Epistemology and kinship: reading resistance literature on Westernised education

Dear, L. (2017) Epistemology and kinship: reading resistance literature on Westernised education. Open Library of Humanities, 3(1), 10. (doi: 10.16995/olh.123)

Abstract

This article compares narrative encounters with Westernised education from a variety of contexts. In particular, I highlight how the authors Chinua Achebe, Mongo Beti, Tsitsi Dangarembga, Cheikh Hamidou Kane, and Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o develop an epistemological critique of Westernised education. They do this partly by depicting the way such schooling breaks the bonds between individuals and their kinship groups and by describing different ways of knowing. This article makes a contribution by considering narratives written in the period following national liberation struggles, which are also referred to as resistance literature, in the context of contemporary debates around higher education. This article stimulates thinking on how an imperial education and colonial epistemologies impact individuals and their kinship groups.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Dear, Lou
• Authors: Dear, L.
• College/School: College of Arts & Humanities > School of Modern Languages and Cultures
• Journal Name: Open Library of Humanities
• Publisher: Open Library of Humanities
• ISSN: 2056-6700
• ISSN (Online): 2056-6700
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2017 The Author
• First Published: First published in Open Library of Humanities 3(1): 10
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons License