SERITHI/ISIDIMA: REFLECTIONS ON HUMAN DIGNITY IN SOUTH AFRICA FROM A BLACK AFRICAN1 PERSPECTIVE

This paper engages in a critical reflection on the notion of human dignity, whilst remaining aware of the notorious difficulty of defining dignity in a systematic way. The paper highlights the inherent historical tension and even contradictions regarding the concept, especially when viewed in the light of the experience of black Africans and the experience of colonization and oppression. The cosmological view of human dignity expressed by the metaphors of ‘serithi/isidima ’ is investigated and utilized to challenge certain contem-porary understandings of human dignity