“Why spend several years and many pages examining honor when the problems of contemporary Africa are so often atttributed to lack of honor, to corruption and cruelty and greed? The contention here is that such thinking is mistaken. Human beings seldom do things they believe to be wrong. They do wrong things because they believe them to be right. That is why honor is so important. It is an immensely powerful motivator.â€Â — John Iliffe