Nihilism and Negritude : Ways of Living in Africa

Cover 1 Title 4 Copyright 5 Dedication 6 Contents 8 Introduction. Nihilism: African Variations 12 Chapter 1. Desire’s Ruses: Political Economy of Marriage 46 Chapter 2. I Eat Therefore I Am: Philosophy of the Table 70 Chapter 3. Poetics of Movement: Visions of Dance and Music 89 Chapter 4. The Savor of Sin: Dialogue around God’s Funeral 113 Chapter 5. Ethic of the Uses of the Body: A Theory of Self-Esteem 137 Chapter 6. Violence as Ethic of Evil 164 Conclusion. Nihilism to Tame Death 198 Notes 220 Acknowledgments 226 Index 228 There are two common ways of writing about Africa, says Célestin Monga. One way blames Africa's ills on the continent's history of exploitation and oppression. The other way blames Africans themselves for failing to rise above poisonous national prejudices and resentments. But patronizing caricatures that reduce Africans to either victims or slackers do not get us very far in understanding the complexities and paradoxes of Africa today.A searching, often searing, meditation on ways of living in modern Africa, Nihilism and Negritude dispels the stereotypes that cloud how outsiders view the continent—and how Africans sometimes view themselves. In the role of a traveler-philosopher, Monga seeks to register “the picturesque absurdity of daily life” in his native Cameroon and across the continent. Whether navigating the chaotic choreography of street traffic or discoursing on the philosophy of café menus, he illuminates the patterns of reasoning behind everyday behaviors and offers new interpretations of what some observers have misunderstood as Africans'resigned acceptance of suffering and violence.Monga does not wish to revive Negritude, the once-influential movement that sought to identify and celebrate allegedly unique African values. Rather, he seeks to show how daily life and thought—witnessed in dance and music, sensual pleasure and bodily experience, faith and mourning—reflect a form of nihilism developed to cope with chaos, poverty, and oppression. This is not the nihilism of despair, Monga insists, but the determination to find meaning and even joy in a life that would otherwise seem absurd. There are two common ways of writing about Africa, says Clestin Monga. One way blames Africas ills on the continents history of exploitation and oppression. The other way blames Africans themselves for failing to rise above poisonous national prejudices and resentments. But patronizing caricatures that reduce Africans to either victims or slackers do not get us very far in understanding the complexities and paradoxes of Africa today. A searching, often searing, meditation on ways of living in modern Africa, Nihilism and Negritude dispels the stereotypes that cloud how outsiders view the continentand how Africans sometimes view themselves. In the role of a traveler-philosopher, Monga seeks to register the picturesque absurdity of daily life in his native Cameroon and across the continent. Whether navigating the chaotic choreography of street traffic or discoursing on the philosophy of caf menus, he illuminates the patterns of reasoning behind everyday behaviors and offers new interpretations of what some observers have misunderstood as Africans resigned acceptance of suffering and violence. Monga does not wish to revive Negritude, the once-influential movement that sought to identify and celebrate allegedly unique African values. Rather, he seeks to show how daily life and thoughtwitnessed in dance and music, sensual pleasure and bodily experience, faith and mourningreflect a form of nihilism developed to cope with chaos, poverty, and oppression. This is not the nihilism of despair, Monga insists, but the determination to find meaning and even joy in a life that would otherwise seem absurd. The objective of this collection of short essays and true stories is to describe and analyze the present "black condition" in the African context. The book recreates the imaginaries of present-day Africa, from the picturesque absurdity of daily life to the political economics of marriage, from the philosophy of menus and table manners to the uses of the body. This welter of stories and ideas illustrates various forms of nihilism and negritude and sketches the hypothesis of an ethic of evil.-- Provided by publisher In a searching meditation on ways of living in modern Africa, Monga dispels the stereotypes that cloud how outsiders view the continent, and how Africans sometimes view themselves. He shows how dance, music, bodily experience, faith, and mourning reflect a nihilism that finds meaning and joy in a life that would otherwise seem absurd.