Described as a novel, fresh and breaking new ground, UKZN PhD graduate Dr Tosin Adeate’s dissertation on Grounding African Political Theory on Afro-Communitarianism: Arguments and Implications offers a new perspective on the issue in the conceptions of personhood and identity in African societies.

Adeate’s study considers the challenges faced by individuals who do not conform to traditional norms of communitarian African thoughts and practices; and advocates for a re-evaluation of selfhood and personhood within this context.

According to Adeate of the School of Religion, Philosophy and Classics at UKZN, personhood is understood as the embodiment of the ideal human, one whose frame of mind and thought patterns are guided by the cultural and moral values of the community. Consequently, a non-person is any community member whose mode of living does not fully align with the principles of the community. The treatment of non-conforming individuals by the community is the beginning of the consciousness of “self” and “other”.

Supervised by Dr J Clare, Adeate found that non-conformers face social alienation when, by their own self-expression, they are seen to have disregard for the community’s principles. He found that this social alienation or non-belongingness experienced by the affected individuals could influence their self-respect, especially in a society that highly values guided norms.

Said Adeate: ‘I am passionate about ideas that inform the principles of our social relations and social ordering, especially how those principles inform our legislation. Afro-communitarianism is a fascinating social and political idea in African philosophy that emphasises the ideals of community and speaks to how most aspects of African life are guided. Though dominant in traditional African life, its principles still inform modern social relations and conceptions of identities.

‘I am particularly interested in the theoretical and practical attempts to ground postcolonial African politics in ideas of Afro-communitarianism. I argue that for such a project to succeed, a new and better concept of community is required, taking account of Africa’s multicultural realities in the 21st century.’

According to Adeate, while the traditional idea of community in the African context tends to regard a single framework of personhood as an ideal, his study recognises multiple frameworks of personhood. This inclusivity avoids elements that injure the self-respect of its members in their conceptions of self-identity, and removes othering – making way for people to exist as they wish to and without fear of marginalisation.

‘Based on Avishai Margalit’s conception of humiliation, I note that an attempt to conceal one’s identity to conform to the community standard of identity constitutes harm to self-respect. As such, a modern non-humiliating community or society that is inclusive and fosters harmony cannot have a single model of personhood that prioritises traditional norms of life and identities; it must allow for plural conceptions of personhood, including those that are self-affirmed by the individual. Accommodating plural conceptions of personhood within the community system would aid individuals’ self-respect and resolve the tensions between the individual and the community.’

Adeate believes that the global space needs the philosophy of Afro-communitarianism to foster unity and inclusivity, as it emphasises the idea of community and communal living. In his vision, he redefines and reinforces the positive aspects of Afro-communitarianism to serve a larger population of individuals and their differences, thereby respecting their unique differences and backgrounds.

‘My work extends the current debates in African political philosophy in new and exciting ways. We need to accommodate forms of human expression that are initially not part of what exists in the community, especially in the modern African context,’ said Adeate