Ep. 41 – Achille Mbembe, On the Postcolony
Always Already Podcast, a critical theory podcast
English - June 28, 2016 16:58 - 33.2 MB - ★★★★★ - 93 ratingsPhilosophy Society & Culture critical theory social political philosophy thought Homepage Download Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
On this week’s episode we read Achille Mbembe’s On the Postcolony, focusing in particular on the Introduction and Chapters 5 and 6. We begin by discussing Mbembe’s analysis of the historical trajectory of Christian conversion and the divine libido in Chapter Six, “God’s Phallus” and its connection to Mbembe’s broader critique of rationality as constructed through eurocentric […]
On this week’s episode we read Achille Mbembe’s On the Postcolony, focusing in particular on the Introduction and Chapters 5 and 6. We begin by discussing Mbembe’s analysis of the historical trajectory of Christian conversion and the divine libido in Chapter Six, “God’s Phallus” and its connection to Mbembe’s broader critique of rationality as constructed through eurocentric Enlightenment philosophy. We then attempt to discern Mbembe’s proposed methodology for thinking Africa after the colony without negating–but rather moving beyond mere relationality to–Western colonial depictions of Africa as hollow, devoid of reason, chaotic. We also discuss Mbembe’s use of the word ‘colony’ as it relates to violence, death, materiality and time. During everyone’s favorite segment, My Tumblr Friend from Canada, we offer our thoughts on how to address a delicate conversation with an academic advisor. Listen in as we dig into this rich and important text!
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Links!
mp3 file of the episode
Mbembe’s page at University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa
Mbembe: “Discussing African Futures”
Mbembe: “Frantz Fanon and the Politics of Viscerality”
Mbembe: Revolts and Resistance: A Pan African Perspective