HIS 350L/AFR 372G: African Travel Narratives
Prof. Osseo-Asare
Office: Garrison Hall (basement) Room 112
Office Hours: Thursdays 1-3 pm
Questions? Please put questions on class Canvas discussion board first
Email: (osseo@utexas.edu) - label all emails in subject line with HIS 350L
Description.
This course examines histories of Africa and travel through eyewitness accounts. Course
participants will study journeys Africans have made within and from the continent alongside
accounts of travelers visiting Africa from elsewhere. These travelers included migrant laborers,
market women, Peace Corps volunteers, enslaved individuals, soldiers, political activists, adopted
children, and religious evangelists since the 18th century.
The course readings and films focus on different groups of travelers in a number of time periods.
Some of the guiding questions we will consider:
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How did people experience the movement of their bodies from one location to another?
How has ‘Africa’ taken on different meanings for our travelers?
What do their narratives indicate about changing conceptions of ethnicity, migration,
tourism, citizenship, and the environment in different time periods?
And how did shifts in medical, transportation, and communication technologies shape
their journeys?
Requirements:
Open to all interested participants. Assignments include attendance and class participation
(40%), two oral/written reports on readings (10% each), and a short research paper (40%) due
December 12 at 4 pm. Excused absences require 24 hr advance notice and a physician’s
statement. Unexcused absences will result in the drop of a half a letter grade.
Course Goals:
Participants in this course will have the opportunity to:
 improve reading comprehension
 improve knowledge of African history
 improve historical research skills
 improve writing skills
 improve oral presentation skills
All participants are welcome to stop by my office hours:
Thursday 1 pm – 3 pm in Garrison Hall 0.112 (basement level)
Flags:
This course is designated as fulfilling the requirements for a Global Cultures Flag. At least
one third of the course content requires an in-depth examination of the broader cultural
context and perspectives of one or more non-U.S. communities, countries, or coherent
regional groupings of countries, past or present.
It is also designated as fulfilling the requirements for a Writing Flag. At least one third of the
course grade depends on writing. Course participants will produce regular written projects
and receive feedback on their writing assignments from the instructor.
Readings:
available at the campus bookstore
Teju Cole, Every Day is For the Thief (Random House, 2014)
Joseph Congrad, Heart of Darkness (Penguin, 1999, orig 1902)
Tete-Michel Kpomassie, An African in Greenland (New York Review Books, Classics, orig. 1981)
Abdulrazak Gurnah, Desertion (Random House 2005)
George Packer, The Village of Waiting (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2001, orig 1984)
Online resources (additional readings on Canvas course website)
Hillare Belloc and Basil Temple Blackwood, The Modern Traveller (1898, FREE download from
Google Books)
BBC country profiles http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/country_profiles/default.stm
Films:
Excerpts to be watched in class
Nollywood Babylon (2008)
Steven Spielberg (dir.), Amistad (Dreamworks, 1998) 155 mins.
Osuofia in London (Nollywood, 2003)
Jon Shenk and Megan Mylan (dir.), Lost Boys of Sudan (New Video Group, 2003) 87 mins.
Study Strategies:
This is a reading-intensive course. At the end of the semester, participants will also have the
opportunity to apply what they have learned about historical narratives and primary sources in a
short final paper.
Learning to read efficiently is an important skill that may take time for you to develop. The main
thing to realize is that everyone reads and comprehends material differently. Someone may need
a 5 hour solid block of time to read 200 pages and best retain the information if they type up
careful notes as they read. Another person may need many 20 minute time blocks and best
remember the material if they highlight and underline the text as they go. Advanced students may
find that they can read a monograph over a couple of hours, jot down a few questions for class
discussion, and remember the critical points in their head.
A note on films: During the course of the semester, we will watch several films and
documentaries about migration. Take notes while watching these films, noting time code of
interesting scenes and dialogue.
Discussion Strategies:
The primary way for me to know how much you get out of the readings is to listen to your
comments and questions in class (worth 40%). Therefore, it is critical that you speak up and join
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in the discussion! You may find it helpful to jot down a few ‘talking points’ that you wish to bring
up in class, and note key page numbers of parts you found interesting.
Oral/Written Reports
All participants will choose two weeks to make a 3 minute oral report at the start of class. They
will also submit a 2 page written discussion of major themes in all of the readings for that week at
the end of class. You may choose to work with other participants who select that week, or work
alone. Each participant is responsible for their own written discussion.
Final Research Paper
One of the best ways to improve your historical writing is to read a variety of first-person accounts
from different time periods. This will allow you to reflect on changes over time and the ways that
people in different contexts witnessed African societies. Your experience in the class will
culminate in a 10-12 page research paper. You will have the opportunity to select a travel
narrative of your choice and write an essay about the person’s experience travelling to/from/within
Africa. You can add background information on the historical conditions in the countries that the
writer visits using newspaper reports and history books. We will discuss your proposed narrative,
paper outline, and drafts in class.
Grading Scale
A
AB+
B
B-
C+
77-79%
C
73-76%
C70-72%
D
69-60%
Failing: Below 60%
93-100%
90-92%
87-89%
83-86%
80-82%
Syllabus (August 27 version – subject to change):
Week 1
Aug 27
Week 2
Sep 3
Introduction
Thinking About Travel and Africa
Shattuck (1935), Handbook of Travel – excerpt*
Option 1: Go on a Local ‘Travel’ Experience and visit a nearby African
restaurant. You can use your ID to ride metrobus alone or with a friend.
Read the BBC country profile relating to the country you ‘visit’ and write
a two paragraph description of your experience. I recommend:
Wasota African Cuisine (2323 S Lamar Blvd) – Nigerian Fusion
http://www.wasotacuisine.com/
Aster’s Ethiopian Restaurant (2804 N I-35).
http://www.astersethiopian.com/
Option 2: Watch several youtube videos set in an specific African
country and write a two paragraph description of your experience. Read
the BBC country profiles relating to the country you 'visit.'
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Week 3
Sep 10
Middle Passages
Olaudah Equiano (1794; 2001), The Interesting Narrative of Olaudah
Equiano or Gustavus Vassa, The African, Written by Himself,
edited by Werner Sollors *
“The Captured Africans of the Amistad,” (1839) New York Morning
Herald Oct 4 (online)
“A Portrait of Cinque,” (1984) Connecticut Historical Society Bulletin,
vol. 49, pp. 30-51*
Film: Spielberg, Amistad (1998) 152 mins. (We will watch excerpts in
class.)
Week 4
Sep 17
Explorations
The African Association and the Niger Problem, 1788-1820*
Henry Morton Stanley (1878), Through the Dark Continent: Or, the
Sources of the Nile around the Great Lakes of Equatorial Africa
and down the Livingstone River to the Atlantic Ocean* - excerpt*
Mary H. Kingsley (1897), Travels in West Africa - excerpt*
Campbell (2006), “Mundele Ndom [on William Henry Sheppard]” in
Middle Passages: African American Journeys to Africa, 17872005*
Josiah Tyler (1891), “The Sabbath at Esidumbini” in Forty years Among
the Zulus*
Week 5
Sep 24
A Classic
Conrad (1902), Heart of Darkness
“Congo” and “Democratic Republic of Congo” on BBC country profiles
Week 6
Oct 1
Re-writing Conrad
Gurnah (2005) Desertion
“Tanzania” on BBC country profiles
Week 7
Oct 8
War and Education Abroad (other readings TBA)
E.E. Sabben-Clare (1954), “African Troops in Asia,” African Affairs*
Soyinka (1960), “Telephone”*
Soyinka (1967), “Of the Road” from Idanre and Other Poems*
Fafunwa (2003), To America and Back Alive! – excerpt*
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Week 8
Oct 15
An African Anthropologist
Kpomassie (1981), An African in Greenland
“Togo” on BBC country profiles
Week 9
Oct 22
A Peace Corp in Togo
Packer (1984), The Village of Waiting
“Togo”, “Benin”, “Nigeria”, and “Ivory Coast” on BBC country profiles
Week 10
Oct 29
Wanderings in Lagos
Cole (2014), Every day is for the Thief
Film in class: Nollywood Babylon
Assignment (due in class): Write a 4 sentence description of the
Travel narrative you plan to use for your final paper. Explain how you
found it and why you think it fits well with course themes.
Week 11
Nov 5
Africans in London
Gurnah (2001), By The Sea, pp. 1-39*
Eshun (2005), Black Gold of the Sun: Searching for Home in Africa and
Beyond, pp. 57-94*
Week 12
Nov 12
Film (excerpts shown in class): Osuofia in London
Returns
Hartman (2007), Lose Your Mother: A Journey Along the Atlantic Slave
Route – excerpt*
Campbell (2006), Middle Passages: African American Journeys to
Africa, 1787-2005 – excerpt*
Radio: NPR interview with Saidiya Hartman
Assignment (due in class): Make a list of 6 other sources you plan to
use to write your final paper (newspaper articles, scholarly journal
articles, websites, books, films). Write a one sentence description for
how each source helps you better understand your travel narrative
Week 13
Nov 19
Arrivals
Adiche (2001), “You in America” link
Deng et al (2005), They Poured Fire on Us from the Sky: The True
Story of Three Lost Boys from Sudan – excerpt *
Film: Shenk (2003), Lost Boys of Sudan 87 mins
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Week 14
Nov 26
Week 15
Dec 3
Week 16
Dec 10
Paper discussions
Paper discussions
Study week
Short Paper (10 -12 pages) due on Canvas by 4 pm Dec 12
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