Q0623
“The whole system is founded on the notion of vital force. Pre-existing,…” — Léopold Sédar Senghor (lecture "On Négritude" (vital force ontology))
Verified English quotation. Primary source: lecture "On Négritude" (vital force ontology). Theme: being.
English
The whole system is founded on the notion of vital force. Pre-existing, anterior to being, it constitutes being.
Source and attribution
The archive attributes this English wording to lecture "On Négritude" (vital force ontology) and files it under Africana Philosophy. That locator distinguishes the passage from loose internet attributions: readers can return to the named work or section to check translation, surrounding argument, and edition-specific wording.
About Léopold Sédar Senghor
Léopold Sédar Senghor (1906–2001) was a Senegalese poet, theorist of Négritude, and Senegal’s first president. With Césaire and Damas he forged a black cultural affirmation in French; his essays treat Négritude as an ontology and aesthetics of vital force as well as a politics of cultural rendezvous.
How to read this passage
Across 4 recurring voices here (notably Paul Tillich and Avicenna), being is framed through Africana Philosophy and Religious Existentialism. Some passages define being; others warn how it fails; still others relocate it inside habit, community, or language. This passage enters that discussion through being, nature.
Concepts in this quote
- Being
- Being appears in this archive as a live philosophical concern—not a slogan. These verified English passages show how thinkers treat being as a problem of judgment, practice, or explanation.
- Nature
- Philosophy quotes about nature ask what the cosmos is, how humans belong in it, and whether “natural” can guide ethics or politics.
How to cite this quotation
APA: Léopold Sédar Senghor. (n.d.). The whole system is founded on the notion of vital force. Pre-existing, anterior to being, it constitutes being. In Philosophy Blind Box. https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0623
MLA: Léopold Sédar Senghor. “The whole system is founded on the notion….” Philosophy Blind Box, https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0623.
Chicago: Léopold Sédar Senghor. “The whole system is founded on the notion….” Philosophy Blind Box. Accessed 2026. https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0623.
Frequently asked questions
What is the source of the quotation “The whole system is founded on the notion…”?
The passage is attributed to Léopold Sédar Senghor, lecture "On Négritude" (vital force ontology). The archive attributes this English wording to lecture "On Négritude" (vital force ontology) and files it under Africana Philosophy. That locator distinguishes the passage from loose internet attributions: readers can return to the named work or section to check translation, surrounding argument, and edition-specific wording.
What does Léopold Sédar Senghor mean by being?
Across 4 recurring voices here (notably Paul Tillich and Avicenna), being is framed through Africana Philosophy and Religious Existentialism. Some passages define being; others warn how it fails; still others relocate it inside habit, community, or language. This passage enters that discussion through being, nature.