you to imagine a
homeland that is pure” (p. 47). For him, Africa is the homeland where he is at liberty to imagine
and to get a reliable identity.
Makak, in part 2, flees from jail along with the two felons; Tigre and Souris. Analogously,
he is, as suggested by the critics, the Christ figure who initiates to move on as a Savior of his
race and the two felons are the two thieves crucified with the Christ. Makak turns to be a
reactionary native. In the beginning of the play ‘The white disc of an African drum’ and ‘the round
moon’ (Walcott, 2005, p. 213) are present. The round moon, as is already discussed, stands for
whiteness---- specifically white woman, and the African drum signifies the upcoming rediscovery
of African tradition. Makak, in his delirium, assumes to be in Africa and says in a kingly way, “That
now is the time, the time of war. Fire, fire and destruction” (p. 296).
Makak’s unattainable desire and love for moon (the white woman) turns to be love for
Mother Africa, his real home that is always waiting for him. Even Lestrade, a hybrid, seeks for
true identity. He cries out “Mother Africa, Mother Earth” (p. 299). He gets naked celebrating his
rebirth as African. “I return to this earth, my mother” (p. 330). He identifies himself with his own
people and repudiates his subaltern identity. He says, “I have black man work to do” (Walcott
308). Similarly, Makak abhors the whiteness and glorifies his blackness. The apparition of the
white woman again appears--- the woman who was an object of his love. But now Makak is
reactionary and the object of love is reconstructed as object of hatred---- hatred for whiteness.

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Lestrade Corporal incites him to kill her because she is the creation of his own mind which has
occupied his mind. “If you want to discover the depth of your blackness, nigger, chop her off----
she is the white light that the paralyzed your mind”(p. 319).
Makak beheads the woman finally and say, “Now, o God, Now I am free” (p. 321). He is
free because he has end up with the burden of whiteness. Soon after killing her he recalls his
name “Felix Hobain”. It means that he has got his identity. This is what Walcott aimed at. The
black come to recognize themselves only when they uproot the desire to be white. He presents
the natives resisting and revolting against colonial power to get their true identity. In this way, he
also dismantles colonial discourse.
Conclusion
This research paper has embarked on a journey through the intricate process of post-
colonial identity negotiation within the Caribbean context. By analyzing the interplay of
ambivalence, mimicry, and hybridity, derived from colonial ideologies, the study has shed light on
the complex dynamics that shape the formation of identity in post-colonial societies. The
exploration of Derek Walcott’s literary contributions has provided valuable insights into the
psychological landscape of Caribbean natives, offering a profound understanding of their
struggles and aspirations for authentic identity reconstruction. The utilization of metaphoric and
symbolic implications has further enhanced the comprehension of the post-colonial vision and its
impact on identity formation.
Through this investigation, it has become evident that the pursuit of real identity involves
a constant interplay between resistance and adaptation, as subaltern populations strive to
navigate the remnants of colonial legacies. The process of negotiating post-colonial identity
necessitates a deep introspection of historical contexts, power dynamics, and cultural
intersections. Moreover, it demands the recognition and affirmation of indigenous knowledge and
agency, allowing for the emergence of hybrid identities that transcend colonial impositions.
The findings of this research contribute to a broader discourse on post-colonial identities,
highlighting the importance of understanding the nuances of ambivalence, mimicry, and hybridity
in shaping the narratives of subaltern populations. By shedding light on the struggles and
resistance of Caribbean natives, this study emphasizes the need for ongoing decolonization
efforts and the recognition of diverse voices and experiences. It is through these endeavors that
post-colonial societies can continue to evolve towards a more inclusive, equitable, and authentic
understanding of identity.
The journey towards real identity in the post-colonial Caribbean context is a complex and
multifaceted process. The fusion of colonial concepts, the resistance and reaction of the
subaltern, and the utilization of metaphoric and symbolic implications collectively contribute to the
reconstruction of identity. As we continue to explore and understand the dynamics of post-
colonialism, it is imperative to embrace diverse narratives and empower marginalized
communities in their pursuit of self-discovery, ultimately fostering a more inclusive and just
society.
Conclusively speaking, ambivalence startles the conscious of the colonized; for desire to
be recognizable urges them to mimic, and they get hybridized. But this process does lead to an
identity which is second hand. Natives do not feel at home and cannot suffice themselves with it.
They react and resist getting the true identity. Walcott, as a post-colonial writer, deconstructs
colonial ideology of racism by resisting against it.

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