Kwame Nkrumah’s Consciencism: A Philosophical Analysis
Abstract
It’s popular knowledge that most counties in Africa were at one time or the other under the control of foreign countries after the Berlin conference that partitioned the mainland into colorful corridor and acted as attendants for the social masters. still, the true sons of the soil who happed to be chauvinists like Kwame Nkrumah, Obafemi Awolowo, Kenneth Kaunda and others fought bravely for the independence of these countries and hence came tone- governance.
After the permission of independence and the leave of the social masters, these educated chauvinists went ahead to forge for Africa an testament that would carry them to the Promised Land. One of these testaments is the ‘ Consciencism ’ of Kwame Nkrumah which is to pave way for the profitable and political liberation of the African mainland.
In this work, the testament will be under the limelight, alongside it’ll be Kwame Nkrumah himself and eventually a critical evaluation will be handed with us supporting either side of the coin, that is, whether or not the testament is good enough for us in Africa.
Table Of Contents
Title Runner—————- i
Instrument—————- ii
Fidelity—————- iii
Acknowledgement————– iv
Abstract—————- v
Table of Content————– vi
CHAPTER ONE
Preface
Background of The Study———-
Statement of The Problem———-
Purpose of The Study———-
Significance of The Study———-
compass of The Study————
Methodology————–
Literature Review————
Notes
CHAPTER TWO LIFE AND WORKS OF KWAME NKRUMAH
Kwame Nkrumah————–
Influences on Kwame Nkrumah———-
Nkrumah onNeo-Colonialism———-
Nkrumah on the African Personality——–
Towards Colonial Freedom————
Notes
CHAPTER THREE CONSCIENCISM AN testament FORDE-COLONIZATION
notice of Capitalism as a background to Consciencism–
What’s Consciencism?————
Features of Consciencism————
Notes
CHAPTER FOUR SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION
Summary—————-
Critical Overview————–
Conclusion—————-
Notes
CHAPTER ONE
preface
BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
According to African statesmen, the whites indeed after granting independence to the colonies they were governing left as a parting gift to the Africans the conception ofneo-colonialism. Neo-colonialism is a situation whereby the black man feels inferior to the Europeans and derives cerebral satisfaction only by associating with them. Indeed till moment, traces ofneo-colonialism are still visible. The African noway values any product that’s of African origin. He prefers the product which has the marker “ made in China ” or “ made in America ” and other foreign seals.
This dilemma was what urged African thinkers like Kwame Nkrumah, Julius Nyerere, Leopold Senghor, Obafemi Awolowo, Nnamdi Azikiwe and others to embark on the hunt for the ‘ African identity ’ and this they expressed in their workshop.
Kwame Nkrumah, one of the African statesmen, supposed an testament known as ‘ Consciencism ’. This testament is an exercise inanti-colonialism. It supported for a social revolution which was to be brought about by an intellectual revolution. This was easily articulated in the first judgment of the first chapter of the book. He noted that “ practice without study is eyeless; study without practice is empty ” 1.
This design work will have as its focal point ‘ Consciencism ’ as presented by Kwame Nkrumah. It must be noted that Consciencism is a summary of Nkrumah’s ideological standpoint geared towards the profitable and political liberation of the African. It was marked that Consciencism arrived at a stage of development where the vigorous African hunt for freedom; concinnity and identity need to be expressed in the form of philosophical statesments2.
likewise, the conception; ‘ Consciencism ’ has been subordinated to some examens; hence there’s need for an overview of the conception with a view to presenting it in the very spirit of African revolution.
STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
Kwame Nkrumah’s testament which he proffered for the development of the African is grounded on a foundation of materialism. The minimal assertion of materialism is the absolute and independent actuality of matter3. Looking at it independently from this view, it becomes apparent that ‘ philosophical consciencism ’ as Nkrumah calls it can not be conformed with the religious realities set up in the African society as the places of spirits and souls can not beover-emphasized as far as the African is concerned.
As refocused out by Paulin Houtondji, “ consciencism is wrong in treating any political system as interdependent with some specific metaphysical proposition ” 4. For him, if political propositions are to need defense, “ it must be political defense, belonging to the same position of converse ” 5. In other words, there’s a problem with bringing theories into the realm of political converse.
Another problem is that of the consummation of Nkrumah’s testament. Nkrumah himself said that “ Colonialism and its station are die hard, like the stations of slavery, whose leftover still dominates geste in certain corridor of the western semicircle ” 6. For the below reasons, the problem arises as to whether or not philosophical consciencism isn’t simply a theoretical conception, which will fail in practice.
All these problems are associated with the conception of ‘ consciencism ’ and its operation.
PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
A crucial purpose of this design work is to essay an exposition of Nkrumah’s result to the African dilemma brought about by social presence on African soil.
Another important purpose of this work is that it’ll estimate Nkrumah’s proposed result with a view to deciding whether or not it’ll be useful in the African hunt for moving forward in every sense of it.
SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
The significance of the study is to show that if ‘ philosophical consciencism ’ is approached in the way Kwame Nkrumah supposed it, also there will be no stopping the growth and development of Africa.
compass OF THE STUDY
The work in its compass will be limited to an overview of Nkrumah’s testament forde-colonization. nonetheless, in the process of over viewing his testament, cognizance will be taken of the influences on him, the work “ Consciencism ” itself, and circumstances girding the assumption of the testament.
METHODOLOGY
The system we shall borrow in this design work shall be logical and critical. It shall be logical in that every conception used shall be broken down into simple words.
LITERATURE REVIEW
In this work, we shall be making use of handbooks and also information sourced from websites.
The first book under review is one written by Kwame Nkrumah himself and is named “ Consciencism A Philosophy and testament forDe-Colonization ”, published in London in 1964. In this book, Nkrumah makes a case for are-structuring of the African society down from colonialism and towards profitable and political success. He posits an testament that’s able of recycling the old metropolitan testaments of capitalism and European illiberalism and according to him “ consciencism is the chart in intellectual terms of the disposition of the forces which will enable African society to digest the Western, the Islamic and the Euro- Christian rudiments in Africa and develop them in such a way that they fit into the African personality ”.7
The alternate book to be reviewed is also by Kwame Nkrumah and is named “ Axioms of Kwame Nkrumah ”, published in London in 1967 by Thomas Nelson. The book brings together colorful quotations of Kwame Nkrumah from colorful books by him and addresses delivered by him either in his sanctioned capacity as chairman of Ghana or simply as Kwame Nkrumah.
Another book that will be used in this work is by Gideon- CyrusM. Mutiso andS.W Rohio named “ Readings in African Political study ”, published in London by Heinemann in 1975. The book as the name suggests contains named motifs from colorful political thinkers and the jottings from Kwame Nkrumah featured prominently in the book.
Okadigbo’s book named “ Consciencism in African Political Philosophy ”, published in Enugu by Fourth Dimension Publishers in 1985 is also under review. In this book, the author handed a review of contemporary African gospel with Nkrumah’s ‘ consciencism ’ under the limelight and according to him “ there is then an evaluation of the result proposed by the same spirit of the African revolution ” 8.
Another book then under review is Kwame Nkrumah’s “ Towards Colonial Freedom ”, published in London by Heinemann Educational Books in 1962. Then the author describes this book as “ a rough design of the process which social people can establish the consummation of their complete and unconditional independence ” 9.
The sixth book under review is Kwame Nkrumah’s “ Africa Must Unite ”, published in London by Panaf Books in 1963. Then the author makes a case forPan-African concinnity. He also prompted the people of African descent in the West Indies and in the United States of America to strive for this concinnity as it’ll be a veritably important factor in the political and profitable liberation of the African.
These mentioned books and others written by Kwame Nkrumah and other authors will be used.
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