African Philosophy and the Epistemic Marginalization of Women

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Cover Half Title Title Page Copyright Page Dedication Table of Contents List of tables Acknowledgements List of contributors Preface Introduction 1. Addressing the epistemic marginalization of women in African philosophy and building a culture of conversations Introduction African philosophy in brief: what it is, what it is not How African philosophy marginalizes women: epistemic necessity as the last frontier Building a culture of conversations Conclusion Note References 2. Henry Odera Oruka and the female sage: Re-evaluating the nature of sagacity Introduction: philosophic sagacity and the marginalization of the African female Oruka on the nature and possibility of an African philosophy Odera Oruka’s method Distinguishing the philosophic sage from the folk sage The invisible and inferior female sage Peris Njuhi Muthoni: Oruka’s lone female sage The way forward: beyond male/female identity Broadening our sources of sagacity: sophia and phronesis Conclusion Notes References 3. Women and ubuntu: Does ubuntu condone the subordination of women? Introduction What is ubuntu? Ubuntu as oppressive to women? Response to Oyowe and Yurkivska: gender complementarity according to Nkiru Nzegwu Conclusion: some remaining issues with the ubuntu view Notes References 4. African philosophy, its questions, the place and the role of women and its disconnect with its world Introduction Debunking the assumption of the blanket process of evolution of African philosophy African philosophy and African world-view The Yoruba African world-view: a hermeneutic analysis Roadmap for inclusion Conclusion References 5. Dialogues and alliances: Positions of women in African philosophy Introduction Autonomous spaces for dialogue Possibilities and pitfalls of intercultural dialogue Intersectionality and alliances Beyond categories: allowing space for hybridity Conclusion Note References 6. Dealing with the trauma of a loss: Interrogating the feminine experience of coping with a spouse’s death in African traditions Introduction The spouse’s death as traumatic experience Understanding death in African traditions Coping with the loss of a spouse in African traditions: the woman’s experience A patriarchal epistemology of ignorance and the perpetuation of harmful ideologies Overcoming the epistemology of ignorance Conclusion Notes References 7. Human rights discourse: Friend or foe of African women’s sexual freedoms? Introduction Paradox keeps human rights alive Sexual freedom in the postcolony Notes References 8 African philosophy’s injustice against women Introduction The dominance of males in philosophy African philosophy as a site of counter-hegemony African philosophy’s injustice against women Conclusion Reference 9. Conceptual decolonization in African philosophy: Views on women Introduction: the meaning of African philosophy Colonization vs. decoloniation Colonialism and women’s image in contemporary Africa Decolonizing the concept of women: the Yoruba example Conclusion References 10. Women in the his-story of philosophy and the imperative for a ‘her-storical’ perspective in contemporary African philosophy Introduction The history of philosophy as his-storical The history of contemporary African philosophy project The importance of the her-storical perspective in African philosophy Conclusion References 11. Buffeted: Developing an afro feminist response to environmental questions Introduction Parsing the problem Our histories Colonial invasion – imperial power Struggle and resistance Into contemporary times Buffeted Indigenous feminist thinking – alternatives Notes References 12. Ecofeminism in Africa: The contribution of Wangari Maathai Introduction Wangari Maathai and the spiritual crisis of our world Ecofeminism: environmental protection and the empowerment of women Maathai and Shiva: similarities and differences Wangari Maathai and philosophy Acknowledgement Notes References 13. Women in the kitchen of philosophy: Re-asking the questions of African philosophy Introduction Who has the right to philosophize in the African place? Re-asking the questions of African philosophy Conclusion References 14. Are women marginalized in African philosophy? Introduction Marginalization of women in philosophy Implicit bias and stereotype threat The problematic of the question of women’s marginalization in African philosophy In lieu of a conclusion Note References Index