An Inquiry Into the Concept of the African Personality (Person) as a Social-Self

It is a fact of history that the African continent had experienced enslavement and colonialism which,unfortunately,led to the uprootedness of the being of the African.Consequently,one of the great tasks which faced the post-independent African was to come to terms with his selfhood,to construct the truth of his world.This largely helped in forming both the personal identity and the narrative identity of the African personality.This paper critically inquires into how this narrative identity that issued forth from the quest for the establishment of his being or selfhood(or individuality)helps in defining the collective identity of the African as a social being or self.One crucial question before this paper is whether the self loses his selfhood as an African in the collectivity or communalism of the African culture(way of life)together with his freedom and autonomy(of the individual),which are the essential and transcendental qualities of man.Through critical analytic and hermeneutic methods,this paper found out that the African metaphysics of reality or worldview almost sacrifices the freedom and autonomy of the self(as an individual)at the altar of the community,which constitutes its greatest pitfall.Thus,it is a considered conclusion of this paper that the concept of African personality(person or identity)as a social-self appears to ignore certain values that are clearly cherished by individuals practically in all cultures.