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Chester Himes, Jacques Derrida and inescapable colonialism: Reflections on African philosophy from the diaspora

2015; Taylor & Francis; Volume: 34; Issue: 4 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1080/02580136.2015.1113821

2073-4867

Bryan Mukandi,

African cultural and philosophical studies

In this article, I read Chester Himes' Blind Man With a Pistol as the work of an African- American writer who takes Harlem to be a colonial space, and who attempts to think through the ways that are available for him to contribute to some degree of liberation for its black residents. I suggest that there are strong parallels between Himes' position and that of African philosophers, and that Himes' self critique is instructive. I read this against Derrida's thoughts on 'monolingualism' and philosophy as 'a community of the question', asking what learning the language that is not one's own and what induction into the community of the question entail for the marginal, those who I describe as being from neither Athens nor Jerusalem. I conclude by offering my response to what I take to be our inescapable colonial lot: poetry and laughter.