scholarly journals Gadamer’s Philosophical Hermeneutics: Investigating the Nexus between Culture and African Philosophy

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 53-67
Author(s):  
Ikechukwu Onah
Keyword(s):  
Epistemic Uncertainty ◽  
Cultural Beliefs ◽  
African Philosophy ◽  
Philosophical Hermeneutics ◽  
Substantive Reason

This article attempts to uncover a foundational drive in Gadamer’s philosophical hermeneutics and its importance in steeping the tension of the philosophical link of culture and African Philosophy. In his work Gadamer presents culture as the foundation of philosophy. Okere rising from the latter posits that hermeneutics is the mediator between culture and African philosophy. The polemical argument of the rationality of African philosophy though interwoven with skeptical epistemological assumptions which increasingly emphasizes in the ethno decade-long debate is aggregated in mediating stance of hermeneutics as adduced by Okere and other notable African scholars. This article shows that in his most popularity oriented epistemological work, Gadamer did not mute the obstacles that epistemic uncertainty poses to the quest for mere ethno dimension in the light of critical ratiocination in order to avoid acceptance of views without examination .This article pursues this mediating strategy not just for rhetorical but also for a substantive reason on the rational foundation of African Philosophy against the nauseating position that African philosophy is mere cultural beliefs. Keywords: Hermeneutics, Culture and Mediation

scholarly journals The Hermeneutical Task of Postcolonial African Philosophy: Construction and Deconstruction

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 107-118
Author(s):  
Yohannes Eshetu Mamuye
Keyword(s):  
African Philosophy ◽  
Philosophical Hermeneutics ◽  
Language And Culture ◽  
Central Argument ◽  
Cultural Traits ◽  
Liberation Struggle ◽  
The One

Meta philosophical issues surround the topic of African philosophy. What should be counted as African philosophy, and what makes African philosophy so notable has long been a matter of reflection by African and African descended thinkers? One stance taken by African thinkers leans toward ascribing philosophical status to the collective worldviews of Africans embedded in their traditions, language, and culture. By criticizing ethnophilosophy as being unanimous and uncritical, professional philosophers epitomize a philosophy to be a universal, individualized, and reflective enterprise. This tendency of appropriating cultural traits as philosophical and thereby tending to emphasize particularity by ethnophilosophers on the one hand and the universalist claim by professional philosophers puts African philosophy in a dilemma and whereby makes it counterproductive to the neocolonial liberation struggle. The article's central argument is that African philosophical hermeneutics is a panacea for the 'double blockage' that the philosophers currently look into contemporary African philosophy. African hermeneutics is the extension of German and French hermeneutical tradition with the works of Heidegger, Gadamer, and Ricœur. Hermeneutics is a mediation between culture and philosophy and also universality and particularity.

Attitudes, Beliefs, and Practices Regarding Asthma Care Among Providers and Adult Asthmatics in Imperial County

2003 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 88-100
Author(s):  
Paula Kriner ◽  
Yolanda Bernal
Keyword(s):  
Focus Groups ◽  
Cultural Beliefs ◽  
National Guidelines ◽  
Medical Practitioners ◽  
Beliefs And Practices ◽  
Attitudes And Practices ◽  
Hospitalization Rates ◽  
Adult Asthmatic ◽  
Asthma Hospitalization ◽  
Survey Results

Asthma is a major cause of morbidity in children and adults. Imperial County has reported among the highest asthma hospitalization rates in the state. Factors such as poverty, access to care, poor selfmanagement skills, and ethnocultural beliefs may influence asthma exacerbations. Provider and adult asthmatic attitudes, beliefs, and practices regarding asthma were examined using a mixed-methods approach: a survey to evaluate provider conformance with national guidelines, and focus groups targeting medical practitioners and adult asthmatics. Half of all providers who treat asthmatics completed a self-administered survey about asthma diagnosis; clinical monitoring of patients; treatment; patient education; and practice guidelines. Provider focus groups further explored survey results. Adult asthmatics participated in Spanishlanguage focus groups exploring cultural beliefs, attitudes, and practices. El asma es la mayor causa de morbilidad entre niños y adultos. El Condado de Imperial ha reportado las tazas más altas de hospitalización a causa de asma en el estado. Factores como la pobreza, acceso a cuidado médico, falta de experiencia sobre como manejar la enfermedad, y creencias étnicas y culturales pueden tener una influencia en las exacerbaciones del asma. Las actitudes, creencias, y prácticas de proveedores de atención médica y adultos concerniente al asma fueron examinadas utilizando varios métodos: una encuesta con el fin de evaluar el nivel de conformidad de los proveedores según las pautas establecidas a nivel nacional, y grupos foco con médicos y adultos con asma. La mitad de los proveedores que proveen atención a asmáticos completaron una encuesta acerca del diagnosis de asma; el monitoreo clínico de los pacientes; administración de tratamiento; educación a los pacientes; y pautas establecidas para proveer atención a pacientes con asma. Los grupos foco con los proveedores exploraron aun más los resultados de las encuestas. Los adultos con asma participaron en grupos foco dirigidos en español para explorar más a fondo las creencias culturales, actitudes y prácticas.

Themes, Diction, and Prosodic Systems in Yoruba Lullabies

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 18-33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Olusanmi Babarinde ◽  
Elizabeth Babarinde
Keyword(s):  
Participant Observation ◽  
Cultural Beliefs ◽  
Survey Method ◽  
World Views ◽  
Scholarly Research ◽  
Long Term Consequences ◽  
Analyse Data ◽  
Descriptive Survey ◽  
Future Learning

Lullabies are essentially sung for their soothing nature but, as this article shows, they have other important functions. One of the most important of these is that lullabies may provide much-needed language stimulation with important long-term consequences for future learning. This paper begins the work of addressing the dearth of scholarly research on lullabies, especially in the Yoruba (Nigeria: Niger-Congo) culture. It looks at the range of themes, dictions, and prosody that are intertwined to reveal Yoruba beliefs and world-views about children, starting with their time in the womb. The study uses a descriptive survey method to analyse data collected through participant observation. It shows that Yoruba lullabies not only offer insights into Yoruba cultural beliefs but also depend greatly on figurative expression and prosodic systems. These rich literary qualities identify lullabies as the earliest sub-genre of children's poetry.

VIRGINITY TESTING PRACTICES: THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS

2016 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sheila Mokoboto-Zwane
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Cultural Beliefs ◽  
Cultural Practice ◽  
Bodily Integrity ◽  
Sexually Transmitted ◽  
Young Females ◽  
Unwanted Pregnancies ◽  
The Right ◽  
Democratic Elections ◽  
Virginity Testing

Controversy continues to surround the age-old practice of virginity testing, which in South Africa made a visible comeback around the time of the country’s first democratic elections when most South Africans began to feel free to practise their cultural beliefs without fear. It coincided with the period when the HIV pandemic began to take hold. It is practised mainly in some countries of Asia and Africa, and in South Africa it is practised mainly amongst amaZulu. It is believed that this practice prevents unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), especially HIV/AIDS, as well as engendering a sense of pride in teenage and young females, in particular. However, some individuals, organisations and sectors of the community frown upon the practice because it violates constitutional laws that protect the right to equality, privacy, bodily integrity and sexual autonomy. The purpose of this article is to present current discourse on the cultural practice of virginity testing and the controversies surrounding this discourse. This article draws its arguments from the existing literature on virginity testing.

Involuntary Circumcision of Males in Illegal Initiation Schools in South Africa: A Violation of African Customary Human Rights?

2018 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Porsche Makama
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
Cultural Beliefs ◽  
Young Men ◽  
Cultural Tradition ◽  
Constitutional Rights ◽  
Topical Issue ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Human Right ◽  
Traditional Practice

The incidence of deaths associated with the practice of forced and botched circumcisions at initiation schools has become a topical issue in South Africa. In recent times, the number of deaths and injuries among initiates has risen at an alarming rate, most of them occurring at illegal initiation schools. The continuous rise in the number of injuries among initiates at these schools has elicited mixed reactions among community members, some referring to it as genocide in the case of fatalities and calling for its abandonment, while others argue that this traditional practice should be allowed to continue. The majority of young men who go to initiation schools do not make the decision on their own, nor do they have a choice in the matter. Instead they are compelled by parents or guardians, influenced by friends, and also coerced by others in the community who insist that they have to ‘go to the mountain’, as initiation schools are generally referred to in South Africa. It has been argued by those against circumcision that this practice infringes constitutional rights and contravenes the Children’s Act 38 of 2005. There have been numerous instances where young and even mature males have been taken from the streets, or even from the comfort of their homes, and forced into circumcision camps with or without their consent. This begs the question whether the continued practice of a cultural tradition that violates the fundamental human right and freedom to choose religious and cultural beliefs is justifiable.

Gadamer com Platão e o conhecimento na hermenêutica filosófica

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 23-38
Author(s):  
Cristian Marques
Keyword(s):  
Sao Paulo ◽  
Harvard University ◽  
British Society ◽  
São Paulo ◽  
Empirical Knowledge ◽  
Philosophical Hermeneutics ◽  
Porto Alegre ◽  
Belo Horizonte ◽  
Hans Georg Gadamer ◽  
Shed Light

Resumo: O objetivo deste artigo é explicitar aspectos da interpretação de Gadamer à Carta Sétima de Platão que lancem luz sobre quais traços fundamentais são imprescindíveis a uma epistemologia que se ancore na hermenêutica filosófica. Merold Westphal propôs em um artigo que a hermenêutica filosófica poderia fornecer elementos para uma renovação da epistemologia analítica. O presente trabalho inscreve-se no interesse amplo de tratar sobre que implicações teriam para noção de conhecimento se a epistemologia seguisse o caminho apontado por Westphal. Para tanto, escolhemos um trabalho onde Hans Georg Gadamer, principal defensor da hermenêutica filosófica, explora uma interpretação fenomenológica de Platão em que identificamos elementos relevantes para pensar a noção de conhecimento dentro dessa chave de leitura. Hans-Georg Gadamer explora, sob a luz de sua concepção ontológico-hermenêutica, o texto da Carta Sétima, dando um entendimento renovado a alguns aspectos da obra platônica, bem como indicações a uma compreensão fenomenológica do conhecimento.  Palavras-chave: Teoria do Conhecimento. Gadamer. Platão. Carta Sétima. Hermenêutica.   Abstract: The aim of this article is to make explicit aspects of Gadamer 's interpretation of Plato's Seventh Letter that shed light on what fundamental traits are indispensable to an epistemology that is anchored in philosophical hermeneutics. Merold Westphal proposed in an article that philosophical hermeneutics could provide elements for a renewal of analytic epistemology. This paper is part of the broader interest of discussing what implications would have for the notion of knowledge if epistemology followed the path Westphal pointed out. For this, we chose a work where Hans Georg Gadamer, the main defender of philosophical hermeneutics, explores a phenomenological interpretation of Plato in which we identify relevant elements to think the notion of knowledge within this key of reading. Hans-Georg Gadamer explores, in the light of his ontological-hermeneutic conception, the text of the Seventh Letter, giving a renewed understanding to some aspects of the Platonic work, as well as indications to a phenomenological understanding of knowledge.  Keywords: Theory of Knowledge. Gadamer. Plato. Seventh Letter. Hermeneutics. REFERÊNCIASBONJOUR, L. The structure of empirical knowledge. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1985.GADAMER, H.-G. Dialektik ist nicht Sophistik. Theätet lernt das im Sophistes. In: Griechische Philosophie. t.3. Gesammelte Werke, Bd. 7. Tubingen: Mohr, 1985c [1990], pp.338-370._______. Dialektik und Sophistik im siebenten Platonischen Brief. In: Griechische Philosophie. t.2. Gesammelte Werke, Bd. 6. Tubingen: Mohr, 1985b [1964], pp.90-115._______. Die phänomenologische Bewegung. In: Neuere Philosophie, t. 1; Hegel, Husserl, Heidegger. Gesammelte Werke, Bd. 3. Tubingen: Mohr, 1987 [1963], pp.105-146._______. Hegel und Heidegger. In: Neuere Philosophie, t. 1; Hegel, Husserl, Heidegger. Gesammelte Werke, Bd. 3. Tubingen: Mohr, 1987 [1971], pp.87-101._______. Platos dialektische Ethik. In: Griechische Philosophie. t.1. Gesammelte Werke, Bd. 5. Tubingen: Mohr, 1985a [1931], pp.3-163._______. Platos dialektische Ethik - beim Wort genommen. In: Griechische Philosophie. t.3.  Gesammelte Werke, Bd. 7. Tubingen: Mohr, 1985c [1989], pp.121-127._______. Praktisches Wissen. In: Griechische Philosophie. t.1. Gesammelte Werke, Bd. 5. Tubingen: Mohr, 1985a [1930], pp.230-248._______. Wahrheit und Methode: Grundzüge einer philosophischen Hermeneutik. In: Hermeneutik I. Gesammelte Werke, Bd. 1. Tubingen: Mohr Siebeck, 1990 [1960].GRONDIN, J. Einführung zu Gadamer. Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2000._______. Von Heidegger zu Gadamer: Unterwegs zur Hermeneutik. Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft – WBG, 2001.HEIDEGGER, M. Sein und Zeit. 19. Faksimile-Ausgabe der 1. Ausgabe. Tübingen: Verlag, 2006 [1927].PLATÃO. Opera Platonis. Recognovit brevique adnotatione critica instruxit Ioannes Burnet. Scriptorum Classicorum. Bibliotheca Oxoniensis, v.1-6. Oxford: Clarendoniano Typographeo, 1900.///RORTY, R. A filosofia e o espelho da natureza. Rio de Janeiro: Relume-Dumará, 1994.ROHDEN, L. Filosofa enquanto Fenomenologia e Hermenêutica à luz da Carta VII de Platão. In: BOMBASSARO, L. C.; DALBOSCO, C. A.; KUIAVA, E. A., (org.). Pensar Sensível. Festscrift ao prof. Jayme Paviani. Caxias do Sul, RS: Educs, 2011, pp. 87-104._______. Filosofando com Gadamer e Platão: movimentos, momentos e método[s] da dialética. Dissertatio, 36 (2012), pp. 105-130. Disponível em: <http://dx.doi.org/10.15210/dissertatio.v36i0.8660> (acessado em 09.08.2018)._______. Hermenêutica e[m] resposta ao elogio da verdadeira filosofia da Carta Sétima de Platão. In: Kriterion, Belo Horizonte, v. 54, 127 (2013), p. 25-42. Disponível em: <http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0100-512X2013000100002&lng=en&nrm=iso > (acessado em 17.09.2018)._______. Filosofar com Gadamer e Platão: hermenêutica filosófica a partir da Carta Sétima. 1. ed. São Paulo: Annablume, 2018.SMITH, P. C. H.-G. Gadamer’s Heideggerian Interpretation of Plato. In: Journal of the British Society for Phenomenology, Stockport, England, v. 12, 3 (1981), pp. 211–230. Disponível em: <https://doi.org/10.1080/00071773.1981.11007544> (acessado em 06.07.2018).VALENTIM, I. A Carta VII, o manifesto e a autobiografia política de Platão. In: Revista Opinião Filosófica, Porto Alegre, v. 3, 1 (2012), pp-60-72. Disponível em: <http://periodico.abavaresco.com.br/index.php/opiniaofilosofica/article/view/435> (acessado em 17.09.2018).WESTPHAL, M. A hermenêutica enquanto epistemologia. In: GRECO, J.; SOSA, E. (orgs.). Compêndio de Epistemologia. São Paulo: Loyola, 2008. pp. 645-676. 

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