The Survival of The Superman Dream in Hypermodern Society:The African Anthropological Response Between Finitude and Gbɛtɔnyǐnyǐ

Abstract: This paper responds to the theme: "Transhumanism and AI: The Survival of the Superman Dream in Hypermodern Society." The central argument is simple: the idea of the "superman" is a dream and it will remain a dream for as long as humanity exists. The belief that modernity could last forever is equally a utopia, and the 21st century is making that clear. The key question explored here is: Can human beings stop being human? To answer this, the paper shifts the focus back to what it means to be human drawing on the African philosophical concept of Gbɛ̌tɔ́nyǐnyǐ, a term that captures both the reality of being alive in the world and the deep meaning of human existence. The argument is that contemporary philosophy, by rejecting the old "master and conqueror" view of humanity, now calls us to acknowledge our finitude our inescapable limitsas the foundation of what it means to be human. Rather than seeing transhumanism and AI as threats, we should channel human creativity back toward its true essence.