Harmattan: A Philosophical Fiction (Insurrections: Critical Studies in Religion, Politics, and Culture)

We all experience qualms and anxieties when we move from the known to the unknown. Though our fulfillment in life may depend on testing limits, our faintheartedness is a reminder of our need for security and our awareness of the risks of venturing into alien worlds. Evoking the hot, dust-filled Harmattan winds that blow from the Sahara to the Gulf of Guinea, this book creatively explores what it means to be buffeted by the unforeseen and the unknown. Celebrating the life-giving potential of people, places, and powers that lie beyond our established worlds, __Harmattan__ connects existential vitality to the act of resisting prescribed customs and questioning received notions of truth. At the book's heart is the fictional story of Tom Lannon, a graduate student from Cambridge University, who remains ambivalent about pursuing a conventional life. After traveling to Sierra Leone in the aftermath of its devastating civil war, Tom meets a writer who helps him explore the possibilities of renewal. Illustrating the fact that certain aspects of human existence are common to all people regardless of culture and history, __Harmattan__ remakes the distinction between home and world and the relationship between knowledge and life. We all suffer qualms and anxieties when we move from the known to the unknown. Though our fulfillment in life may depend on testing limits, our faintheartedness is a reminder of our need for security and our awareness of the risks of venturing into alien worlds. Rich with the reflections of a renowned scholar who has worked extensively in many cultures and countries, Harmattan creatively imagines the experience of embracing the unknown. Celebrating the life-giving potential of people, places, and powers that lie beyond our established worlds, Harmattan connects existential vitality to the act of resisting prescribed customs and questioning received notions of truth. At the heart of the book is the fictional story of Tom Lannon, a graduate student from Cambridge University, who remains ambivalent about pursuing a conventional life. After traveling to Sierra Leone in the aftermath of the country's devastating civil war, Tom meets a writer who helps him explore the possibilities of renewal. Illustrating the fact that certain aspects of human existence are common to all people regardless of their culture and history, Harmattan remakes the distinction between home and world and the relationship between knowledge and life We all experience qualms and anxieties when we move from the known to the unknown. Though our fulfillment in life may depend on testing limits, our faintheartedness is a reminder of our need for security and our awareness of the risks of venturing into alien worlds. Evoking the hot, dust-filled Harmattan winds that blow from the Sahara to the Gulf of Guinea, this book creatively explores what it means to be buffeted by the unforeseen and the unknown. Celebrating the life-giving potential of people, places, and powers that lie beyond our established worlds, this book connects existential vitality to the act of resisting prescribed customs and questioning received notions of truth. At the book's heart is the fictional story of Tom Lannon, a graduate student from Cambridge University, who remains ambivalent about pursuing a conventional life. After traveling to Sierra Leone in the aftermath of its devastating civil war, Tom meets a writer who helps him explore the possibilities of renewal. Illustrating the fact that certain aspects of human existence are common to all people regardless of culture and history, this book remakes the distinction between home and world and the relationship between knowledge and life Table of Contents 1. Limitrophes Show and Tell A Place in the Bush Allegories of the Wilderness Within and Without Limits The Top Five Regrets of the Dying Life Is Elsewhere Dark Soundings On Not Being Rule Governed Confronting One’s Demons Renata Sentiments Limitrophes The Faraway Tree What Lies Beneath Schrödinger’s Cat Notes 2. Harmattan Stories Happen Thousands Bay Persona Non Grata Tom Lannon’s Story Cosmega Sangbamba Ezekiel’s Story Petra’s Letter No Condition Is Permanent The School Morowa Night After Fieldwork Mistral A compelling work of ethnography, memoir, and fiction that explores the emancipatory power of transcending boundaries.