RESHAPING AFRICAN MORALITIES
The project of
demythologizing is an imperative now more than ever. In the history of thought,
demythologizing takes on a particularly special impetus with the philosophers. As a matter of fact, most of us
dwell in an age in which an entire world-view (religion included) is undergoing
systematic demythologization. It is likewise a matter of fact that most
traditional African ethical values are grounded and built upon a world-view that
most of us today no longer hold or at least ascribe to. Most contemporary
Africans do not believe any more in ancestral spirits, vengeful forces of the
dead, taboos and tribal linkages. Such notions are understood as mythological
or even mere illusion and legendary.
Consequently,
with no necessity for an argument, it can be argued that the African moral and
ethical consciousness is in a state of crisis. In the midst of a paradigm shift
from a science of spirits and ancestors to a scientific world view, a crisis has
befallen both the scholar and the layman. The former as he searches for an
indubitable philosophical foundation and the latter as he strives to live a
meaningful and fulfilling life. This
phenomenon pitches fear and dread on the contemporary African as s/he grasps
the unpredictability of culture and moral values in the next decade.
There are
basically three sources of morality. Divine revelation is a meta-terrestrial
source of moral ideals for the believer especially as expounded in the
scriptures. Secondly, there is society and the passing on of a cultural heritage
through a shared way of life. Lastly, we refer to the subjective sources of
morality i.e. human reason and human conscience both of which could be secular
or religious depending on the subject or moral agent.
The African
sources of morality were and are greatly mythological. The ancient mythological
and mystical conception of values was greatly constructed out of a
superstitious world-view. This phase is long gone but at least only it’s shadows
remain. However, to make a system of knowledge or morals stronger, it is
necessary to brutally trim out the errors and falsities that build it up. As the Cambridge philosopher notes,
“traditional thought normally avoids pruning and subtracting. It always adds
and thus it ends up with a messy confusion” (Don Cupitt, Sea of Faith (1998),
p. 132).
Demythologizing is precisely about pruning and eliminating all the
beautiful, magnificent and noble lies and myths that clutter our conception of
the good and of the virtuous. Hesiod, the Greek Poet in one of his most
acclaimed poems, Theogony asserts
“…we are capable of telling innumerable lies that seem true but also at the same time, reveal the whole truth.
(Theogony p. 26-28).
The perpetuation
of noble lies and myths has been propagated by for many reasons. Firstly, it
has been based on the premise that the thinker ought to share his thoughts with
those who share his world. But then, others may not follow his premises and
arguments, thus an image, an allegory or a myth may help the un-philosophical
to grasp what they failed to grasp in the syllogistic argument. Secondly, myths
are narratives that are non-falsifiable for they (like faith and religions)
depict particular beings or events that are meta-empirical i.e. beyond
experience. These beings could be deities, monsters, conquerors etc. Myths also
have an additional advantage in that they are not rationally subject to
scrutiny but induce pleasure, impetus and a deep sense of intellectual
satisfaction. This is because they derive their authority from tradition and their
appeal to the human aesthetic sense.
Is mythology the
solution to the African moral crisis? By no means! Africa needs to cultivate
the fortitude and the ability for rigorous and critical thought. Indeed, myths
no matter how noble and beneficial they may be, are an affront, an insult to
the Africa populace since they communicate a lie; that Africans are too intellectually
inferior to understand and grasp the necessity of virtue. It is generally
argued even among the educated African elites that myths are more compelling than
truth to an African. That myths being
so compelling and imaginative are irresistible; they are a sort of ‘holy
gospel’ devised to secretly hoax the unthinking masses into moral conduct. In effect what they do is simply trick us,
compel us beyond the immorality and egocentricity that is predominant to a
temporally solution of a ‘conformist virtuousness.’
A mythological
source of morality has innumerable philosophical and existential challenges.
This approach cripples critical thinking and human autonomy and subjectivity.
It also leads to a homogenous, conformist, inflexible and conservative moral
attitude in the midst of new situations rather than flexible reasonableness.
This has led to extensive rigidity in some cultures about the nature of
morality.
In conclusion, moral
philosophy seeks a foundation, such that, “…moral laws in contradistinction to
natural laws, are only valid as laws, in so far as they can be rationally
established a priori and comprehended as necessary.” (Kant, Intro. To
metaphysics, p. 5) This contemporary moral crisis I believe is grounded upon
the fact that African morality in respective spheres of politics, environment,
business, labor has generally lacked a stable grounding for a lasting system of
morality. This moral crisis will go unresolved until structural and
intellectual changes take place. These are possible only if indubitable grounds
of morality are established. Can the contemporary African philosopher do for
morality and ethics what Descartes did for epistemology? This piece simply
aimed at raising a doubt.
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