Survival and Modernization, Ethiopia's Enigmatic Present: A Philosophical Discourse

by Messay Kebede

Survival and Modernization - Ethiopia's Enigmatic Present tackles the enigmatic question on Ethiopia's failure to modernize. The enigma springs from the absence in Ethiopia of the major deficiencies invoked to explain underdevelopment.
By combining sociological and political analyses with philosophical inquiries, the book attempts to explain how Ethiopia was driven into a wrong track through various historical detours, delays, indecisions, and uprootedness.

Genres: Ethiopia

483 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1998

Reviews

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

For Ethiopians, sometimes the act of discussion is more important than coming to an actual point. This is not the case with WASPy Americans like myself, so the act of reading and struggling with this book was sort of an act of cultural embrace in and of itself.

That being said, in many ways I appreciated all of the painstaking background the author laid out in order to explain "Ethiopia's Enigmatic Present". He discussed how the Ethiopian Orthodox Church is inextricably bound in politics and also holds the backbone of the culture and he speculated on how this relationship might be adapted with a growing Muslim population. He also gave a somewhat lengthy (for a political science treatise) overview of the history of Ethiopia, including a fascinating analysis of the Japanizers. It was also interesting how he related the various tribes in Ethiopia and their cultural differences and similarities to their role in society as a whole. The concept of idil [something like fate], which is central to Ethiopian culture, was discussed at length.

A general understanding of Ethiopian history and the various tribes in Ethiopia is helpful in the reading of this book. I enjoyed it, but I have a great interest in Ethiopia. I don't think folks without an interest or background knowledge of Ethiopia would get much out of it.