Benedetta Lanfranchi
Postdoctoral Researcher, Philosophy and Genre Project
Benedetta Lanfranchi is a world philosopher based in Rome, specialising in African and comparative philosophy. She teaches ethics and political thought at the American Universities of Rome and Florence. As a postdoctoral researcher on the ERC-funded project Philosophy and Genre: Creating a Textual Basis for African Philosophy at the University of Bayreuth, her work examines freedom and intellectual agency in East African digital spaces.
She is the author of Philosophies of Justice in Acholi (2025) and co-editor of Critical Conversations in African Philosophy (Routledge, 2022). Under the framework of Philosophy and Genre, she is developing her second monograph, Digital Intellectuals: Fighting for Freedom in Uganda. Her research explores the intersections of philosophy, politics, and digital culture, highlighting how online discourse shapes ethical and emancipatory practices in Africa.
Her recent publications include “Hegemony in the Shadow of Post-reality: Locating Common Sense in the Digitalocene” (International Gramsci Journal, 2025); “Stella Nyanzi: A Digital Biography” (Kervan, 2025); “A New Approach to African Philosophy: A Critique” (Philosophia Africana, 2023); “Rethinking World Philosophies from African Philosophy” (Journal of World Philosophies, 2023); and “Le sfide dell’egemonia: ieri e oggi” (Materialismo Storico, 2023).
≣ Publications
≣ Peer-Reviewed Articles
≣ “Hegemony in the Shadow of Post-reality: Locating Common Sense in the Digitalocene.” (2025)
Author(s): Benedetta Lanfranchi
Published in: International Gramsci Journal, 6 (2) (forthcoming December 2025)
Publisher: International Gramsci Society
DOI: —
→ forthcoming
Abstract: This article investigates how hegemony operates in the digital age by reinterpreting Gramsci’s concept of “common sense.” Lanfranchi theorizes the “Digitalocene” as a new epoch of mediated consciousness, examining how online realities reshape cultural production, power, and philosophical engagement.
≣ “Stella Nyanzi: A Digital Biography.” (2025)
Author(s): Benedetta Lanfranchi
Published in: Kervan – International Journal of Afro-Asiatic Studies, 29 (2): 153–169
Publisher: University of Turin
DOI: —
→ https://ojs.unito.it/index.php/kervan/article/view/11895/9780
Abstract: A biographical and philosophical exploration of Ugandan scholar-activist Stella Nyanzi’s digital presence, this article examines how her online interventions blend satire, performance, and resistance. Lanfranchi interprets Nyanzi’s activism as a form of lived philosophy confronting patriarchy, censorship, and authoritarian power.
≣ “A New Approach to African Philosophy: A Critique.” (2023)
Author(s): Benedetta Lanfranchi
Published in: Philosophia Africana, 22 (1): 1–9
Publisher: Pennsylvania State University Press
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5325/philafri.22.1.0001
→ https://doi.org/10.5325/philafri.22.1.0001
Abstract: This paper offers a critical response to emerging methodological trends in African philosophy. Lanfranchi argues for a contextual and interdisciplinary approach that recognizes the importance of language, culture, and form, pushing African philosophy beyond traditional academic boundaries.
≣ “Rethinking World Philosophies from African Philosophy.” (2023)
Author(s): Benedetta Lanfranchi
Published in: Journal of World Philosophies, 7 (2): 26–41
Publisher: Indiana University Press
DOI: —
→ https://scholarworks.iu.edu/iupjournals/index.php/jwp/article/view/5881/491
Abstract: This article argues that African philosophy provides an essential vantage point for reimagining the scope of “world philosophies.” Lanfranchi examines how African philosophical discourse challenges Eurocentric categories, proposing new frameworks for pluralism, dialogue, and intellectual decolonization.
≣ “Le sfide dell’egemonia: ieri e oggi.” (2023)
Author(s): Benedetta Lanfranchi
Published in: Materialismo Storico, 2: 238–241
Publisher: Edizioni Punto Rosso
DOI: —
→ https://journals.uniurb.it/index.php/materialismostorico/article/view/3668/3210
Abstract: This Italian-language essay examines continuities between classical and contemporary forms of hegemony. Drawing on Gramscian theory, Lanfranchi reflects on the shifting dynamics of power, ideology, and resistance across political and cultural contexts.
≣ Book Chapters
≣ “African versus Western Time or Philosophies of Time? Exploring the Possibilities of Philosophical Dialogue across African and Western Traditions of Thought.” (2022)
Author(s): Benedetta Lanfranchi, Alena Rettová, Miriam Pahl
Published in: Critical Conversations in African Philosophy: Asixoxe – Let’s Talk
Publisher: Routledge
DOI: —
Abstract: This chapter explores cross-cultural understandings of time in African and Western traditions. Through comparative analysis, Lanfranchi examines how African philosophical notions of temporality challenge Western metaphysical assumptions and open possibilities for dialogue, mutual transformation, and plural conceptions of philosophical reasoning.
≣ “‘Does this mean that there is philosophy in everything?’ A Comparative Reading of Henry Odera Oruka’s First and Second Order and Antonio Gramsci’s First and Second Level Philosophy.” (forthcoming)
Author(s): Benedetta Lanfranchi,
Published in: Legacy of Henry Odera Oruka’s Sage Philosophy Project (forthcoming edited volume)
Publisher: Lexington Books
DOI: —
→ forthcoming
Abstract: This contribution compares Oruka’s sage philosophy with Gramsci’s theory of intellectual praxis, arguing for a shared concern with the social grounding of philosophy. It highlights how both thinkers bridge scholarly and lived knowledge, illuminating philosophy as a dialogical practice rooted in human experience.
≣ Monographs
≣ Philosophies of Justice in Acholi. (2025)
Author(s): Benedetta Lanfranchi
Published in: —
Publisher: Indiana University Press
DOI: —
→ https://iupress.org/9780253073990/philosophies-of-justice-in-acholi/
Abstract: This monograph examines Acholi conceptions of justice in northern Uganda following decades of civil war. Drawing on local philosophies and traditional reconciliation mechanisms, Lanfranchi explores how moral, communal, and spiritual dimensions of justice inform post-conflict reconstruction and broader debates on ethics and responsibility in African philosophy.
≣ Digital Intellectuals: Fighting for Freedom in Uganda. (in progress)
Author(s): Benedetta Lanfranchi
Published in: under the framework of Philosophy and Genre: Creating a Textual Basis for African Philosophy
Publisher: forthcoming
DOI: —
→ forthcoming
Abstract: This forthcoming monograph investigates how Ugandan intellectuals and activists use digital platforms as philosophical spaces of resistance. It traces how online narratives, satire, and creative expression articulate struggles for freedom, offering new perspectives on digital-era ethics, political thought, and African intellectual history.