Post-colonialism and Gendered Subalternity

On the (Im)possibilities of Desconstructivist Feminism in G. C. Spivak

Abstract

This work aims to contribute to philosophical discussions surrounding the intricate thoughts of feminist scholar Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak. Drawing from a seminal text, translated into Portuguese in the late 1990s, though still relatively unexplored in Brazil, titled “Feminism and Desconstruction, again”, the essay endeavors to delve into key concepts threading through Spivak’s entire body of work. It also explores how the author selectively engages with post-colonial studies and Jacques Derrida’s desconstructive praxis, particularly to critically contemplate the meaning of subalternity and, more specifically, the position of the subaltern woman within hegemonic feminism.