Africa as the "Other" of the West: Problems, Challenges, Chances (original) (raw)

'Is There such Thing as African Culture in the 21 st Century? A Philosophical Appraisal

This paper attempts to demonstrate that currently, there is nothing like African culture in the real sense of the word. If culture is understood as the sum total of a way of life of a particular set of people, it is unfortunate but obvious that modern Africa cannot pretend to have one. It is the opinion of this paper that colonialism and imperialism destroyed what was originally African. Talking of a genuine African culture in this twenty first century is a sham. It is shocking to realize that till date, most Africans still rely on the 'Other' [that is, the Western world] to name, qualify, define, and even classify them. This paper then concludes that Africans must regain themselves, that is; they must remain authentic through the revival and imposition of their genuine and unique personality if they really want to contribute to world history.

Tradition, African Philosophy and the Issue of Development in Africa

Journal of Philosophy, Culture and Religion

One of the central themes in postcolonial African philosophy is that of the relationship between tradition and African development. One of the fundamental questions relating to this is what should be the attitude of African to their traditional cultural heritage. Response to this question bifurcated African philosophy into two major orientations, that is the traditionalist and modernist orientations. This essay critically engage the attitude of these orientations to African traditions and Western cultural hegemony. I argue in the essay that both orientations demonstrate improper attitudes to African tradition because they treated tradition as product rather process that allows for change in the development process. If Africa would have to develop, whether in philosophical or socio-political terms, it needs no legitimation from the West. This however does not imply uncritical romaticisation of African cultural material. The Essay concludes by looking at how tradition can be put to good use.

African Philosophy and the Issue of Development

Paripex - Indian Journal Of Research, 2012

One of the central themes in postcolonial African philosophy is that of the relationship between tradition and African development. One of the fundamental questions relating to this is what should be the attitude of African to their traditional cultural heritage. Response to this question bifurcated African philosophy into two major orientations, that is the traditionalist and modernist orientations. This essay critically engage the attitude of these orientations to African traditions and Western cultural hegemony. I argue in the essay that both orientations demonstrate improper attitudes to African tradition because they treated tradition as product rather process that allows for change in the development process. If Africa would have to develop, whether in philosophical or socio-political terms, it needs no legitimation from the West. This however does not imply uncritical romaticisation of African cultural material. The Essay concludes by looking at how tradition can be put to good use.

Tradition and Modernity in Postcolonial African Philosophy

Humanitas, 2008

The relationship between tradition and modernity has been a central theme of postcolonial African philosophy. While African philosophers have examined this theme from many angles, several basic questions have become the focus of ongoing debate and discussion: What is the relevance of indigenous African traditions to the challenges of contemporary life? Do traditional modes of thought and behavior constitute resources or impediments to the projects of development and modernization in Africa? What, precisely, is meant by the terms "development" and "modernization" when they are used in reference to African countries? Discussion of such questions reveals a conflict between two broad perspectives. The first perspective, which Kwame Gyekye calls "cultural revivalism" (Gyekye 1997b, 233), assumes a basically reverential attitude toward the African cultural heritage. According to this view, the key to effectively addressing contemporary problems lies in reclai...

African Philosophy in the Eyes of the West

Phronimon, 2016

In this paper I unpack some nuanced aspects of cultural imperialism against the backdrop of Du Bois's analysis in The souls of black folk, dealing with the confrontation of African Americans or blacks by the other (the West). My aim is to gesture towards how certain ways of doing African philosophy can be considered culturally imperialistic. I seek to illustrate one culturally imperialistic way of doing African philosophy by discussing Thaddeus Metz's brilliant presentation of Ubuntu as an African moral theory. My motivation is to suggest along the way that his version of an Ubuntu-inspired moral theory seems to me a paradigmatic case of one such way.

AFRICA AND CULTURAL AUTHENTICITY

The media outlets all over the world project Africa as inferior and mere notion of the continent brings to mind war- Hunger, Malnourishment, deadly diseases, religious fanaticism etc. These and many other pessimistic notions about Africa lives a remarkable question ‘Can anything good come from Africa. Hence this article pays particular attention to the authenticity of African Culture. It maintains that amidst ferocious criticism on the African Continent, Her cultural values remain inestimable and thus second to none in the whole world. This article exposes the different problems that exist in African culture including the ones caused by Africans themselves, those caused remotely by colonialism or recently by the West. Hence this article is a call back to cultural authenticity as that would be the only saviour of the African continent. It believes that truly Africa can still be authentic.

4. Augustine E. Iyare - African Cultural Authenticity and Development in the Context of an Emerging Global Culture

ewanlen. A Journal of Philosophical Inquiry, 2017

The interactions between the West and Africa presents that of trade or economic benefits which is one of the advantages of globalization, but this has also created serious challenges for Africa's cultural development. This paper focuses on the problem of Africa cultural identity, and how Africa can sustain its identity and cultural values in the face an emerging global culture. However, the paper admits the damaging effect of the influence of Western culture on Africa, and the impossibility of jettisoning Western culture, It therefore suggests a cultural synthesis of good aspects of both cultures which will help Africa sustain its identity and values and foster development.

The Uniqueness of African Philosophy

African Research Review, 2013

To Western scholars, Africa has no history no philosophy and as such do not possess the cognitive power of philosophizing. This falsehood has relegated Africa to the backdoor of world development and history. However, the history of world development reveals Africa as the cradle of world civilization. It becomes more glaring when we view development as multidimensional. In all facets of development, Africa and Africans have made Indexed African Journals Online: www.ajol.info tremendous contributions. Africans through their reflective attitudes to society, environment and nature have helped to add value to African societies and the world at large. This paper therefore, attempts at reflective activities (philosophy) thus adding value to our society (development). It also attempts to establish a historical foundation for its existence and how it has furthered development in various facets of human existence.

The African Cultural Grounding and Historical Provenance of the Afrotriumphalist Perspective

The human worth of any given people is best appreciated in terms of their confidence in their history and culture as the embodiments of the life-affirming values and examples on the basis of which they can empower themselves and develop their communities. Without such confidence, it is impossible for any given people to be taken seriously by other members of the human family. This article sets out to outline the rubrics of “the Afrotriumphalist perspective” (Gwekwerere and Mheta:2012) in the study of phenomena relating to Africa, in addition to demonstrating its African cultural grounding and historical provenance against the backdrop of the need for African scholars to actively participate in the development of such Africa-centered critical perspectives as would furnish a brand of consciousness that expedites the appreciation of African people as capable of transcending their existential challenges. The emphasis on ‘the African cultural grounding’ and ‘historical provenance’ of the Afrotriumphalist perspective in this article is best understood in the light of the realization that African culture and history do in fact embody the life-affirming consciousness that should inform African thought and behaviour in the unfolding of the African Renaissance agenda