Baba, Thank you for this original and refreshing essay on the intellectual. Very educative. The intellectual is rare . best, Mboge On Sat, Mar 16, 2013 at 6:37 PM, Baba Galleh Jallow <[log in to unmask]>wrote: > *Provisional thoughts on the intellectual* > > *By Baba Galleh Jallow* > > In *Representations of the Intellectual*, Edward Said (pronounced sayid) > defines the intellectual as simply that educated person – “an oppositional > figure” - who speaks out against injustices in his society. The > intellectual is not merely one who has obtained an advanced degree in a > particular field of study. They have to be someone actively engaged in > speaking truth to power in the service of their society and those who are > not able to fight back when bullied by the power structures of society. > Said’s characterization of the intellectual disqualifies many educated > persons from claiming the status of intellectual. An intellectual cannot > afford not to take sides – be on the side of the underdogs - in national > discourses of power, oppression, and exploitation. They are either vocal > and therefore with the mass of oppressed or otherwise underprivileged > people, or they are silent and therefore with the oppressive structures and > institutions of society. They can also join the oppressive power structure > and win the title of “intellectual prostitute” for their pains and in their > pursuit of material gain.**** > > Before going further, let me make a small but significant disclaimer: In > this essay, I use the masculine pronoun to refer to all intellectuals. I > hope our dear mothers and sisters will forgive me for taking this easy way > out of the “he/she” conundrum. Great female intellectuals are to be found > in all walks of life and have made incredibly great contributions to all > aspects of human civilization. Thus, my use of the masculine pronoun in > this small essay is merely for ease of reference. It is certainly not meant > to marginalize or otherwise downplay the tremendous contributions of > females to the world’s intellectual wellbeing and resources. A great small > book titled Essaying the Past by Jim Cullen uses “she” and “her” throughout > the text, making me wonder, why Dr. Cullen, are there no “he” intellectuals > in your world? But of course, I understand that Jim’s decision to use the > feminine pronoun was driven by the need for ease of reference. I use “he” > and “his” here for the same reason. Moreover, some of the not so > complimentary actions of intellectuals discussed in the essay are mostly > perpetrated by male intellectuals, though females are also sometimes > culpable.**** > > In Said’s formulation, the intellectual who keeps mute over the injustices > inflicted upon their compatriots or joins the oppressive system may write > and publish many books in academic presses and articles in learned > professional journals. However, the fact that they condone the tyrannies > and injustices in their home countries renders them disqualified for the > title of an intellectual. These kinds of educated people are mere academics > or professionals contributing to the production of knowledge in their > fields or otherwise belonging to and serving their special professional and > special interests. By their active participation in the tyrannical system > or their silence, they aid and abet tyranny and injustice where they could > have helped neutralize these negative forces from the lives of their > peoples. Said suggests that the intellectual cannot afford to either be > part of an oppressive structure or to sit on the fence and maintain passive > silence in the face of injustice or aggression.**** > > Most studies of the intellectual characterize him as an outsider, an exile > to mainstream society, even if he lives within his own country, a character > marginal to whatever public he finds himself in. Ironically, the > marginality of the intellectual derives precisely from his inextricable > immersion in society. At once existing outside of society, he is > perpetually embedded, energized and motivated by his engagement with issues > of social concern. It is his hatred of injustice, his total identification > with the plight of the poor, the weak, the oppressed and the otherwise > powerless victims of structural violence that at once makes him an outsider > and the quintessential insider and champion of social justice. Unable to > partake of the ordinary joys of belonging, he nevertheless is the epitome > of belonging. It is his feeling of belonging that makes him an unyielding > champion of a just social order while at the same time keeping him > perpetually outside of his society. **** > > Of course, some of the worst atrocities against human kind both in Africa > and around the world have been committed by people who would characterize > themselves as intellectuals. Almost all of Africa’s founding fathers held > academic qualifications ranging from masters degrees to PhDs. Kwame Nkrumah > held a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and Economics (1939) and a Bachelor of > Theology (1942) from Lincoln University. He also held a Master of Science > in Education (1942) and a Master of Arts in Philosophy (1943) from the > University of Pennsylvania. By the time he left America for the United > Kingdom, he was on the verge of finishing work on a doctorate in philosophy > at the University of Pennsylvania. Yet, for all his great contributions to > the forging of a new nation in Ghana and the advancement of the > pan-Africanist cause, Nkrumah was able to justify passage of such > oppressive laws like the Preventive Detention Act of 1958 under which > people were detained for up to five years or more without charges, without > trial and without the benefit of habeas corpus merely because Nkrumah saw > them as potential threats to Ghana’s peace and security. One can understand > that Nkrumah was faced with a particular difficult task of founding a new > republic at the height of a cold war which threatened to sabotage Africa’s > emergent independence. But as Africans faced with a particularly malignant > problem of unjust rulers, we cannot afford to overlook injustices and > oppression merely because the perpetrator has also made great contributions > to the advancement of society. Under no circumstances may acts of injustice > and oppression be condoned, especially when they are perpetrated by > intellectuals who should know better than to assume positions of > infallibility. There are always alternative ways of doing things, > alternative choices to be made which may achieve the same or better > results. **** > > Other independence era leaders like Jomo Kenyatta, Hastings Banda, Leopold > Senghor, Houphouet Boigny, and Julius Nyerere, and more recently Laurent > Gbagbo among others, all held higher education qualifications that placed > them firmly in the category of intellectuals. Yet, most of these African > intellectuals proceeded to impose unjust social orders on their societies > simply because they lacked the capacity to recognize that they might be > mistaken in some of their ideas. It is to be said for Nyerere that once he > recognized the error of his ways, he happily stepped aside and allowed an > alternative system to replace his failed experiment. That is the mark of a > true intellectual – the capacity to recognize error, say sorry, and take > corrective measures in the interest of social wellbeing. Of course, we also > have those African leaders, some very close to home who, much like cows in > a library, carry upon their necks such intellectual titles like Sheikh, > Doctor and Professor. We may term these delusional fools “underdogtuals” > for they lie prostrate at the lowest bottom of the pseudollectual ladder, > making funny noises that are never heard in the real world. **** > > The true intellectual recognizes above everything else his human > fallibility. He certainly expresses strongly held beliefs and opinions and > could prove extremely stubborn in upholding and defending them. But he > never assumes a position of infallibility and certainly never suggests that > his version of whatever issue is at stake is the only correct version. He > always leaves room for the possibility of error, and depending on his level > of maturity as an intellectual, is always prepared to revisit and revise > his position in the light of strong evidence suggesting that he might be > wrong. In short, the true intellectual is a perpetual student, both of > academics and of life. One of the greatest intellectuals of all time, the > Greek philosopher Socrates famously confessed that the only thing he knew > was that he knew nothing. **** > > The true intellectual will not be co-opted by power structures that bear > the tiniest bit of responsibility for human suffering. He is utterly > incapable of inflicting premeditated injustice except as a response to > injustice inflicted upon him or some other victim. In Africa however, and > admittedly in all parts of the world, people who consider themselves > intellectuals often serve as the spokespersons and legitimating signposts > for oppressive and unjust social orders. Every tyrant has a crop of > intellectuals around him, with some others waiting in the wings, licking > his boots, and hoping to be co-opted into the system for monetary and other > benefits. Some go out of their way to produce works on the tyrant’s > non-existent achievements, or to praise the tyrant’s non-existent > magnanimities as a way of attracting favorable attention and perhaps > landing a lucrative job from the tyrant. Because tyrants are generally > insecure and have grossly over inflated egos in constant need of stroking, > they are famously susceptible to intellectual sycophancy because it tends > to confirm their own unrealistic estimations of themselves. But those > intellectuals who prostitute themselves to unjust power structures and > corrupt institutions for mere monetary gain are not true intellectuals; > they are mere academics out to line their pockets and utterly heedless of > the lessons of history which show just how badly intellectual prostitutes > almost inevitably suffer. They are victims of self-inflicted mental > blindness who assume convenient truths to convince themselves that the only > way they could escape what appears to be a life-long cycle of material > poverty is to court the favors of the tyrant. Indeed, it is their obsessive > preoccupation with material gain that pushes them into the thorny arms of > the tyrant and makes them sell their souls to the devil. The true > intellectual does not dismiss the necessity of material comfort; but placed > against the necessity of dignity, principle and integrity, material comfort > pales into utter insignificance in the mind of the true intellectual.**** > > Then there are those intellectuals who will neither sell their souls to > the devil nor actively fight the injustices in his society. These seem to > be in the majority. Having obtained higher educational qualifications, they > are well aware of the nature of structural violence in society. However, > they tend to lean more towards silence largely for reasons of > self-preservation, cowardice, or mere laziness. African intellectuals > belonging to this group are often prolific writers and great scholars > working for some of the world’s greatest universities or corporate > institutions. However, they maintain a stony silence while their own people > are bullied and killed by tin pot despots. They place the conveniences of > being able to freely land at their home airports and bask in the communal > glory that greets them back home to the inconvenience of having to stay out > of the country while waging a battle against unjust social orders. They > claim to be not interested in politics; yet their entire professions deal > with politics, a subject they engage on a daily basis. These are the types > of intellectuals the sociologist C Wright Mills call “inactionaries.” They > convince themselves that they are not doing anything bad, that they are > independent beings who have no bone to pick with the unjust system as long > as it does not attack them or theirs, or that they are not interested in > politics. Assuming these convenient truths, they manage to willfully > maintain what they feel is a clear conscience and go about their lucrative > business. It is to be said for these inactionaries that they seldom sell > their souls to the devil either. **** > > The true intellectual neither sells his soul to the devil nor remains mute > over social injustices. Marginal to society, he is embedded in a sea of > social concerns. His entire being is animated and inspired by an > irresistible urge to speak out against tyranny and injustice in all their > various forms. He cannot survive long in an environment of intolerance and > censorship. He will allow others to control anything about him but his > mind. He is a fiercely independent individual who finds it hard to belong, > yet inextricably and almost literally belongs to his community. And he will > not be silenced, except by brute force that renders him totally incapable > of talking truth to power. Some of the greatest intellectual treasures of > all time were produced by intellectuals in prison or on the verge of being > murdered by unjust regimes. Two classical examples are Gramsci’s *Prison > Notebooks* and Plato’s *The Trial and Death of Socrates*. **** > > **** > ¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤ To > unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web > interface at: http://listserv.icors.org/archives/gambia-l.html > > To Search in the Gambia-L archives, go to: > http://listserv.icors.org/SCRIPTS/WA-ICORS.EXE?S1=gambia-l To contact the > List Management, please send an e-mail to: > [log in to unmask]¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤ > ¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤ To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface at: http://listserv.icors.org/archives/gambia-l.html To Search in the Gambia-L archives, go to: http://listserv.icors.org/SCRIPTS/WA-ICORS.EXE?S1=gambia-l To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to: [log in to unmask] ¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤