In critical theory and postcolonial studies, the term "Subaltern" characterizes the state of a person whose voice and actions are ignored, misappropriated or rendered inoperative. The term subaltern is used in the social sciences to refer to marginalized sectors and the lower classes of societies. This sense of the word was proposed by Antonio Gramsci and ows much of its popularity to Gayatri Spivak.
The word “subaltern”, which generally designates a person of lower rank, is borrowed by subaltern studies from Gramsci, who gives a more precise meaning to subaltern. For Gramsci, the subordinates do not occupy an inferior position only because of their economic destitution, but also because they have come to accept the “hegemonic discourse” which justifies their lowering . "Subordinate" or "subaltern" thus refers to Gramsci's work on cultural hegemony .
The subalternist studies privilege a refocus on the subalterns, and no longer on the elites, as real agents of social and political change. They show a particular interest in the rhetoric and rhetoric of emerging social and political movements, in their only directly observable actions, such as demonstrations or rebellions.
Indian theorist Gayatri Spivak posed the question of "Can the Subaltern Speak?" in a highly influencial article by that name.
See also: postcolonialism theory explained
