Ethnophilosophy should ground future African philosophy rather than be rejected

Evidence

In this chapter, I focus on how Tempels has been received by African philosophers and the relevance of his book in Africa and beyond. First, I present a review of the debate on ethnophilosophy, as designated by African philosophers, from the time Tempels initiated the ethnophilosophical tendency in philosophicoanthropological studies in Africa with the publication of his 1945 axial work, Bantoe-filosofie (La philosophie bantoue), and the impact ethnophilosophy has had and continues to have on present-day African and intercultural philosophy. In doing this, I shed more light on the historical background and context of the emergence of ethnophilosophy in a bid to throw more light on the controversies surrounding ethnophilosophical discourses in African philosophy. Second, I acknowledge the foundational role ethnophilosophy played in the emergence of a written African philosophy tradition and opine that if progress should be made in African philosophy, especially in global times, it needs to take ethnophilosophy seriously and work hand-in-glove with it for a better rendition. Specifically, I engage with Odera Oruka’s sage philosophy/philosophic sagacity and submit that the criticisms of Tempels as ethnophilosophy need to be rethought. Given its foundational role, the emerging currents in contemporary African philosophy need to be constructed on the base supplied by ethnophilosophical data. Moreover, African ethnophilosophy, as articulated in the work of Tempels, could be a valid and valuable source of African philosophical concepts best suited to crossfertilize world philosophies by promoting education and dialogue. — Frans Dokman, Beyond Bantu Philosophy_…, 489

This enriched version of ethnophilosophy makes a case for the continued relevance of ethnophilosophy and its dynamic interrelationship with other philosophical methods in Africa and beyond. Hence Bantu Philosophy, in spite of some differences, remains a starting point for/convergence between African philosophy and other philosophical traditions. Tempels succeeds in paving the way for intercultural and interreligious communication between Africans and Westerners. — Frans Dokman, Beyond Bantu Philosophy_…, 593

Categorization

• XREF: Author’s central thesis about ethnophilosophy’s foundational role invites comparison with the wider debate between universalist and particularist positions in non-Western philosophy, e.g. debates over whether ‘African philosophy’ is a legitimate category.
• QUESTION: This seems to be closing a book chapter that is mostly references/footnotes — what is the actual preceding argument the author made at the 2016 symposium?
• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim — Frans Dokman, Beyond Bantu Philosophy_…, 489; Frans Dokman, Beyond Bantu Philosophy_…, 593