How do political systems in Africa work? Is the "real" business of politics taking place outside the
scope of standard political analysis, in an informal, more-personalized setting? How are the prospect: for reform
and renewal in African societies affected by the emerging elite? Is "modernization" in Africa different?
Are there within African countries social, political, and cultural factors which abet the continuation of patrimony
and conspire against economic development?
Relations of power between rulers and the ruled continue to influence the role of the state and the expectations
of the newly emphasized civil society. The question of identity, the resurgence of ethnicity and its attendant
tribal politics, the growing importance of African religions, and the increasing tendency to resort to extreme
and often ritualized violence in situations of civil disorder point to a process of "re-traditionalizing"
in African societies.
Table of Contents
I The Informalization of Politics
1. W(h)ither the State?
2. The Illusions of Civil Society
3. Recycled Elites
II The 'Re-traditionalization' of Society
4. Of Masks & Men: the Question of Identity
5. The Taming of the Irrational: Witchcraft & Religion
6. Crime & Enrichment: the Profits of Violence
III The Productivity of Economic 'Failure'
7. The Ab(use) of Corruption
8. The Bounties of Dependence
9. The (In)significance of Development
