Abstract

This dissertation is a critical evaluation of Placide Tempels' account of African thought as outlined in his book Bantu Philosophy. ;The purpose of the dissertation is to examine Tempels' thesis that African thought, as it relates to ethics, is founded on a religious understanding of the world; a world in which humans, referred to as "forces", are portrayed as sharing in the being of God, the Supreme Force, through the exercise of "vital activities". ;This view of African thought has exercised considerable influence over what today is referred to as African philosophy. I contend not only that this view is misleading in that it overemphasizes the religious content of African thought, but also in that Tempels misconceived and failed to do justice to the underlying principle of African traditional beliefs because he neglected the role "community" plays in those beliefs. ;The focus of the dissertation is an examination of two views of African ethics: one is presented by Tempels, the other I will call the "community model" because of its inclusion of the role community plays in African thought. ;Under the "community model" the concern is to assess how my thesis--that African moral thought is primarily communitarian--can contribute to a balanced perspective of African traditional beliefs and practices in contrast to the religious interpretation. Against the background of this communitarian outlook, I make the attempt to show how central the religious interpretation is to Tempels' own understanding of philosophy. Correspondingly, I make some effort to underscore crucial differences between a Judeo-Christian understanding of God and African views of God, differences that Tempels may have taken for granted. And, based upon these differences, I argue that African thought and African ethical ideas be reinterpreted and analyzed to include a reliance on the concept of community. ;On the basis of my analysis, I suggest that, by relying on a special understanding of the notion of the person and kinship in African traditional thought, the community model can be shown to be a defensible philosophical basis for analyzing African beliefs and practices. Overall, I will attempt to show how this analysis is superior to that of Tempels'