Cover of Thought and Practice: A Journal of the Philosophical Association of Kenya
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1. Thought and Practice: A Journal of the Philosophical Association of Kenya: Volume > 6 > Issue: 2
Reginald M.J. Oduor, Ph.D. Editor’s Note
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2. Thought and Practice: A Journal of the Philosophical Association of Kenya: Volume > 6 > Issue: 2
H.M. Majeed Religion and the Problem of Rationality: Insights from Akan Religious Thought
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Arguments against the practice of religion and, in general, against belief in metaphysical entities, have been made in different cultures and at different times in human history. This article, however, does not offer a historical outline of such arguments. Rather, it reflects on some contemporary remarks made, especially in Western thought, against religion. It illustrates how a correct understanding of Traditional Akan Religion renders untrue claims that seek to dismiss religion on the grounds of irrationality. Utilising philosophical reflection, it shows how rational belief in a Traditional African Religion such as the Akan one is.
3. Thought and Practice: A Journal of the Philosophical Association of Kenya: Volume > 6 > Issue: 2
Fainos Mangena Ethno-philosophy is Rational: A Reply to Two Famous Critics
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In this article, I contend that philosophical reactions against ethno-philosophy, especially the arguments by professional African philosophers such as Paulin Hountondji and Kwame Anthony Appiah, cannot go unchallenged at a time when Africa is facing a myriad of problems such as disease, famine, ethnic conflicts, religious wars, and natural disasters which, in my view, stem from the continent’s failure to reflect on its past in the quest for lasting solutions. Having looked at the historical context of the emergence of ethno-philosophy or the project of cultural revivalism, and having closely examined the premises presented by Hountondji and Appiah against ethno-philosophy - which I consider to be unconvincing because of their tendency to glide into Western philosophical forms of thought - I argue that ethno-philosophy is just like Western philosophy, as it is based on a recognized form of reasoning, namely inductive reasoning, which is packaged in proverbs, riddles and other cultural resources. I also argue that religious beliefs are not an obstacle to the development of scientific thought in Africa; rather, they are an aid to it since both have complementary rather than opposing roles.
4. Thought and Practice: A Journal of the Philosophical Association of Kenya: Volume > 6 > Issue: 2
Adebayo A. Ogungbure Towards an Internalist Conception of Justification in African Epistemology
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In current discussions on African epistemology, the issue of justification of beliefs has mainly been considered from an externalist perspective, such that justification is described as achievable merely through the means of empirical verification and social context of discourse. However, this results in a knowledge-gap since both internalist and externalist perspectives are needed to arrive at a holistic notion of epistemic justification. Consequently, the objective of this article is to fill this gap by employing the methods of conceptual and critical analysis to attempt an internalist interpretation of epistemic justification in the quest for a more balanced view of African epistemology.
5. Thought and Practice: A Journal of the Philosophical Association of Kenya: Volume > 6 > Issue: 2
Balogun Babalola Joseph Ibi: An Examination of the Yoruba Traditional-Existentialist Conception of Evil
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The problem of evil is of universal concern to humankind. Various attempts have been made to account for it in Western philosophy as well as in world religions such as Christianity, Islam and African traditional religion. This article examines the Yoruba existentialist attitude to the problem of evil. Using the Yoruba oral tradition, it posits that for the Yoruba evil is the creation of each individual, so that God cannot be blamed for its existence. I conclude the article with my own personal view that given the individual as a carrier of evil seed, the best existential outlook is to be ready to face, with stoic courage, whatever life brings one’s way.
book review
6. Thought and Practice: A Journal of the Philosophical Association of Kenya: Volume > 6 > Issue: 2
Reginald M.J. Oduor A Critical Review of Leonhard Praeg’s A Report on Ubuntu
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This article opines that in view of its detailed presentation of the contemporary discourse on Ubuntu, its incisive analysis of key concepts in this discourse, as well as its bold and thoroughgoing critique of the assumptions of both the advocates of Ubuntu and the defenders of the hegemonic Western liberal tradition, Leonhard Praeg’s seminal work, A Report on Ubuntu, is an outstanding contribution not only to the Southern African discourse on Ubuntu, but also to the ongoing quest for methodology in African philosophy as a whole.
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7. Thought and Practice: A Journal of the Philosophical Association of Kenya: Volume > 6 > Issue: 2
Roger Künkel Philosophizing about Africa in Berlin
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8. Thought and Practice: A Journal of the Philosophical Association of Kenya: Volume > 6 > Issue: 1
Reginald M.J. Oduor Editor’s Note
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9. Thought and Practice: A Journal of the Philosophical Association of Kenya: Volume > 6 > Issue: 1
Reginald M.J. Oduor Review of Helen Lauer and Kofi Anyidoho’s Reclaiming the Human Sciences and Humanities through African Perspectives
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10. Thought and Practice: A Journal of the Philosophical Association of Kenya: Volume > 6 > Issue: 1
Joseph Situma A Critique of Foucault’s Conception and Predictions of the Author-Function
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11. Thought and Practice: A Journal of the Philosophical Association of Kenya: Volume > 6 > Issue: 1
Jare Oladosu Revisiting Africa’s “Socialist” Past to Design Africa’s Future Political Economy
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12. Thought and Practice: A Journal of the Philosophical Association of Kenya: Volume > 6 > Issue: 1
Emmanuel Ifeanyi Ani From Marriage to Political Leadership: Lessons in Social Competencies from the Igbo Conception of Marriage
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Owing most probably to Western-style modernization, marriage is increasingly understood to be a business strictly for married couples. However, I argue that this is an error, as many inexperienced couples are left to their own devices, and thereby often fail to utilize marriage to acquire the social competencies that are crucial to wider social responsibilities, including political leadership. The modern atomic conception of marriage is influenced by the Kantinspired Western conception of moral autonomy. Nevertheless, I reject this conception as excessively absolutist, and argue that moral autonomy can be tempered by lack of experience, human desire and circumstantial pressures in life. Many African societies view marriage as a union of societies rather than that of individuals, and I argue that the moral support offered by the extended family and the community at large is ultimately geared to inculcate in the spouses inter-personal and social skills of restraint, prudence, tolerance, constructive criticism and other virtues desperately needed to execute societal responsibilities.
13. Thought and Practice: A Journal of the Philosophical Association of Kenya: Volume > 6 > Issue: 1
Pamela Olivia Ngesa African Women Commuter Traders in Nairobi in the First Decade after World War 1: 1919-1929
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This article investigates African women commuter trading activities in Nairobi in the first decade after World War One. Its findings derive mainly from a research project carried out in 1989-1996. The major source of data for the study was oral interviews with the women who traded in Nairobi during the years under study, as well as with eyewitnesses to their trading activities. Sampling of such respondents employed the purposive technique because of its ability to deal with the problem of an incomplete population frame by conveniently drawing the required study sample from available resources. The research drew other data from library and archival sources, especially to corroborate the oral evidence. However, this article utilises additional archival and library data to achieve greater comprehensiveness than was attained in the earlier version. The article therefore makes an important intellectual contribution to the ongoing debate on the social, political and economic role and impact of African women’s economic activities such as commodity trade in African towns.
14. Thought and Practice: A Journal of the Philosophical Association of Kenya: Volume > 6 > Issue: 1
Daniel Robert Aswani Review of Richard Dawkins’ The God Delusion
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15. Thought and Practice: A Journal of the Philosophical Association of Kenya: Volume > 6 > Issue: 1
Humphrey J. Ojwang Review of Joshua Obuhatsa’s Values Education, African Tradition and Christianity
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