The African Difference: Discourses on Africanity and the Relativity of Cultures

By rejecting Western perceptions of Africa as a starting point for African philosophy, Oyekan Owomoyela challenges ideas about African culture held by many Western and African thinkers and confronts the West’s assumptions of its philosophical superiority. His concept of African difference makes clear the need for Africa to imagine itself in its own terms, rather than those borrowed from or in response to the West. While not specifically concerned with South Africa, Owomoyela poses questions of critical interest to those involved in the creation of a post-apartheid cultural and philosophical framework. These essays suggest that post-apartheid nation building can accommodate differences between African and Western cultures.