Abstract

_In _Africa and the Metaphysical Empire_, Frank Aragnonfoh Abumere considers whether Africa can truly be said to be in a postcolonial phase. This is an ongoing question precisely because Africa is often described in ways that emphasize its colonial history rather than what Africa is and who Africans are apart from colonialism. Should Africans, in an effort to retain their authenticity, seek to cast off all western ways? Or is it sometimes permissible for Africans to engage in western cultural practices even as they are participating in decolonization work? In this review, I describe the intangible albeit impactful presence of a new kind of empire, the metaphysical empire that Abumere argues is still present in Africa. I also consider Abumere’s solution to the western/non-western tension in African culture, in which Abumere allows for some incorporation of western culture even as he argues for authenticity in African culture for Africans. _.