APOSTLES OF JESUS INSTITUTE OF PHILOSOPHY AND THEOLOGY

(Affiliated to Urbaniana pontifical unversity in Rome_Italy)

DEPARTMENT OF PHILOSOPHY

COURSE UNIT: PHC 101 : Introduction to philosophy

SEMESTER : FIRST SEMESTER 2023

CLASS : PHILOSOPHY ONE

STUDENT’S NAME: KOAH GATLEY LIAH WAL

REGISTRATION NUMBER: 2152

LECTURERS NAME:

TOPIC: critique the role of African philosophy in the struggle against colonialism
Introduction
In this research paper I am going to discuss about the African philosophy as a radical critique
in the introduction to philosophy. I intent to investigate the roles of African philosophy
during colonialism and neocolonialism. Thus by the end of this discussion I will have
exhausted all the best aspects of the African philosophy. Therefore it is my pleasure that the
reader will be able to grasp the important points with case in as far as the mentioned topic is
concerned.
Backgroung

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African philosophy has established itself as an academic discipline in the past half of a
century. The term has become a trademark with which a numbers of philosophers introduct
(Kimmerle 1991, Bidima 1995, Imbo 1998), Wright 1984, Serequeberham 1991, Mosley
1995, English and Kalumba 1996, Eze 1997-1998, Coetzee and Roux 1998-2003 Karp and
Masolo 2000. Historical overview (Masolo 1994-2000, Hallen 2009) and an encyclopaedia
(Wired 2004) have been published. African philosophy has also been including in valuation
encyclopaedias of world philosophies (floistad 1987, Deutsch and Bontekoe 1999, Smart
2001). Both name ‘’ African ‘’ and ‘’ philosophy ‘’ have been ask numerous time with
respect to their content and relevance to the form of this term in View of African’s multiple
tradition of thought. The present valume makes a contribution to this debate through
intellectual tradition and question the limits and boundaries of African philosophy established
in the existing literature. .
Consciousness of the shortcoming and imprecision of the term
I) The present valume continues employing through the awareness concept of African
philosophy which have specific content decisively informe by the complex history of
the field and importantly that African philosophy is the bearer of a Mission.
II) African philosophy is not merely on academic discipline because the political charge
is at the heart of African philosophy, where it arose from a criticism of the
dehumanizing tendencies of European culture which were past centuries found
expression in slavery colonial expanionism and still in present racial discrimination.
III) African philosophy transcend political statement and emancipatory rhetoric through
its critical approach and its own specific content, in the Course of its prolonged
struggle for existence and subjected which pillars the European intellectual
achievement to a radical and meticulous critique.
IV) As a result of this African philosophy in its current form is as much about European
philosophy as it is about African thought, because discipline was constituted by
European philosophy through the largely opposition which was done in essentituted
term: assuming unitary, monoluthic salient features which mutually formed binary
opposition.
V) This essentialist thinking remain part of the heritage of African philosophy and many
African people and African philosophers have exerted themselves in challenging such
clear cut binaries.
(Masolo 1994) questioned all the early assumption of European philosophy that, what is
nature or the origin of European philosophy? Its reverse that the historical primary of
philosophical discourse was shift beginning from Greece in to ancient Egypt a civilization on
the border of the Mediterranean sea like Ancient Greece, but they rooted in the African land
(soil). In this form of questioning, African philosophy ask the Canon of European philosophy,
but not only the canonical figure of European philosophical discourse are inspected but also
the genres of philosophy. Therefore African philosophy bring new genres in to the area of
philosophical debate which analysing Proverbs or poems that explores the way literature
mediates experience our conceptualization which are the roles of writing and orality in
philosophical thinking, rediscovers for philosophy magic of the spoken Word.
The methods of African philosophy

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 1. The exclusive characterization of philosophy as theory and additionally explores
philosophies embedded in life practices.
2. Its also studies the embodiment of the philosophical ideas in the life activities as well
as their expression in various form of material culture and its suggest social practices
and art as ways to do philosophy.
3. Its reinterprets the fundamental epistemological, ontological, and axiological tenets of
western philosophy and its asks whether instead of the cool and distance knowledge
of an object by a subjected knowledge can be achieved through a embodiment and
passion, or whether it is possible to dance the other to become the other.
4. Its strive to overcome the philosophy built upon Plato’s lifeless eternal form through a
vigorous affimation of forces of life of the rhythm which permeates all being and
highlight the situational contextual nature of values and truth of the profound
determination of the individual through the community.
5. Its reveling the political roots and the pragmantic nurturing grounds of tradition
philosophy as well as specific philosophical systems of beliefs the political and
economic motifs behind the presumably disinterested and unbiased philosophical
discourse. In this position European philosophy give African philosophy a very
specific status.
6. African philosophy is seen as a philosophy containing and overcoming European
philosophy. As Lewis Gordon states that African philosophy is broader in scope than
western philosophy, because it including the western in itself articulation. The
practices western philosophy may be a subset of African philosophy
Criticism
Anke Graness’s article pursues the hypothesis which brought forward by Cheikh Anta Diop
and ofter called Afrocentrism (cf Bernal 1987, Crawford 1995, Obenga 2004)who says that
the origin of philosophy was start in African in Ancient Egypt. To this suggestion he analyses
three ways texts origin of philosophy in Ancient Egypt. 1) the Teaching of the vizier
ptohhotep from the fifth Dynasty (2388-2356) the Tale of the Eloquent peasant from the
twelfth Dynasty 1900 BC. 2) the dialogue of a man with his soul also from the twelfth
Dynasty. 3) definition of philosophy is rational comprehension of the totality world
understanding the position of the human being in the world. Graness confirm that all three
texts are qualify as philosophical and they are also fulfil criteria such as argumentative
approach and critical attitude to current ethical and social norms and ideas.
Tomas F. Zak’s article say that the philosophical thought of the two first presidents of
Tanzania and Ghana respecively Julius K. Nyerere and Kwame Nkrumah established a
distinction between marxism as an ideology and marxism as a methods rather than as an
ideology. Nkrumah managed to articulated his own independent philosophy. On the other
hand, Nyerere’s ideology of the Ujamaa remained an inflexible version of African socialism.
Both Sara Marzagora’s and Albert Kasanda’s articles deal with issues of African identity.
Marzagora studies that the confrontation between the deconstructionist trends of
postmodernism, poststructuralism and postcolonical theory are one hand and nativism and
natsionalism are on other hand. This point of departure is a wide divergence of the
intellectual development in African and in Europe in the year 1960s and 1970s despite the
obvious common goal of challenging such as intellectual and political hegemony of the west.
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European intellectual struggle to deconstruct the unified and autonomous subjected. African
philosophy struggle to construct this subjectivity as a basis of national liberation and
decolonization to reverse Eurocentrism and decolonize epistemology to become a pervasive
principle of African intellectual development in the dialogue folloing the attainment of
independence and its remain as the influentical to the present day.
Kasanda’s articles review the genesis of Pan-Africanism through a survey of the ideas of its
main theories. He focuses on the criticism leveled against Pan-Africanism and its notion of
African identity and sovereignty. This article created a new paradigm of solidarity isists on
human dignity the search for global justice and strict adherence to human right.
Alena Rettova’s article see genre as a main key variable in the discussion within African
philosophy regarding the possibility of the philosophy being collective as opposed to to being
authored by individual thinkers. In this article there are two main genres of swahili poetry
which are examined in the article, including the highly individualistic free-verse poety
introduced by William Mkufya and the type of poetry introduced by Mathias Mnyampala and
employed in Tanzanian Ujamaa era for the propaganda of this political philosophy.

Clarissa Vierke’s article consider how literary figurations define as ideas expressed in poetic
form and imagery of human shape experience how they provide a mode of experience. This
demonstrated through discussion of the two example, which is the Utendi genre for the
writing of early Muslim history such as the early Utendi wa Tambuka which experience as
resistance to colonial rule in the later nineteenth and early twentieth century.
General conclusion
African philosophy, developed since in the middle of the last century as present radical that
questioning the disciples of philosophy urgently need:humanity questioning which sensitive
to difference culture, religion, politics and language. Such examination cannot remain
without a thorough exploration of its contexts and channels of expression. from this
consideration emerge new field of study the discipline, through the intersection between
history and philosophy, philosophy and politics, philosophy and literature.
Reference
1. William, K. Gatley, the Journal of African cultural studies (published online 22nd,
mar, 2016) vol, 28, No, 2, 127-131 http=//dx-doi-org /10 - 1080/
2. Bernal, Martin, the fabrication of Ancient Greece philosophy (published,
London:Vintage, 1987). Bidima, Jean, Godefroy, Lo philosophies negro, africaine
(published Paris: persses Universitaries de France, 1995), 23-43.
3. Coetzee, P. H and A. P. J, Roux, the African philosophy reader, (London: Routledge,
1998).

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