Asian Intellectuals for Cultural Resistance: Departures and Disruptions

Abstract

<p>In the past, the emergence of viable intellectual groups had been stunted by the grip of colonial imperialism, apart from the long years of feudal tutelage that made the society subservient to its ruling ideology. Today, the challenges are far more complex. Calling for intellectuals to take up cultural resistance can be just a utopianistic fervour, unless we first unravel the obstacles that prevent intellectuals from making a substantive presence in society. In this paper, four main areas will be discussed, namely: (a) the relegation of intellectuals in this era of technoscientific and soundbites euphoria, (b) the domains in which intellectuals should take up the task of cultural resistance, such as addressing intellectual captivity, culturalism, ethno-religious exclusivism and neoliberalism, (c) the timidity in our context of forging an Asian intellectual solidarity and comradery, and (d) the need to forge autonomous and humanistic sociological thinking amongst Asian cultural and intellectual circles. At present, the struggle for cultural resistance is marked by departures and disruptions. Thus, it warrants the creative and critical approaches with foremost commitment in imagining the possibility of cultural resistance as a start. </p><p><strong>Keywords: </strong>cultural resistance, intellectuals, culture circle, postcolonialism<strong><em></em></strong></p>