“CRISIS OF MEANING” IN CONTEMPORARY ACADEMIC CULTURE IN NIGERIA: A CONCEPTUAL ANALYSIS

Abstract

The term ‘crisis’ is often narrowly understood as a negative and somewhat threatening phenomenon. It connotes an accidental and possibly unwanted variable that could be disruptive of the status quo. But there may be more than meets the eye. Can there be something positive about crisis? Employing the philosophical method of analysis and phenomenology, the present work does a critical analysis of the concept of “crisis of meaning” as it relates to the contemporary academic culture in Nigeria. The focus is on the public tertiary institutions. The aim is to determine how sustainable the concept is. Prima facie, the crisis of meaning in contemporary academic culture may be negatively perceived as disruptive interference and deviation from the core mandate of the educational institutions. Conversely, on a closer examination, it is discovered that crises, if properly resolved, can ultimately engender positive development. Crisis of meaning in academic culture usually springs from exigencies in our institutions which include the demands for change and improvement on the status quo. Similarly the concept of meaning is not iron-cast. It is rather situated and contextual. The search for meaning is a continuous process. This is an inevitable aspect of the human condition. On this note, the work argues that the crisis of meaning in the contemporary Nigerian academic culture should not be understood solely in an absolutely negative and static manner rather as a balanced, relative and dynamic process that can yield positive creative transformation. This is a more comprehensive and sustainable conceptualization that can make for better appreciation of the challenges bedeviling our academic institutions. The paper submits.