Out of the Dark Night: Essays on Decolonization

Achille Mbembe is a critical theorist who examines the complexities of decolonization for African subjectivities and the possibilities emerging in its wake. He offers a rich analysis of the postcolonial moment that points toward new liberatory models of community, humanity, and planetarity. Mbembe criticizes the blinders of European intellectuals and develops a new reading of African modernity that further develops the notion of Afropolitanism. Out of the Dark Night reconstructs critical theory's historical and philosophical framework for understanding colonial and postcolonial events and expands our sense of the futures made possible by decolonization.

Format: Hardback
Length: 280 pages
Publication date: 19 January 2021
Publisher: Columbia University Press

Achille Mbembe, a renowned scholar, stands as one of the foremost critics of colonialism and its enduring impacts. He has played a pivotal role in the emergence of a new wave of French critical theory, offering profound insights into the complexities of decolonization and the transformative possibilities it presents. In his seminal work, Out of the Dark Night, Mbembe delves into a rich analysis of the paradoxes of the postcolonial moment, pointing towards innovative models of community, humanity, and planetarity.

Through a nuanced examination of the African experience, Mbembe makes sweeping interventions into critical debates surrounding citizenship, identity, democracy, and modernity. He skillfully traverses the boundaries of European and African thought, providing a robust assessment of shared ways of writing and thinking about the world. Mbembe's critique extends to the blinders of European intellectuals, highlighting France's failure to heed postcolonial critiques of ongoing exclusions disguised by pretenses of universalism. He develops a novel interpretation of African modernity, further advancing the concept of Afropolitanism, a unique way of being in the world that has emerged in the aftermath of decolonization in Africa, amidst the destruction and the birth of new societies.

Out of the Dark Night serves as a reconstruction of critical theory's historical and philosophical framework for understanding colonial and postcolonial events. It broadens our understanding of the futures made possible by decolonization, offering a transformative vision for a more inclusive and equitable world. Achille Mbembe's intellectual prowess and unwavering commitment to social justice make him a leading figure in contemporary thought, whose insights continue to inspire and shape our understanding of the past and the possibilities for the future.

Weight: 600g
Dimension: 237 x 160 x 25 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780231160285