Abstract

This paper deploys Brouwer and Squires’ (2003) [Public intellectuals, public life, and the university. Argumentation and Advocacy, 39 (3), 201–213] concepts of ‘breadth’, ‘site/ location’ and ‘legitimacy’ as conceptual categories to frame and examine Stephen Chifunyise’s artistic and cultural practice of public intellectualism. Stephen Chifunyise’s artistic and cultural work spanned decades, working in Zimbabwe and Zambia, the academy and industry, and taking up consultancy and administration positions in government. This paper explores how this work by Chifunyise positions him as a public intellectual who shaped policy, ideological, epistemological and ontological foundations for cultural work, artistic training and development at the tertiary level, and policy formulation at a regional and continental level. This paper draws from several plays and theatre scripts, published research papers and policy documents to highlight the breadth, location and legitimacy of Chifunyise’s public intellectualism in Zimbabwe and Africa. This paper further submits that Chifunyise’s public intellectualism is located in how he uses his experiences in telling stories that speak to his environment and that of his publics’ lived existence, ways of experiencing and seeing and locatedness in the ‘village’.

Talk to us

Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have

Schedule a call

Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.