From L. Senghor:"What the Black Man Contributes"
Senghor explains the solution for political and social problems as the level of the tribe, rather than the kingdom. This traditional solution is one in which there is a division of labor. Senghor emphasizes the importance of division of labor rather than a hierarchy especially when addressing the linked issues of property and work. If there is no identifiable owner and no permanence in ownership nobody can claim control or command of the property but rather temporarily work to support and sustain it and themselves in turn.He explains this solution as the “humanist way” of solving the issue of property and work. When speaking of this humanist solution, it is interesting to note that Senghor comments “it is a solution that has matched, in advance, the ‘pluralist unity’ that remains the ideal of humanists today- at least, of those for whom humanism is not a sort of vain amusement for the cultivated man” This is differentiating the humanists from those who do not truly believe in the power of humanism but are instead interested in furthering their own image through the guise of goodwill. In this, they are not searching for a collective solution but a personal satisfaction.
QUOTES:
“the land, as well as all it bears-rivers, streams, forests, animals, fish, and so on- is a common good apportioned among the families, and even sometimes among family members, who have temporary, usufructuary ownership of it. Moreover, the means of production in general, and the tools for work in particular, are the common property of the family group or the guild” (292).
“As a result, ownership of agricultural and artisan products is collective, since the labor itself is collective” (292).
“Politics, it goes without saying, is closely related to the social. The latter is to the former as the artist’s hand is to his mind. it is a matter of organizing, maintaining, and perfecting the City, a matter of governing and legislating. To govern requires authority; to legislate requires wisdom. Both must return to their sources: to strive for the good of the communities, the people, and the City” (294).