A Short History of African Philosophy (Paperback)

~ Barry Hallen (Author) "The characterization of Africa's precolonial indigenous cultures as significantly ahistorical in character has been dismissed as patently false..." (more)
Key Phrases: philosophical sagacity, mythical consciousness, folk philosophy, Zar'a Ya'aqob, Kwasi Wiredu, Anglophone African (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Condensed from a much longer work, this book offers a survey of the many perspectives from which we may construct a knowledge base of African philosophy. While avowedly a short conspectus, the book as a whole is dynamized by a number of recurring debates which make their appearance in most of the chapters, giving the work an internal coherence belying its brevity and simplicity. And it is more than just a history of its subject.; on more than two occasions there is brief, but precise, demonstrational argument." - Leeds African Studies Bulletin, No. 66 2004

Review

"Hallen has provided an immeasurable service to students and scholars of Africana thought by lucidly and concisely chronicling the history, development, and current issues in African philosophies." -- Choice, named Outstanding Academic Book

"With this small book, Barry Hallen has opened up the field of African philosophy to the general public, without turning professionals off." --

"Provides an excellent orientation to the various approaches and issues which have emerged throughout the history of African philosophy." -- International Studies in Philosophy

"While avowedly a short conspectus, the book as a whole is dynamized by a number of recurring debates which make their appearance in most of the chapters, giving the work an internal coherence belying its brevity and simplicity." -- Leeds African Studies Bulletin

"A great virtue of the brief volume is its method of dividing African philosophy into manageable and provocative categories.... Hallen has a gift for knowing what to pick and what to exclude." -- H-Net Reviews

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Indiana University Press (June 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0253215315
• ISBN-13: 978-0253215314
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 5.9 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,761,428 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good Introductory Text, June 13, 2004

By	Kenya A. Hudson (Jackson, MS USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

A Short History of Africa in Philosophy is a good introduction to African philosophy for novices and suitable as a textbook accompaniment to primary sources for courses. The book is organized topically by the major areas of emphasis of philosophers, e.g. rationality as culturally universal, ethnophilosophy and philosophic sagacity, phenomenology and hermeneutics, etc. (These areas also double as chapters.) It does several things well. It is comprehensive surveying nearly every significant contemporary African philosopher. For that comprehensiveness it trades depth covering each philosopher in about 2-3 pages. It provides adequate introductions to technical concepts (e.g. hermeneutics and ordinary language analysis) and Western philosophers (e.g. Quine, Gadamer and Heidegger) needed to understand the approaches of African philosophers. Its last chapter serves as a brief introduction to other histories and anthologies in African philosophy. It also throws in web site addresses (some of which were no longer active when I tried them in June 2004). A more valuable starting point for learning more is its bibliography.

Why did I give this book four stars instead of five? First, I thought the book could have used more depth when summarizing philosophers' views. There are only 104 pages of content covering philosophers' ideas. Even if he added just one more page per thinker, there probably would only be about 135 pages of content. Second, I would have preferred a more chronological approach. It is more difficult to see the relations between the ideas of successive generations (and we are dealing at least with the revolutionary generation and their children) given its current organization. There is also very little historical or situational context (outside of the realm of philosophical ideas) for the philosophers.

Hallen's Short History chronicles well modern African philosophers, their approaches and methods. A better introduction to the substantive content is found in Richard Bell's Understanding African Philosophy. A more detailed history (for those with some familiarity with the field or a second book to read after Hallen's) is D.A. Masolo's African Philosophy in Search of Identity.

Since this book cannot be searched, I have included African philosophers covered below.

Contemporary African Philosophers (in order of appearance): Kwasi Wiredu, Kwame Gyekye, Segun Gbadegesin, J. Olubi Sodipo, Barry Hallen, Godwin Sogolo, M. Akin Makinde, V.Y. Mudimbe, Kwame Anthony Appiah, Paulin Hountondji, H. Odera Oruka, Theophilus Okere, Okonda Okolo, Tsenaym Serequeberhan, Lewis Gordon, Lucius Outlaw, Robert Bernasconi, Kwame Nkrumah, Julius Nyerere, Amilcar Cabral, Oladipo Fashina, Olufemi Taiwo, Ernest Wamba-dia-Wamba, Paget Henry, Oyeronke Oyewumi, Ifi Amadiume and Nkiru Nzegwu.

Earlier Thinkers (in order of appearance): Cheik anta Diop, Phah-hotep, Za'ar Ya'aqob, Anton Wilhelm Amo, Placide Tempels, Marcel Griaule, W.E. Abraham, John Mbiti and Robert Horton.