Leibniz’s Monadology, African Communalism, and the Quest for Social Order in Africa

Abstract

This paper examines Leibniz’s monadology and the problems it poses for social order in Africa. Leibniz describes monads as self-sufficient, self-contained, perfect, independent, and individualistic entities. The monads, in Leibniz’s words, are windowless. As such, there is no relationship or communication among them. Consequently, a lack of cordial relationships, communication, unity, and cooperation in contemporary societies is responsible for many of the problems and disorders that ravage many African societies, especially Nigeria. Various issues, including terrorism, kidnapping, corruption, rape, and ritual killings, plague many societies across the continent. The main source of these problems stems from the monads’ perspective on society. These acts are perpetuated by narcissistic and egocentric individuals who fail to recognise the necessity for coexistence and cooperation, thus creating a socially disordered and disorganised environment that undermines humans’ hopes, aspirations, and desires to lead a good, meaningful, and fulfilled life. Consequently, a disordered society, characterised by violence, conflict, and similar challenges, results in underdevelopment, injustice, intolerance, and crises, among other issues. Social disorder thrives in a society that trivialises interrelationships, intersubjectivity, collectivity, solidarity, mutuality, cooperation, and inclusiveness among its people. The study, therefore, contends that the continuation of monadic existence among Africans amounts to an inevitable social disorder. The paper concludes by emphasising the necessity to embrace the communalistic values and virtues of traditional African society, where the self and the other are fused ontologically, epistemically, socially, and morally, to foster social order and development in Africa.