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Globalectics: Theory and the Politics of Knowing
A masterful writer working in many genres, Ngugi wa Thiong'o entered the East African literary scene in 1962 with the performance of his first major play, "The Black Hermit," at the National Theatre in Uganda. In 1977 he was imprisoned after his most controversial work, "Ngaahika Ndeenda" ( "I Will Marry When I Want"), produced in Nairobi, sharply criticized the injustices of Kenyan society and unequivocally championed the causes of ordinary citizens. Following his release, Ngugi decided to write only in his native Gikuyu, communicating with Kenyans in one of the many languages of their daily lives, and today he is known as one of the most outspoken intellectuals working in postcolonial theory and the global postcolonial movement.
In this volume, Ngugi wa Thiong'o summarizes and develops a cross-section of the issues he has grappled with in his work, which deploys a strategy of imagery, language, folklore, and character to "decolonize the mind." Ngugi confronts the politics of language in African writing; the problem of linguistic imperialism and literature's ability to resist it; the difficult balance between orality, or "orature," and writing, or "literature"; the tension between national and world literature; and the role of the literary curriculum in both reaffirming and undermining the dominance of the Western canon. Throughout, he engages a range of philosophers and theorists writing on power and postcolonial creativity, including Hegel, Marx, L?vi-Strauss, and Aim? C?saire. Yet his explorations remain grounded in his own experiences with literature (and orature) and reworks the difficult dialectics of theory into richly evocative prose.
In this volume, Ngugi wa Thiong'o summarizes and develops a cross-section of the issues he has grappled with in his work, which deploys a strategy of imagery, language, folklore, and character to "decolonize the mind." Ngugi confronts the politics of language in African writing; the problem of linguistic imperialism and literature's ability to resist it; the difficult balance between orality, or "orature," and writing, or "literature"; the tension between national and world literature; and the role of the literary curriculum in both reaffirming and undermining the dominance of the Western canon. Throughout, he engages a range of philosophers and theorists writing on power and postcolonial creativity, including Hegel, Marx, L?vi-Strauss, and Aim? C?saire. Yet his explorations remain grounded in his own experiences with literature (and orature) and reworks the difficult dialectics of theory into richly evocative prose.
120 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2012
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490 people want to read
About the author
Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o
107 books2,015 followersNgũgĩ wa Thiong'o was a Kenyan author and academic, who was described as East Africa's leading novelist.
He began writing in English before later switching to write primarily in Gikuyu, becoming a strong advocate for literature written in native African languages. His works include the celebrated novel The River Between, plays, short stories, and essays, ranging from literary and social criticism to children's literature. He was the founder and editor of the Gikuyu-language journal Mũtĩiri. His short story The Upright Revolution: Or Why Humans Walk Upright was translated into more than 100 languages.
In 1977, Ngũgĩ embarked upon a novel form of theatre in Kenya that sought to liberate the theatrical process from what he held to be "the general bourgeois education system", by encouraging spontaneity and audience participation in the performances. His project sought to "demystify" the theatrical process, and to avoid the "process of alienation [that] produces a gallery of active stars and an undifferentiated mass of grateful admirers" which, according to Ngũgĩ, encourages passivity in "ordinary people". Although his landmark play Ngaahika Ndeenda, co-written with Ngũgĩ wa Mirii, was a commercial success, it was shut down by the authoritarian Kenyan regime six weeks after its opening.
Ngũgĩ was subsequently imprisoned for more than a year. Adopted as an Amnesty International prisoner of conscience, he was released from prison and fled Kenya. He was appointed Distinguished Professor of Comparative Literature and English at the University of California, Irvine. He previously taught at Northwestern University, Yale University, and New York University. Ngũgĩ was frequently regarded as a likely candidate for the Nobel Prize in Literature. He won the 2001 International Nonino Prize in Italy, and the 2016 Park Kyong-ni Prize. Among his children are authors Mũkoma wa Ngũgĩ and Wanjiku wa Ngũgĩ.
He began writing in English before later switching to write primarily in Gikuyu, becoming a strong advocate for literature written in native African languages. His works include the celebrated novel The River Between, plays, short stories, and essays, ranging from literary and social criticism to children's literature. He was the founder and editor of the Gikuyu-language journal Mũtĩiri. His short story The Upright Revolution: Or Why Humans Walk Upright was translated into more than 100 languages.
In 1977, Ngũgĩ embarked upon a novel form of theatre in Kenya that sought to liberate the theatrical process from what he held to be "the general bourgeois education system", by encouraging spontaneity and audience participation in the performances. His project sought to "demystify" the theatrical process, and to avoid the "process of alienation [that] produces a gallery of active stars and an undifferentiated mass of grateful admirers" which, according to Ngũgĩ, encourages passivity in "ordinary people". Although his landmark play Ngaahika Ndeenda, co-written with Ngũgĩ wa Mirii, was a commercial success, it was shut down by the authoritarian Kenyan regime six weeks after its opening.
Ngũgĩ was subsequently imprisoned for more than a year. Adopted as an Amnesty International prisoner of conscience, he was released from prison and fled Kenya. He was appointed Distinguished Professor of Comparative Literature and English at the University of California, Irvine. He previously taught at Northwestern University, Yale University, and New York University. Ngũgĩ was frequently regarded as a likely candidate for the Nobel Prize in Literature. He won the 2001 International Nonino Prize in Italy, and the 2016 Park Kyong-ni Prize. Among his children are authors Mũkoma wa Ngũgĩ and Wanjiku wa Ngũgĩ.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 19 reviews
December 29, 2014
This was just an absolute pleasure to read. Thiong'o addresses serious issues with what he labels as "poor theory" and connects it to the effects of European imperialism, colonialism, and post-colonialism on the African continent in conjunction with the study of literature and the language in which it is written. He continues by connecting this to the modes of education in former colonies and how those who hold the power often dictate who and what receive certain kinds of knowledge. His views on what he assigns the title of "globalectics", a new and refreshing way of analyzing world literature in all its forms (written literature, orality, orature, cyberality, etc.) that combines dialectic and a global outlook to produce a more inclusive dialogue are extremely fascinating. He writes about very seemingly complex concepts in such an accessible and surprisingly funny manner. I will definitely be reading more of his essays and also some of his works of fiction in the future!
July 18, 2021
From Colonialism to World Literature - After reading “Birth of a Dreamweaver” (see my review), I wanted to learn more about how Ngugi wa Thiong'o had progressed in higher education and his career as a writer---from Makerere to Leeds and back to the University of Nairobi, then prison and abroad as an exiled author and academic.
Looking through his various titles, I chose this compilation of his Wellek Library Lectures as it seemed to offer more about the presenter’s story. And while still left with more curiosity and questions about how this eminent novelist and scholar progressed along his path, “Globalectics” provides important clues into wa Thiong'o' s intellectual progression and the movement from Colonialism to World Literature..
More specifically, this short book (less than 100 pages) consists of an Introduction: Riches of Poor Theory, and four chapters. Namely, after framing his remarks Ngugi addresses (1) The English Master and the Colonial Bondsman; (2) The Education of the Colonial Bondsman; (3) Globalectics Imagination: The World in the Postcolonial; and (4) The Oral Native and the Writing Master: Orature, Orality, and Cyborality. There are also helpful Notes and an Index.
As stated early on (pg. 6) “Underlying these lectures is a story of how . . . a literature revolution at the University of Nairobi in the sixties . . . set-in motion debates on postcolonial . . . literary studies that spread to the continent and beyond . . . [a] vision of a world literature” (see also my review of Moretti’s “Distant Reading”). The author continues to say (pg. 7) “They are informed by Hegelian dialectics in general, but, in particular, that of the master and the slave . . . [with] vast implications for the resolution of the unequal relationships of power underlying the totality of economics, politics, ethics, and aesthetics” (see my review of Wilkerson’s “Caste”). Ngugi wa Thiong'o indicates (pg. 8) that “[he] returned . . . [and] became a member of the English Department . . . to write a document that called for its abolition . . . “ Later on (pg. 42), he explains “The document. . . was a plea for the decolonization of the cognitive process. . . attacking, the study of literature within purely national boundaries . . . ; a call for a “. . . reordering of the process of knowing . . . [with emphasis on] the new synthesis of African, Caribbean, African-American . . .[and] kindred literatures of Asia and Latin America at a center . . . then European Literature being brought in at the edges . . .” for the postcolonial.
My favorite parts were those where the author brings in and discusses influences from his Leeds days such a Fanon’s “The Wretched of the Earth” and the negritude movement of Césaire, Senghor, and Damas. For example (on pg.23), he elaborates that “Senghor’s poem ‘To New York,’ with its tribute to the Harlem Renaissance, is structured . . . [according to the] Hegelian triad as applied to race matters. . . The (unmediated) thesis is Western civilization, symbolized by Manhattan . . .the negating phase is Harlem of black blood and dancing feet. . .; the synthesis, New York, once the black blood is allowed into it, the blood cleansing the rust from the steel joints like an oil of life.”
I also appreciated his treatment of the hierarchy between written and oral languages (as master and slave) as well as the importance of incorporating/elevating the latter in reorganized departments of world literature. Then, there is his coverage of the inclusive and performance nature of the “orature” (vs. literature) origin stories (see my review of Greene’s “Until the End of Time”) as well as the impact of communication and information technologies (see my review of “The Ong Reader”). Such dimensions were among those he has worked to address.
For some this book may seem heady and theoretical, but it helped me further “get” Ngugi wa Thiong'o and what he has tried to do in an extraordinary literary activist life. For those like me it may offer similar insight and inspiration.
Looking through his various titles, I chose this compilation of his Wellek Library Lectures as it seemed to offer more about the presenter’s story. And while still left with more curiosity and questions about how this eminent novelist and scholar progressed along his path, “Globalectics” provides important clues into wa Thiong'o' s intellectual progression and the movement from Colonialism to World Literature..
More specifically, this short book (less than 100 pages) consists of an Introduction: Riches of Poor Theory, and four chapters. Namely, after framing his remarks Ngugi addresses (1) The English Master and the Colonial Bondsman; (2) The Education of the Colonial Bondsman; (3) Globalectics Imagination: The World in the Postcolonial; and (4) The Oral Native and the Writing Master: Orature, Orality, and Cyborality. There are also helpful Notes and an Index.
As stated early on (pg. 6) “Underlying these lectures is a story of how . . . a literature revolution at the University of Nairobi in the sixties . . . set-in motion debates on postcolonial . . . literary studies that spread to the continent and beyond . . . [a] vision of a world literature” (see also my review of Moretti’s “Distant Reading”). The author continues to say (pg. 7) “They are informed by Hegelian dialectics in general, but, in particular, that of the master and the slave . . . [with] vast implications for the resolution of the unequal relationships of power underlying the totality of economics, politics, ethics, and aesthetics” (see my review of Wilkerson’s “Caste”). Ngugi wa Thiong'o indicates (pg. 8) that “[he] returned . . . [and] became a member of the English Department . . . to write a document that called for its abolition . . . “ Later on (pg. 42), he explains “The document. . . was a plea for the decolonization of the cognitive process. . . attacking, the study of literature within purely national boundaries . . . ; a call for a “. . . reordering of the process of knowing . . . [with emphasis on] the new synthesis of African, Caribbean, African-American . . .[and] kindred literatures of Asia and Latin America at a center . . . then European Literature being brought in at the edges . . .” for the postcolonial.
My favorite parts were those where the author brings in and discusses influences from his Leeds days such a Fanon’s “The Wretched of the Earth” and the negritude movement of Césaire, Senghor, and Damas. For example (on pg.23), he elaborates that “Senghor’s poem ‘To New York,’ with its tribute to the Harlem Renaissance, is structured . . . [according to the] Hegelian triad as applied to race matters. . . The (unmediated) thesis is Western civilization, symbolized by Manhattan . . .the negating phase is Harlem of black blood and dancing feet. . .; the synthesis, New York, once the black blood is allowed into it, the blood cleansing the rust from the steel joints like an oil of life.”
I also appreciated his treatment of the hierarchy between written and oral languages (as master and slave) as well as the importance of incorporating/elevating the latter in reorganized departments of world literature. Then, there is his coverage of the inclusive and performance nature of the “orature” (vs. literature) origin stories (see my review of Greene’s “Until the End of Time”) as well as the impact of communication and information technologies (see my review of “The Ong Reader”). Such dimensions were among those he has worked to address.
For some this book may seem heady and theoretical, but it helped me further “get” Ngugi wa Thiong'o and what he has tried to do in an extraordinary literary activist life. For those like me it may offer similar insight and inspiration.
December 15, 2022
I’ve completed a year long project for work on the use of non-English languages online — and Thiongo’s prioritization of local languages played a big role in our theoretical framework.
As such, I recommend such a book — short as it may be — to bolster your knowledge on your inherent biases. Why do we value English as a language of literature over others? Why are oral histories not regarded as valid as written ones? How does this shift as we live more and more of our waking hours online?
Thiongo succinctly and deliberately tears these assumptions down, building off of a lifetime of work to show the invisible lines and hierarchies that are still guiding the very language I am writing this review in, right now.
As such, I recommend such a book — short as it may be — to bolster your knowledge on your inherent biases. Why do we value English as a language of literature over others? Why are oral histories not regarded as valid as written ones? How does this shift as we live more and more of our waking hours online?
Thiongo succinctly and deliberately tears these assumptions down, building off of a lifetime of work to show the invisible lines and hierarchies that are still guiding the very language I am writing this review in, right now.
November 23, 2025
أفضل كتاب قرأته هذه السنة و أعتبره كنزا اكتشفته بالصدفة
يفكك الكاتب المركزية الغربية في الثقافة و يدعو إلى واقع ثقافي عالمي جديد يسوده الاحترام المتبادل بين الثقافات و الحوار . عالم. يسوده جدل عولمي متعدد المراكز عوض العولمة التي تعزز المركزية الأوروبية و تقصي الاخر . يعتمد المؤلف لإثبات وجهة نظره على العديد من الأفكار الفلسفية كفكرة السيد و العبد عند هيغل و الجدل الهيغلي بصفة عامة بالإضافة إلى الماركسية و فلسفات مابعد الاستعمار.
يفكك الكاتب المركزية الغربية في الثقافة و يدعو إلى واقع ثقافي عالمي جديد يسوده الاحترام المتبادل بين الثقافات و الحوار . عالم. يسوده جدل عولمي متعدد المراكز عوض العولمة التي تعزز المركزية الأوروبية و تقصي الاخر . يعتمد المؤلف لإثبات وجهة نظره على العديد من الأفكار الفلسفية كفكرة السيد و العبد عند هيغل و الجدل الهيغلي بصفة عامة بالإضافة إلى الماركسية و فلسفات مابعد الاستعمار.
November 3, 2019
This is a book with many relevant questions and concepts. I particularly found very interesting the reference to oral language and written language. The concept of equality is therefore taken to a different level. Highly recommended.
May 15, 2020
This book is a thought provoking collection of essays that questions the mediums we typically place knowledge and wisdom within. It was a nice reflection on the philology of foundational narrative texts and their intersection within and between cultures
dropped
February 28, 2020لا يصلح للقراءة الحرة
Read
September 15, 2023Not rated - school read
Want to read
March 7, 2024ملاحظة لي: لم اقرا الكتاب بعد - كاتب من كينيا - اقتني ترجمة سعد البازعي
October 10, 2016
The book opens the eyes on some of the deep concepts of colonialism. History of the colonized countries starts at the the day the colonizers walk on the land, Not before. The dark stories about Africa and how people still think that Africa is not civilized and has no high and great buildings. For example, one guy went to Africa to a 4-star hotel, before he lay on the bed he looked under the bed to see if there is any snakes.
Literature should Free itself from the boundaries of race, origin, language, and ethnic background to perceive its greatness . World literature is mentioned as well as a coming new genre of fiction.
Robinson Crosuo's description in the book is mind-opening.
Literature should Free itself from the boundaries of race, origin, language, and ethnic background to perceive its greatness . World literature is mentioned as well as a coming new genre of fiction.
Robinson Crosuo's description in the book is mind-opening.
March 3, 2014
Ngugi wa Thiong'o argues well for a literary theory that is clear and economical and true to the fact we live with global literature (or world literature) that ought not be read as though all literature comes from England (or Europe). Also, as a Marxist theorist, his rejection of the idea of the dialectic for a more pluralistic system of definition, meaning and creation is very nice.
September 4, 2014
Essential reading to understand modern debates surrounding literature and the colonial influences that are inherent in language. It will make you want turn the world upside down and shake the truth free. Insights are novel and modern perspectives on how nature, nurture, and even cyberature are inextricably braided within a contemporary postcolonial global community.
March 16, 2015
A lucid flyover of postcolonial theory, working from his life more than the institutional field. The last chapter resorts to generalities when he speaks of orature's "interdisciplinary"/transcendent nature, but until then, he introduces the discipline in an accessible but fresh way.
February 20, 2015
Vibrant prose meets casual erudition. Ngūgī returns to historically important events and movements to provide a capacious summary of the mutually enriching (possibly, anyway) roots of global literatures and postcolonial processes. Crystalline clarity and a light touch make for excellent reading.
October 30, 2012
Brilliant argument against the western canon. "Decolonizing the mind".
May 3, 2015
I found this a quick read and enjoyed to see some of the thinking that goes in to making Ngugi such a consummate story teller, but lol, I prefer his stories!
January 27, 2018
Fascinating insights into decolonizing literature and the university.
April 18, 2019
Globalectics: Theory and the Politics of Knowing by Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o
Ngugi attacks the teaching of English Literature as a reinforcement of colonial culture and world-outlook. He wants to establish a new literature that is universal and appealing to everyone.
In the “The English Master and the Colonial Bondsman”, Ngugi points at how in Uganda, where he went to study, English literature was presented in the works such as William Shakespeare as detached from African realities. It only reinforced the view that Europe was the center of the universe. However, his studies in Leeds University opened a new door for him. The works of Marxists such as Aime Cesaire, Frantz Fanon, Sartre etc., elevated literature to a higher more global views of the world. This is what makes literature grandiose and monumental.
In “The Education of the Colonial Bondsman”, Ngũgĩ points at the distorted image of Africa by colonialism and its writings. Africa was presented as land of savages with no history and no reflection. Its history started only by the coming of the British. In “Globalectic Imagination" Ngugi calls for freeing literature from its national boundaries, and allow it to become global. When Ngugi called for the abolition of the English Department, he actually was seeking a universal literature, and allowing the reader to go beyond the artificial time and space. Ngũgĩ also supports the Africanisation of literature, and making instrumental in developing an African discourse.
My objection to Ngugi is that Literature in general can be elevated to a global stage only if the reader has such imagination. The reader is free in his interpretation.
Ngugi attacks the teaching of English Literature as a reinforcement of colonial culture and world-outlook. He wants to establish a new literature that is universal and appealing to everyone.
In the “The English Master and the Colonial Bondsman”, Ngugi points at how in Uganda, where he went to study, English literature was presented in the works such as William Shakespeare as detached from African realities. It only reinforced the view that Europe was the center of the universe. However, his studies in Leeds University opened a new door for him. The works of Marxists such as Aime Cesaire, Frantz Fanon, Sartre etc., elevated literature to a higher more global views of the world. This is what makes literature grandiose and monumental.
In “The Education of the Colonial Bondsman”, Ngũgĩ points at the distorted image of Africa by colonialism and its writings. Africa was presented as land of savages with no history and no reflection. Its history started only by the coming of the British. In “Globalectic Imagination" Ngugi calls for freeing literature from its national boundaries, and allow it to become global. When Ngugi called for the abolition of the English Department, he actually was seeking a universal literature, and allowing the reader to go beyond the artificial time and space. Ngũgĩ also supports the Africanisation of literature, and making instrumental in developing an African discourse.
My objection to Ngugi is that Literature in general can be elevated to a global stage only if the reader has such imagination. The reader is free in his interpretation.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 19 reviews