John Edward Philips, Ph.D.
Homo sum. Humani nihil alienum a me puto. -Terentius Afer
(There is no such thing as foreign studies.)
Ongoing Research:
(click
here if you have relevant information or want to know more)
Slavery
I thought that after the
elite slaves book was published I was done with slavery. For several reasons I was
wrong. It is too important a subject, not only for African (and American!) history,
but for humanity, our nature and evolution, to ignore. I published an article,
"Slavery as a Human Institution", in Afrika Zamani about some of the research I had been doing. I'm looking into evolutionary
psychology to try to understand the significance of slavery, and I'm also looking at the
perennial controversy over the profitability of slavery. It all has to do with understanding
what slavery is, and why it is so fundamental in human society.
The Zangon Kataf crisis and
the Kaduna riots
Several African friends
on both sides of this complex and tragic ethno-religious conflict sent
me information about it. I wrote a paper based on the information they
sent, and read it in Japan and Paris. It is being published in both
places as part of conference proceedings, but before sending it to
a journal I decided to read it to an African audience in close contact with the situation. When I read it at the
University of Jos members of the audience found it hard to believe that the paper was not based on field research. They were also impressed
with the strict neutrality I observed. Both Christians and Muslims urged me to come back and turn it into a book. If I can get funding
for a few months of dry season investigation I will.
Revolutions and theories
of social change [link to Santa Fe Institute]
I am collecting
information about self-organized criticality, catastrophe theory and
other theories of sudden change, to apply to social revolutions. I
have begun work on applying such theories to the study of a specific
revolution led by Islamic scholars in West Africa in the 19th century.
If you know of any other work related to the study of revolutions,
please send me a message.
BEST OTHER BOOK: Nikki R.
Keddie
Debating Revolutions
Area Studies in Japan
[link to Kyoto]
[link to Japan Center for Area Studies]
[link to ILCAA]
As a participant observer
in area studies (African, American and Middle Eastern) in Japan for over
a decade I have developed an interest in the nature, growth and development
of area studies in Japan. I also have a strong personal (not to mention
family) interest in promoting area studies in Japan, and in improving
its links with the outside world. This includes not only the areas of
study (e.g. Africa in the case of African studies) but scholars based
in other countries who are also studying the area in question. If you
would like to make contact with Japanese specialists in your field or
area of study, please contact me.
"African Studies
in Japan" appeared in the December, 1997 issue of
African Studies Review, official journal of the
African Studies Association in the U.S. An update appeared on H-Africa and was posted to their website on 14 August, 2001
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