Paulin J. Hountondji
Paulin Hountondji | |
|---|---|
 Hountondji in 2005 | |
| Born | Paulin Jidenu Hountondji 11 April 1942 Abidjan, Colony of Côte d'Ivoire, French West Africa |
| Died | 2 February 2024 (aged 81) Cotonou, Benin |
| Nationality | Beninese |
Paulin Jidenu Hountondji (11 April 1942 – 2 February 2024) was a Beninese philosopher, politician and academic considered one of the most important figures in the history of
Education and career
Paulin J. Hountondji was educated at the
His academic career was interrupted, however, by a period spent in politics. Having been a prominent critic of the military dictatorship that had ruled his country, Hountondji became involved in Benin's return to democracy (in 1992), and served in the
Hountondji was until his death director of the African Centre for Advanced Studies in Porto-Novo, Benin, and served as the Bingham Professor of Humanities from 1 August 2008 to 31 December 2008 at the University of Louisville in Louisville, Kentucky.[2]
In 1999, Hountondji was honoured with a
Philosophical work
Hountondji's philosophical influences include two of his teachers in Paris, Louis Althusser and Jacques Derrida. His reputation rests primarily on his critical work concerning the nature of African philosophy. His main target was the ethnophilosophy of writers such as Placide Tempels and Alexis Kagame. He argued that such an approach confuses the methods of anthropology with those of philosophy, producing "a hybrid discipline without a recognizable status in the world of theory" ([1997], p. 52). Part of the problem stems from the fact that ethnophilosophy is in large part a response to Western views of African thought; this polemical role works against its philosophical validity.
His approach widened somewhat in later work; he still rejected ethnophilosophy as a genuine philosophical discipline, but he had moved towards more of a synthesis of traditional African thought and rigorous philosophical method. He defended that thesis until his last days.[3]
Death
Hountondji died in Cotonou on 2 February 2024, at the age of 81.[4][5]
Bibliography
- Hountondji, Paulin J. (1973). "True and False Pluralism", in OCLC 137209589.
- Hountondji, Paulin J. (1976). Sur la "philosophie Africaine" : critique de l'ethnophilosophie, Paris: Maspéro, 1976. Featured on the list of Africa's 100 Best Books of the 20th Century.[6]
- published in English (transl. H. Evans & J. Rée) as African Philosophy: Myth and Reality, Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press, 1983.
- second edition of the English version with an introduction by Abiola Irele, 1996. "African Philosophy: Myth and Reality. Second edition". archive.org. Internet Archive. Retrieved 21 September 2023.
- Hountondji, Paulin J. (1985). "The Master's voice: remarks on the problem of human rights in Africa". Philosophical foundations of human rights: 319–332. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
- Hountondji, Paulin J. (1987). "What can philosophy do?" (PDF). Quest. Philosophical Discussions. An International African Journal of Philosophy. 1 (2): 2–29. Retrieved 21 September 2023.
- Hountondji, Paulin J., ed. (1994). Les savoirs endogènes : pistes pour une recherche (in French). [Dakar]: Codesria. OCLC 42736719.
- Hountondji, Paulin J. (1997). Combats pour le Sens: Un Itineraire Africain (in French). Cotonou: Flamboyants. ISBN 9789956790265.
- Hountondji, Paulin J., ed. (1997). Endogenous Knowledge: research trails. Dakar: Codesria. OCLC 40340094.
- Hountondji, Paulin J. (2000). "Tradition, Hindrance, or Inspiration?" (PDF). Quest. Philosophical Discussions. An International African Journal of Philosophy. XIV (1–2): 5–11. Retrieved 21 September 2023.
- Hountondji, Paulin J.; Dossou ép. Houessou, Abelle, eds. (2000). Economie et société au Bénin : d'hier à demain (in French). Paris: Harmattan. OCLC 45890156.
- Hountondji, Paulin J.; Conteh-Morgan, John (2002). The Struggle for Meaning: Reflections on Philosophy, Culture and Democracy in Africa. Athens: Ohio University Press. OCLC 899031297.
Secondary literature
- ISBN 0-631-22967-1.
- Dübgen, Franziska; Skupien, Stefan (2019). "The Debate on Ethnophilosophy Between Hountondji and His Contemporary Critics". Paulin Hountondji. African Philosophy as Critical Universalism. Global Political Thinkers. Cham: Palgrave Macmillan / Springer. pp. 13–45. OCLC 1051670233.
- Serequeberhan, Tsenay (1994). The Hermeneutics of African Philosophy. New York: Routledge. OCLC 29312408.
References
- ^ "Verharen on Hountondji, 'The Struggle for Meaning: Reflections on Philosophy, Culture, and Democracy in Africa' | H-Africa | H-Net". networks.h-net.org. Retrieved 20 March 2021.
- ^ "University of Louisville. Department of Philosophy". louisville.edu. University of Louisville. Retrieved 21 September 2023.
- ^ "A final, joyful and philosophical encounter with Paulin Hountondji : Pr. Erwan Dianteill pays tribute to a great thinker". NaGuEzÉ INFO. 7 February 2024. Retrieved 7 February 2024.
- ^ Bénin: décès du professeur Paulin Hountondji (in French)
- ^ Nossiter, Adam (19 March 2024). "Paulin Hountondji, Revolutionary African Philosopher, Dies at 81". The New York Times. Retrieved 19 March 2024.
- ^ "Africa's 100 best books of the 20th Century". ascleiden.nl. African Studies Centre Leiden. 3 March 2020. Retrieved 21 September 2023.
See also
- African philosophy
- Jacques Derrida
- Louis Althusser
- List of African writers
- List of Beninese writers
