Disentangling Consciencism by Martin Odei Ajei & Kwame Gyekye

Author:Martin Odei Ajei & Kwame Gyekye
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Lexington Books, a division of Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.

Chapter 9

The Logic of Consciencism

Richmond Kwesi

In the final chapter of Consciencism—“Set Theoretic Terms”—Kwame Nkrumah presents a formalization of his main ideas espoused in the previous chapters, using symbols and logical notations. This formalization maps out from one horizon, the course of action required for a colonial territory to be liberated in order to obtain genuine independence, and from another view, the conditions necessary for maintaining the independence of the territory. African societies, for Nkrumah, are faced with the problems of colonialism, imperialism, neocolonialism, disunity, and lack of development. It is, therefore, the aim of philosophical consciencism in its political manifestation, first, to chart a course of action to defeat colonialism and imperialism; second, to reveal the whims and caprices of neocolonialism so that the defeat of colonialism does not become pointless; third, to marshal all the various forces and groups in a territory toward a national (or continental) unity; and finally, to articulate an (philosophical) ideology suitable for national reconstruction and development. Nkrumah’s “Set Theoretic Terms,” is intended to give us a political formula for achieving the four aims above.

Although Nkrumah’s final chapter is rarely read and examined because of its use of symbols and logical notations which make it quite daunting to work through, it is, arguably, the most important chapter of his book, for at least two reasons: one, the chapter gives us an application—on the social and political plane—of the central theses of philosophical consciencism; it brings together Nkrumah’s ideas on liberation, materialism, dialectical moments, socialism, and positive action. The interrelation and interconnectedness of these ideas help us to appreciate the broader spectrum and applicability of Nkrumah’s Consciencism. Two, it presents to us a road map for the journey from the struggle for independence through to the attainment of national and continental unity and development. This road map, borne out of the experience of Ghana’s struggle and independence with Nkrumah’s Convention Peoples Party (CPP), provides not only a strategy for the liberation of any colonial territory, but also the socio-economic-political system appropriate for maintaining and sustaining the independence of a territory. In a single statement, we can describe the significance of the final chapter as philosophical consciencism in actu.

My task in this chapter is to present and analyze Nkrumah’s reasoning for this political dimension of consciencism with the aim of understanding his theoretic terms and appreciating the general spirit of his philosophical consciencism. I will do so structurally, by outlining Nkrumah’s strategy and scheme for dealing with the problems facing African societies which I listed as the four aims of philosophical consciencism in the first paragraph. I will use Nkrumah’s symbols and notations, but with some modifications, and I will limit the discussion to the key aspects of his theoretic terms using less notations. Let us begin our analysis with the project of Consciencism itself.

According to Nkrumah, the conscience of the African society is plagued by three strands of influences which have competing and conflicting ideologies.

African society has one segment which comprises our traditional way of life;

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