TITLE:
The Nexus between Igbo Traditional Belief System and Masquerade Act: A Pragmatic Analysis
AUTHORS:
Innocent Ngangah
KEYWORDS:
Charles Peirce, Pragmatism, Igbo, Masquerade Act, Belief System, Culture
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Philosophy,
Vol.11 No.1,
January
4,
2021
ABSTRACT: This
paper explores the proposition that the traditional belief-system and
masquerade act of the Igbo of south-eastern Nigeria is a demonstration of
Charles Peirce’s pragmatism. Pragmatism’s central theme is that only practice
or action can validate the veracity or meaningfulness of any thought or
concept. In like manner, masquerade act or practice in Igbo land is, in many
respects, a manifestation of the traditional belief system of the Igbo (also
known as Ndi-Igbo). In other words, masquerade act in Igbo land correlates with
and validates a key concept communally shared by Ndi-Igbo, thus fulfilling the
ultimate goal of Peirce’s pragmatism and the pragmatic maxim, namely, that the
actual or potential consequence of a concept is the only true proof or validity
of that concept.