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The history of the human world has reached a stage where no
philosophical community can any longer philosophize in isolation
from other philosophical communities. The African philosophical
community is not an exception and neither is any other
philosophical community. There is a widespread notion in the West
that philosophy originated in Greece and found its way throughout
Europe, from where it migrated to Africa. This book argues that
Philosophy did not migrate to African from anywhere but that it is
radically native to all communities. The chapters cover the erasure
of African philosophy, African philosophical departures, the threat
that Christianity has posed to African philosophy, African legal
philosophy, African musical aesthetics and connections with
classical philosophy. Arguing that the landscape of philosophy has
a place not only for Africans but also for all human beings and
that African philosophers are among the architects of this
landscape, this book is an important read for scholars and students
of African philosophy.
This book is a philosophical inquiry into indigenous African legal
ethics, asking what is African about African legal ethics? Taking
us beyond a geographical understanding of Africa, the author argues
for an African legal ethics that is distinct from non-African
African legal ethics which are rooted in Euro-Western
constructions. De-silencing African voices on African legal ethics
this book decolonizes the prevailing wisdom on legal ethics and
broadens our understanding of how law in Africa bears on ethics in
Africa or, conversely, on how ethics bears on law in Africa. This
book will be of interest to scholars of African philosophy,
philosophy of law, and legal ethics.
The illumination of African philosophy offered in this volume leads
to the illumination of philosophy in general. Illuminating arises
as an essential task of philosophy, whether African or not. What is
illuminated is not already there, but is constituted at the moment
of illumination. This book invites the reader to participate in the
illuminating work of philosophy and necessarily, thereby, to
contribute to his or her own self-constituting self-illumination.
Although the focus is on African philosophy, the book also bridges
the gap between African philosophy and other branches. Today more
than ever, a bridging philosophy is called for, and this book helps
to meet that need. This book poses philosophical questions such as
who is an African and what Africa is, and seeks philosophical
answers. In doing so, it contributes to the ongoing discourse on
African philosophy. It addresses such issues as the African
grounding of philosophy, the difference between African and Black
philosophy, the African body, African art as expressed in and by
Chiwara, the plight of African trees as the plight of Africans, and
the symbolic meaning of Robben Island.
The illumination of African philosophy offered in this volume leads
to the illumination of philosophy in general. Illuminating arises
as an essential task of philosophy, whether African or not. What is
illuminated is not already there, but is constituted at the moment
of illumination. This book invites the reader to participate in the
illuminating work of philosophy and necessarily, thereby, to
contribute to his or her own self-constituting self-illumination.
Although the focus is on African philosophy, the book also bridges
the gap between African philosophy and other branches. Today more
than ever, a bridging philosophy is called for, and this book helps
to meet that need. This book poses philosophical questions such as
who is an African and what Africa is, and seeks philosophical
answers. In doing so, it contributes to the ongoing discourse on
African philosophy. It addresses such issues as the African
grounding of philosophy, the difference between African and Black
philosophy, the African body, African art as expressed in and by
Chiwara, the plight of African trees as the plight of Africans, and
the symbolic meaning of Robben Island.
Symbolic Landscapes presents a definitive collection of
landscape/place studies that explores symbolic, cultural levels of
geographical meanings. Essays written by philosophers, geographers,
architects, social scientists, art historians, and literati, bring
specific modes of expertise and perspectives to this
transdisciplinary and interdisciplinary study of the symbolic level
human existential spatiality. Placing emphasis on the pre-cognitive
genesis of symbolic meaning, as well as embodied, experiential
(lived) geography, the volume offers a fresh,
quasi-phenomenological approach. The editors articulate the
epistemological doctrine that perception and imagination form a
continuum in which both are always implicated as complements. This
approach makes a case for the interrelation of the geography of
perception and the geography of imagination, which means that
human/cultural geography offers only an abstraction if indeed an
aesthetic geography is constituted merely as a sub-field.
Human/cultural geography can only approach spatial reality through
recognizing the intimate interrelative dialectic between the
imaginative and perceptual meanings of our landscapes/place-worlds.
This volume reinvigorates the importance of the topic of symbolism
in human/cultural geography, landscape studies, philosophy of
place, architecture and planning, and will stand among the classics
in the field.
African Philosophical Adventures presents African philosophy as a
convergence wherein what is African, what is philosophy, and what
is an adventure enter an inter-relational and reciprocal process,
each giving birth to the others. Philosophy, whether African or
non-African, is an open-ended process. There is no finality in what
it says about itself or about the subject matter that it
investigates. John Murungi uses this sense of philosophy to guide
the chapters in this book. The word “adventure” bears this
sense of philosophy, and the same time informs what is to be
understood as African philosophy. The singularity of African
philosophy, as well as its link to other branches of philosophy, is
subject to adventure. Readers of this book who are themselves
adventurers in the world of philosophy will benefit greatly. For
those who are not already so, it will be an invitation to undertake
such an adventure.
The history of the human world has reached a stage where no
philosophical community can any longer philosophize in isolation
from other philosophical communities. The African philosophical
community is not an exception and neither is any other
philosophical community. There is a widespread notion in the West
that philosophy originated in Greece and found its way throughout
Europe, from where it migrated to Africa. This book argues that
Philosophy did not migrate to African from anywhere but that it is
radically native to all communities. The chapters cover the erasure
of African philosophy, African philosophical departures, the threat
that Christianity has posed to African philosophy, African legal
philosophy, African musical aesthetics and connections with
classical philosophy. Arguing that the landscape of philosophy has
a place not only for Africans but also for all human beings and
that African philosophers are among the architects of this
landscape, this book is an important read for scholars and students
of African philosophy.
This book explores the lived experience of being at home as well as
being homeless. Being at home or not is typically a matter of being
at a place or not, where such a place is carved out of space and
designated as such. It is a place that is both empirical and
trans-empirical. When one is at home or not at home, one typically
has in mind an inhabited place. To inhabit or not to inhabit it is
to find oneself in a place that has an affective presence or
absence. In either case, affectivity points to a lived place where
lived experience is constituted and displayed. Thus, in this
context, affectivity becomes more than the subject of empirical
psychology. If psychology were to have access, it would be in the
context of phenomenological or existential psychology - a
psychology that has its roots in the sensible world and, hence, a
psychology that expresses an aesthetic dimension. Each of the
contributors in this book extends an invitation to the readers to
participate in constituting, extending, and sharing with others the
sense of either being at home or of being homeless. This book
appeals to students, researchers as well as general interest
readers.
Symbolic Landscapes presents a definitive collection of
landscape/place studies that explores symbolic, cultural levels of
geographical meanings. Essays written by philosophers, geographers,
architects, social scientists, art historians, and literati, bring
specific modes of expertise and perspectives to this
transdisciplinary and interdisciplinary study of the symbolic level
human existential spatiality. Placing emphasis on the pre-cognitive
genesis of symbolic meaning, as well as embodied, experiential
(lived) geography, the volume offers a fresh,
quasi-phenomenological approach. The editors articulate the
epistemological doctrine that perception and imagination form a
continuum in which both are always implicated as complements. This
approach makes a case for the interrelation of the geography of
perception and the geography of imagination, which means that
human/cultural geography offers only an abstraction if indeed an
aesthetic geography is constituted merely as a sub-field.
Human/cultural geography can only approach spatial reality through
recognizing the intimate interrelative dialectic between the
imaginative and perceptual meanings of our landscapes/place-worlds.
This volume reinvigorates the importance of the topic of symbolism
in human/cultural geography, landscape studies, philosophy of
place, architecture and planning, and will stand among the classics
in the field.
This book explores the lived experience of being at home as well as
being homeless. Being at home or not is typically a matter of being
at a place or not, where such a place is carved out of space and
designated as such. It is a place that is both empirical and
trans-empirical. When one is at home or not at home, one typically
has in mind an inhabited place. To inhabit or not to inhabit it is
to find oneself in a place that has an affective presence or
absence. In either case, affectivity points to a lived place where
lived experience is constituted and displayed. Thus, in this
context, affectivity becomes more than the subject of empirical
psychology. If psychology were to have access, it would be in the
context of phenomenological or existential psychology - a
psychology that has its roots in the sensible world and, hence, a
psychology that expresses an aesthetic dimension. Each of the
contributors in this book extends an invitation to the readers to
participate in constituting, extending, and sharing with others the
sense of either being at home or of being homeless. This book
appeals to students, researchers as well as general interest
readers.
This book is a philosophical inquiry into indigenous African legal
ethics, asking what is African about African legal ethics? Taking
us beyond a geographical understanding of Africa, the author argues
for an African legal ethics that is distinct from non-African
African legal ethics which are rooted in Euro-Western
constructions. De-silencing African voices on African legal ethics
this book decolonizes the prevailing wisdom on legal ethics and
broadens our understanding of how law in Africa bears on ethics in
Africa or, conversely, on how ethics bears on law in Africa. This
book will be of interest to scholars of African philosophy,
philosophy of law, and legal ethics.
This collection explores the various forms of narrative, semiotic,
and technological mediation that shape the experience of place.
From the East End of London to Navajo lands to Ground Zero, Lived
Topographies examines the great effect of language, mass media,
surveillance, and other incursions of the contemporary world on
topographical experience and description. Gary Backhaus and John
Murungi have assembled a wide array of scholars to provide an
interdisciplinary approach to this subject, giving this rich,
focused collection a unique perspective on the phenomenology of
place.
A book on legal philosophy, necessarily, focuses attention on law.
In addition to this focus, An Introduction to an African Legal
Philosophy focuses attention on philosophy. The link between law
and philosophy is brought into relief, which is done through an
African context. An attempt is made to spell out what is African
about legal philosophy without being cut off of African legal
philosophy from non-African legal philosophy. The book draws
attention to the view that a basic component of African legal
philosophy consists of an investigation of what it is to be an
African, and because an African is a human being among other human
beings, the investigation is about what it is to be a human being.
Ubuntuism is an African-derived word that captures this mode of
being human. Moreover, because human beings are cultural beings,
African cultural context guides the investigation. Inescapably, it
is claimed that, every legal philosophy is embedded in a culture.
African legal philosophy is not an exception. It is deeply rooted
in African culture -a culture that is today shaped, in part, by a
European colonialist culture. One feature that will strike one as
one reads the book is that the book approaches African legal
philosophy as a means of decolonization of African culture. African
legal philosophy can accomplish this intelligently and effectively
if it is itself decolonized. In doing this it contrasts sharply
with mainstream Western legal philosophy.
Among the first and foremost of American continental philosophers,
Alphonso Lingis refines his own thought through a topic usually
deemed unworthy of philosophical examination-passion. Lingis
criticizes traditional scientific accounts of the emotions as
dividing or disrupting our lives and argues for passion as a
unifying force, a concept which invites philosophical exploration.
The book's structure is twofold. First, it offers an examination of
Lingis's most recent developments through the topic of passion with
essays from some of the most established commentators on the work
of Lingis. Second, it offers a substantial retrospective on
Lingis's thought in relation to some of the major figures in
continental philosophy, namely Levinas, Kant, Heidegger, Butler,
Foucault, and Nietzsche, all interweaving the theme of passion.
Written to celebrate the eightieth anniversary of Lingis's birth,
these essays show how Lingis's thought has not only endured over so
many productive decades but also remains vital and even continues
to grow.
A book on legal philosophy, necessarily, focuses attention on law.
In addition to this focus, An Introduction to an African Legal
Philosophy focuses attention on philosophy. The link between law
and philosophy is brought into relief, which is done through an
African context. An attempt is made to spell out what is African
about legal philosophy without being cut off of African legal
philosophy from non-African legal philosophy. The book draws
attention to the view that a basic component of African legal
philosophy consists of an investigation of what it is to be an
African, and because an African is a human being among other human
beings, the investigation is about what it is to be a human being.
Ubuntuism is an African-derived word that captures this mode of
being human. Moreover, because human beings are cultural beings,
African cultural context guides the investigation. Inescapably, it
is claimed that, every legal philosophy is embedded in a culture.
African legal philosophy is not an exception. It is deeply rooted
in African culture -a culture that is today shaped, in part, by a
European colonialist culture. One feature that will strike one as
one reads the book is that the book approaches African legal
philosophy as a means of decolonization of African culture. African
legal philosophy can accomplish this intelligently and effectively
if it is itself decolonized. In doing this it contrasts sharply
with mainstream Western legal philosophy.
What is the connection between anthropology, philosophy, and
geography? How does one locate the connection? Can a juncture
between these disciplines also accommodate history, sociology and
other applied and theoretical forms of knowledge? In Earth Ways:
Framing Geographical Meanings, editors Gary Backhaus and John
Murungi challenge their contributors to find the location that
would enable them to bridge their "home disciplines" to
philosophical and geographical thought. This represents no easy
task. Essayists are charged with building a set of conceptual
bridges and what emerges is a unique co-joined topography; sets of
ideas united by a painstaking and rigorous interdisciplinary
framework. Earth Ways is a salient rendering of interdisciplinary
thought in contemporary humanities and social sciences scholarship.
The study of landscape and place has become an increasingly fertile
realm of inquiry in the humanities and social sciences. In this new
book of essays, selected from presentations at the first annual
meeting of the Society for Philosophy and Geography, scholars
investigate the experiences and meanings that inscribe urban and
suburban landscapes. Gary Backhaus and John Murungi bring
philosophy and geography into a dialogue with a host of other
disciplines to explore a fundamental dialectic: while our
collective and personal activity modifies the landscape, in turn,
the landscape modifies human identities, and social and
environmental relations. Whether proposing a peripatetic politics,
conducting a sociological analysis of building security systems, or
critically examining the formation of New York City's municipal
parks, each essay sheds distinctive light on this fascinating and
engaging aspect of contemporary environmental studies.
The thesis of incommensurability concerns the interrelation between
subjective culture and objective culture through which the
constitutive agency of chaos (incommensurability) emerges. The
objectivations/products, the constituents of objective culture,
carry their own Being, and this Being transcends the original
subjective expressivities/intentions. The constitutive agency of
this incommensurable interrelation becomes apparent in an age of
globalization where its effects become global, bringing about
dangerous socio-political volatilities. To illustrate, global
warming has been neither the expressive intention of subjective
culture nor a constituent of energy per se as an objectivated
product in the context of objective culture. It emerges in the
interrelation, an unforeseen incommensurability, a chaos in the
culture of energy that threatens the globe/world in various ways.
Incommensurability, the cultural form of chaos, is recognized as
dramatically foiling human instrumental rationality, spoiling its
hubris or belief in its own progress. The doctrine of
incommensurability shows that we can not know what we are doing
while we are doing it, for the empirical manifestations of chaos
are only knowable after the fact and its effects are unpredictable.
This book of essays is divided into two parts: the first dealing
with contemporary themes in subjective culture and the second with
those in objective culture. A few of the pressing topics treated in
this volume are: abstracted information of a computer-based society
versus locally-based, grounded knowledge, abstracted neo-liberal
economics versus place-grounded economics, the geo-politics of peak
oil, and the intensification of natural disasters as a consequence
of global warming reveal the tenuous character of the contemporary
world.
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