Who I am and Where I come from?!

In my last post I talked about Ngugi's eassy on the abolition of the English department. When first reading that essay I thought that Ngugi was addressing the white European's, specifically I took it to address America. However, after our class discussion I realize that Ngugi is actually talking to Africans. This changed the way I interpreted the essay. I think I saw it as more of an attack against English literature and it most definitely was not. Ngugi isn't saying that English literature is bad and no one should read it. He is stating that English literature is great for that specific cultural and it isn't necessarily universally human in nature. Each culture, or country, is going to relate and connect with the writings and history of their own. This isn't to say that different cultures can't learn from one another. It just means that in order for this diversity to occur each culture must first be immersed in their own history and past so that they can then grow and learn from others.

I hope I'm getting this interpretation correct. I think this is a brilliant argument and I find it true in my own life. It is necessary for me to know who I am and where I come from and what my past history is in order for me to understand others. If I don't know who I am, how am I going to be able to relate and challenge those around me? Learning about yourself is important, and I know we are taught to put others first which is important as well, but before that can happen one must first look inside and figure out who that person is within themselves.