AFST-212 : Theory in African Studies

Theory in African studies is adopted in its dual role as a universal body of ideas, accumulated wisdom as well as a branch of the human tree of cognition with distinct characteristics organically connected to the larger whole. A survey of the universal foundations of theory is undertaken with the goal of showing the multiple pathways in the flow of knowledge. The course offers different viewpoints in terms of not only the debates among mainstream social science schools of thought but also the emerging paradigms of inquiry as the critical approaches subsumed in post-modernist, post-colonial and critical theories. The course attempts to introduce the student to the universal and particular dimensions of thought systems with the main goal of helping the student grow as an independent scholar synthesizing the best traditions of Western and African civilizations.