Thursday, February 21, 2013
Africa: Perceptions, Historiography, & Imperialism
Over the past several class periods we've examined perceptions and misperceptions about Africa, geographic and cultural diversity in Africa, the historiography of Africa, and imperialism in Africa. In a comment to this post, describe how your understanding of Africa has expanded AND identify questions that still need to be answered in our studies.
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I have learned that, before European colonialism, there were many great kingdoms in Africa. I learned how harshly Europeans treated Africans during the colonial period. I have also learned the extent of modern slavery in Africa. Lastly, I have learned that many different ethnic groups were, and are, extremely racist.
ReplyDeleteI want to know what happened with Sudan. I know that it split into Sudan and South Sudan, but i have no idea of the current status of either country.
My understanding of Africa has changed immensely. Before I believed Africa was a desolate nation filled with poor hungry people. I thought the white colonists that moved to Africa came to help while in fact they made a great nation into a continent ravaged by hunger and famine. Despite the large amount of grief in Africa some regions still remain to be rich and lavish. It seems with some aid from Western nations and a little bit of hope will be able to return the continent to its past glory. Some questions that still boggle my mind include: Are corrupt African leaders still in power today? Approximately how long will Africa remain in its weakened state.
ReplyDeleteI used to believe that pre-colonial Africa just consisted of tribes and large animals. However, I learned that pre-colonial Africa was home to many great civilizations. It was and still remains home to many natural resources. Also, I was never informed on all of the imperialism that took place in Africa. Every country was invaded by a foreign country. Today in Africa, people struggle to survive because the imperialists left the African countries with almost nothing. The countries were left to fend for themselves, and in some countries dictatorship arose.
ReplyDeleteIt seems like we have been focusing on what Africa lacks, but what positive things does this continent have to offer?
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ReplyDeleteMy understanding of Africa has expanded because I learned that Africans were not a primitive race, but actually had the smartest and greatest civilizations before European colonialism. Another thing I learned was that when Europeans invaded Africa, they divided it up amongst themselves without letting Africa say anything in the matter. They said this was to help the Africans, but instead they started a history of oppression and slavery in Africa. I also learned that things have been very bad in Africa since the end of colonialism and there is constant fighting and terror in regions of Africa. In our study, we still need to identify if anything good is coming out of Africa since the end of colonialism, since I have not heard any stories of success yet.
ReplyDeleteMy understanding of how diverse Africa is has changed a lot from the beginning of the class. I realized how, yes, their are tribes of people, but there are also many well-developed cities. In addition, I found out that are are hundreds of different languages which I hadn't previously known. Furthermore, I finally understood the fighting and the wars taking place in Africa right now. I discovered what they were rebelling against or what cause they were willing to take up arms for. Moreover, I discovered that the misconception that Africa is covered by mostly desert is untrue. Africa does have deserts, but it also has rainforests, grasslands, and other fertile land. Lastly, I learned about all the racism that exists between African countries and even within one country. One question that still has yet to be answered is what is the rest of the world doing to help Africa end all these violent struggles? What role does the U.S. play within these countries?
ReplyDeleteI have learned that Africa isn't all about mud huts and poor black people. I assumed that the people who lived in Africa lived by the animals like the elephants and giraffes. I now know that most of the African's don't even see elephants or giraffes in their lifetime of living in Africa. I learned that some of these people are in war and are struggling everyday. Before learning about Africa I thought that they were just very superstitious and all lived in little villages. I called them names like natives and being exotic. I thought Africa just had one native language. I learned that they have 1,100 languages that are spoken in Africa. I thought that Africa was just one big area of dirt. I learned now that the grassland and savanna areas mostly make up Africa. Deforestation and eroding of soil is occurring from people cutting fire wood for fuel. I would still like to know what kind of work they do to allow themselves to survive and how long it takes them. I know that they have a lot of skills and I just want to expand my knowledge on what those skills are.
ReplyDeleteBefore learning about Africa, I had the misperception that Africa was full of desert and there were only tribes. I now know that Africa is more than that. It does actually contain cities and groups other than just natives. I also learned that one reason African countries have poor government is colonialism. After the African countries gained independence from European countries, they were left with needing to form their own government. This led to misgovernment and poverty. I would still like to know about how all of these civil wars started in parts of Africa.
ReplyDeleteBefore expanding my knowledge, I admit that I grew up learning the stereotypes of Africa. Both culturally and in geography, I had misconceptions to the ways of Africa. Now, my knowledge has expand greatly, and I understand that many if not all of the stereotypes of Africa were mislead and false. For example, the stereotype that Africa is made up of small huts and ethnic tribes only is false because there are multiple large cities, with civilization. After watching the videos from the Africa Regional Study, and the documentaries from class, I do not quite understand exactly all the powers that have been dominating other countries, and why they are in the positions that they are in. I also don't understand why some things that were once valuable, and are now not. (The gold for bread was interesting, where money had virtually no value anymore.)
ReplyDeleteIn this unit, I've learned that Africa was once one of the more developed places of its time before colonialism took place. I've also learned that European colonialism brought segregation, discrimination, and oppression on the African people. This caused what we call nationalism, which sparked a revolution against the oppression to gain African independence. I learned the difference between colonialism and imperialism and how they have affected Africa and its road to independence. I learned Africa's history and its influence on today's world, as it teaches the pros and cons of colonialism and that Africa has useful natural resources that are fought for. I have also learned more about the countries, capitals, and geographic features of Africa in this unit. I still want to know why countries collapse when their independence is gained. I also want to know why Africans were originally thought to be "inferior" compared to the caucasian Europeans that colonized there.
ReplyDeleteThrough all of the movies and articles my knowledge of Africa has grown, but it seems Africa itself has not. In each country, imperialism has left a scar on the government. Zimbabwe, seems like it has been affected the most. Seeing that there are epidemics of cholera and rape, and rape is not just a problem in Zimbabwe but all over the continent. We as America and other developed countries need to lead more support to these countries. The problem with this is that undeveloped countries need time to become a great nation. It did not take the United States over night to become a global power house. But as stated, we still need to help Africans. It doesn't need to be with the government, but with the health system and education. Educating children leads to being a global force. Also being educated there will be less rapes, and less pregnancies.
ReplyDeleteMy understanding of Africa has increased because I learned that Africa isn't necessarily how everyone perceived it. Africa was actually developing and on the right track to having stable economies, but the Europeans intervened anyways. The two main factors that drove the Europeans into Africa was their desire for the precious stones/metals and the lucrative slave trade. Many Africans were put under forced labor due to the greediness of the Europeans. There were many problems that rose from the imperialism and it caused violence and war among the angered villagers in areas of Africa. I also learned that the colonialization still has an affect on Africa today. I also learned that there are many different cultures in the different regions of Africa. Each of these cultures have different traditions that set them apart from one another. There are also many different geographic regions ranging from being in a flat desert, a thick rainforest, to high up in the mountains.
ReplyDeleteAt first I thought Africa was made up of tribes and people that lived without any sort of government. My knowledge of Africa has expanded by learning that Africa still has a lot of developing countries. These countries were once colonies of European nations and are just recently becoming independent countries. Being governed by another country made the countries of Africa have a rough start. The countries have horrible economies and most people live in poverty and many are struck with diseases.
ReplyDeleteMy understanding of Africa has expanded and I have learned that Africa is not the unpleasant, famine country with no technology that the media makes it seem. Africa has cities like America, and other countries. Some parts are as the media makes it seem but for the majority Africa does have successful cities. By the medias standards, Africans are shown to be weak, but Africans are actually very strong people. Like in the film we watched, they boycotted what they believed in. Africans are also very strong to be going through some of the bombings that they are. This understanding of how weak the country of Africa is false and people need to truly be educated with facts before the media overtakes our minds. I still would like to know why some of Africa is in such poverty, and is seen as so weak?
ReplyDeleteMy understanding of Africa has been expanded greatly. I now know about and understand the problems many countries are facing over there, Like the corrupt governments and about what is happening in Dafar. How many innocent people are being driven from their homes and being killed. I also learned about the different regions and different ethnic groups in Africa. Some of the groups live so close together but are extremely different. Some groups live in the same country but have totally different beliefs and totally different life styles.I understand now that Africa has always been mostly developed even before the Europeans arrived. Also that the Europeans had a huge effect on Africa's ethnic groups and their way of life. One question i have is why are some parts of Africa so poor and corrupt and why some parts are not.
ReplyDeleteMy past perceptions on Africa were that historically Africans were only very primitive, tribal people. It turns out that in history they actually had huge flourishing civilizations. These civilizations were very wealthy and many were very highly educated. I also believed that most people in Africa lived in small villages. I learned that more than half of the people in Africa live in cities. I was also unaware of how many european countries just went and divided up Africa amongst themselves. I thought it was interesting how Europeans thought it was there to duty to take over and colonize Africa. I also found out that many of the political problems in Africa can be traced back to and blamed on the colonialism and imperialism that took place in past.
ReplyDeleteIn our study we have only spent time on the negative and we still need to look at any positive things going on in Africa.
Over this course, my knowledge of Africa has expanded with new facts that I never knew. At the beginning my idea of Africa was a barren wasteland that inhabited tribes and unorganized groups. Little did I know that Africa was once a thriving hub of culture and knowledge. Africa is also home to many different types of geographic features from the Sahara dessert to the tropical rainforest of Madagascar. I was also ignorant enough to think that Africa was a bunch of tribes running around like wild animals. I learned about how civilized and knowledgeable they can be and the large number of diverse cultures that are in Africa. However, I am still curious about why there is still poverty and racism going on in Africa, and why no one is stepping in to help the people.
ReplyDeleteBefore learning about Africa, I thought that it was a vast region that was undeveloped. I also thought that there was a lot of violence and that most of the country was poor. However, after reading different articles about Africa, I realize now that it is actually a mineral rich continent. Africa has cities in certain areas, which I never knew about. However, I was correct in assuming that there was a lot of violence in different parts of the continent. For example, the Congo had a civil war and now the country is corrupt. The eastern region of the Congo has people that are armed and are not afraid to use their weapons. Also, it is awful that the Congo has high amounts of rape. The rebels in that country use rape as a weapon in their "war" with society. In a different state in the south, Zimbabwe has become a very poor country with sewage contaminating the water which in turn causes a cholera epidemic in the region. It is unfortunate that these people do not all have the proper facilities to treat their diseases, so many people have passed away. Another issue in Zimbabwe is that instead of using paper money, they must mine for gold just to get by and survive.
ReplyDeleteIn short, I realize that certain regions of Africa have prospered and cities have emerged. However, there are other parts of the continent that are in despair and need the help of other countries or of a stronger government to get them out of poverty. Something that was not yet discussed was, what different minerals does the continent transport out of the country?
I did not have the common prejudices of many Americans that Africa is homogeneous with tribes and mud huts scattered everywhere, to begin with. My awareness of the problems that malnutrition cause, such as a weakened immune system which leads one more susceptible to Cholera, has increased. These experiences in class have only broadened my views of the war-like battles going on in parts of Africa. Though I had knowledge of the extent of the bombing and marauding, I was initially unaware of the sheer amount of struggles that these peoples go through, such as having to leave dead/wounded family members behind to walk for days to a refugee camp. I was under the impression that government system to be much less troubled. There is much corruption in a multitude of different countries. Though I was aware of the technologically advanced societies during precolonial times, I was unaware of just how advanced they were. I still have some questions about the precolonial Africa, but many were answered during class.
ReplyDeleteThroughout this unit, my perception of Africa has drastically changed. Prior to this class, I had assumed the stereotypical theory of Africa to be true. I thought Africa was made up of all dessert, with minimal development, and nearly all black African Americans. However, I now know that there are developed regions of Africa. There are also cities and businesses. Not only is there development in Africa now, but also prior to the Europeans coming over. Africa had already had political figures and government structures set up without the assistance of other nations. Additionally, while I had assumed that the Europeans coming over was beneficial to Africa, it in fact wasn't in all aspects. Once the Europeans left, the also left behind many problems. For instance, the they had divided many of the countries for their own personal gain, and now the two halves are fighting. An example of this is the Mujahideen Arabs fighting against those in Darfur. Finally, I currently can not think of any questions.
ReplyDelete