Wings of desire: Reflections on sexual desire, identity and freedom

This article engages Abraham Olivier's recent distinction between 'being' and 'choosing to be' within his phenomenological approach to subjectivity in general and to African, communal subjectivity in particular. I recapitulate and problematize aspects of Olivier's reverse phenomenological analysis, briefly contrasting it with more orthodox African approaches to the ontology of the self. I then hone in on the distinction between being who I am and choosing to be who I am not. I argue that I can indeed choose to be who I am not, subject to the proviso that I cannot choose to be who I am. I close with some reflections on the moral significance of conscientiously choosing to be who I am not.

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Wings of desire: Reflections on sexual desire, identity and freedom

Cited by 2 publications

References 10 publications

Being Gay and African: A Contradiction in Being?

Being Gay and African: A Contradiction in Being?

Can I Choose to Be Who I Am Not?

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