Ubuntu in Post-Apartheid South Africa: Educational, Cultural and Philosophical Considerations

Ubuntu has been defined as a moral quality of human beings, as a philosophy or an ethic, as African humanism, and as a worldview. This paper explores these definitions as conceptual tools for understanding the cultural, educational, and philosophical landscape of post-apartheid South Africa. Key to...

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Main Authors: Mahmoud Patel, Tawffeek A. S. Mohammed, Raymond Koen
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2024-01-01
Series:Philosophies
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2409-9287/9/1/21
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author Mahmoud Patel
Tawffeek A. S. Mohammed
Raymond Koen
author_facet Mahmoud Patel
Tawffeek A. S. Mohammed
Raymond Koen
author_sort Mahmoud Patel
collection DOAJ
description Ubuntu has been defined as a moral quality of human beings, as a philosophy or an ethic, as African humanism, and as a worldview. This paper explores these definitions as conceptual tools for understanding the cultural, educational, and philosophical landscape of post-apartheid South Africa. Key to this understanding is the Althusserian concept of state apparatus. Louis Althusser divides the state apparatus into two forces: the repressive state apparatus (RSA); and the ideological state apparatus (ISA). RSAs curtail the working classes, predominately through direct violence or the threat of violence, whereas ISAs function primarily by ideology, including forms of organised religion, the education system, family units, legal systems, trade unions, political parties, and media. This paper discusses the link between increasing inequality in post-apartheid South Africa and education, with specific reference to Althusser’s ISAs and the abuse of Ubuntu as a subterfuge for socio-economic inequality.
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spelling doaj.art-0c1d15073bfa458fa05fe1892ffb69c32024-02-23T15:31:31ZengMDPI AGPhilosophies2409-92872024-01-01912110.3390/philosophies9010021Ubuntu in Post-Apartheid South Africa: Educational, Cultural and Philosophical ConsiderationsMahmoud Patel0Tawffeek A. S. Mohammed1Raymond Koen2English for Educational Development (EED), University of the Western Cape, Bellville 7535, South AfricaDepartment of Foreign Languages, University of the Western Cape, Bellville 7535, South AfricaDepartment of Criminal Justice and Procedure, Faculty of Law, University of the Western Cape, Bellville 7535, South AfricaUbuntu has been defined as a moral quality of human beings, as a philosophy or an ethic, as African humanism, and as a worldview. This paper explores these definitions as conceptual tools for understanding the cultural, educational, and philosophical landscape of post-apartheid South Africa. Key to this understanding is the Althusserian concept of state apparatus. Louis Althusser divides the state apparatus into two forces: the repressive state apparatus (RSA); and the ideological state apparatus (ISA). RSAs curtail the working classes, predominately through direct violence or the threat of violence, whereas ISAs function primarily by ideology, including forms of organised religion, the education system, family units, legal systems, trade unions, political parties, and media. This paper discusses the link between increasing inequality in post-apartheid South Africa and education, with specific reference to Althusser’s ISAs and the abuse of Ubuntu as a subterfuge for socio-economic inequality.https://www.mdpi.com/2409-9287/9/1/21UbuntueducationalculturalphilosophicalSouth Africapost-apartheid
spellingShingle Mahmoud Patel
Tawffeek A. S. Mohammed
Raymond Koen
Ubuntu in Post-Apartheid South Africa: Educational, Cultural and Philosophical Considerations
Philosophies
Ubuntu
educational
cultural
philosophical
South Africa
post-apartheid
title Ubuntu in Post-Apartheid South Africa: Educational, Cultural and Philosophical Considerations
title_full Ubuntu in Post-Apartheid South Africa: Educational, Cultural and Philosophical Considerations
title_fullStr Ubuntu in Post-Apartheid South Africa: Educational, Cultural and Philosophical Considerations
title_full_unstemmed Ubuntu in Post-Apartheid South Africa: Educational, Cultural and Philosophical Considerations
title_short Ubuntu in Post-Apartheid South Africa: Educational, Cultural and Philosophical Considerations
title_sort ubuntu in post apartheid south africa educational cultural and philosophical considerations
topic Ubuntu
educational
cultural
philosophical
South Africa
post-apartheid
url https://www.mdpi.com/2409-9287/9/1/21
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