Africa in the World:
Historical Perspectives
Only Study Guide for
HSY1511
Department of History
University of South Africa
Pretoria
© 2020 University of South Africa
All rights reserved
Printed and published by the
University of South Africa
Muckleneuk, Pretoria
HSY1511/1/2021–2024
10001646
InDesign
HSY_Style
CONTENTS
Page
Introductionv
Learning unit 1: DOING HISTORY: HOW HISTORIANS
APPROACH THE PAST1
1.1
What is history?
2
1.2
Why study history?
4
1.3
How do we study and write history?
7
1.4
Historical writing about Africa
13
Learning unit 2: REPRESENTATIONS OF AFRICA18
2.1
Enlightenment philosophers, race and images of Africa
18
2.2
Images of Africans and the slave trade
24
2.3
European explorers and images of Africa
26
2.4
New generation of explorers and the image of Africa
28
2.5
Europeans’ perceptions of other societies
33
2.6
Image of Africa during colonial rule
34
2.7
The image of Africa in the Diaspora
38
2.8
Contemporary Africa and victimhood: poverty, HIV/
AIDS and corruption
40
Learning unit 3: POLITICAL TRANSFORMATION IN
AFRICA AND THE WORLD46
3.1
A brief introduction to the Enlightenment: Revolution
and Democracy
46
3.2
The Enlightenment in the 19th Century: The Abolition
of the Slave Trade and Imperialism
52
3.3
Totalitarianism60
3.4
Independence63
Learning unit 4: IDEOLOGICAL AND RELIGIOUS
CHANGE IN AFRICA AND THE WORLD69
4.1
Introduction70
4.2
The birth of liberalism
70
4.3
The spread of religion
72
4.4
Resistance to the spread of western ideologies
81
4.5
A contest between ideologies
86
4.6
Nationalism and decolonisation
90
4.7
Conclusion97
HSY1511/1(iii)
INTRODUCTION
(iv)
1
INTRODUCTION
Welcome to your studies in the Department of History, and in particular to this
module, entitled ‘Africa in the World: Historical Perspectives’ (HSY1511).
We hope that you will find the content of this module interesting and fulfilling, and
that it will stimulate you to ask questions about, and to study further, the historical
relationship between Africa and the world.
As you will see, Africa occupies an extremely important place in the history of the
world. There have also been extremely important shifts in thinking about Africa’s
place in the world in the last few decades.
It is perhaps unusual that the reasons for studying Africa should be explained and
defended. We seldom ask: why study Europe or the United States? This situation can
be ascribed to widespread pessimism (‘Afropessimism’) about the state and future of
Africa in a world which cherishes notions such as ‘progress’, ‘development’ and wealth.
Although there has been a great deal of uncertainty in the West since the financial
crisis of 2008 and 2009, and both the United States and Europe are experiencing far
less confidence than they did after the collapse of communism during the 1990s, the
United States, in particular, continues to see itself as the standard against which others
should be measured. In some ways, Africa remains the ‘other’, a continent that has
to become ‘civilised’ and ‘developed’ rather than possessing any dynamic qualities
of its own. Africa has often been seen as insignificant, or it has been dismissed as
‘the hopeless continent’.
There are several ‘practical’ reasons for studying Africa:
• As with any other area, the study of Africa can illuminate some of the most
•
•
•
important, universally relevant questions facing the world today – the relationship
between rich and poor, inequality, links between people and the environment,
conflict and peace.
The study of Africa can make us more aware of, and sensitive to, issues such as
ethnic identity, racial categories and cultural stereotyping.
It can alert us to the fact that knowledge is not always neutral, but often itself the
product of history. In the study of Africa, knowledge is often linked to power and
control. For example, as we will see, knowledge of Africa was used to support
and justify colonial control of the continent.
Research on Africa and African societies has profoundly influenced major
disciplines such as history, anthropology, and literature. The study of African
history has moved over the past three decades from the margins to the centre of
historical studies. Historians have become aware that Africans do not only write
their history; they tell, sing, produce (through dance and ritual), sculpt, and paint
their history. The methods and theory of the practice of African history have been
adopted to expand our understanding of other fields of history: for instance, early
modern European history, British history, colonial American history, African
American history, and women’s history. The intellectual basis of anthropology,
for example, was shaped by challenges raised in African research. Anthropology
HSY1511/1(v)
INTRODUCTION
•
•
was consolidated during the colonial era. The image of African communities has
been shaped by anthropologists’ own participation in the colonial enterprise. As
a result of their experience in Africa, anthropologists have begun questioning
their involvement in the creation of anthropological knowledge. The study of
Africa has also led to a questioning of basic concepts in the field of literature.
For example, what is the meaning of literature in societies without writing? And
what is the meaning of African literature when the texts are written in European
languages? Research in Africa has, then, both transformed our knowledge and
understanding of the continent itself, while at the same time it has increased our
awareness of the way in which knowledge is produced and organised. It has shed
light on the foundations of academic disciplines such as history and anthropology.
The study of Africa can help to supplement or contest the current image of
Africa as a doomed continent by focusing on a contending image of Africa as a
vibrant, resilient place where human populations have met formidable challenges
successfully for millions of years. It has the deepest of human history, a rich
cultural diversity and vast reservoirs of untapped natural resources.
The study of Africa can make us aware that history does not only deal with
progress and modernisation. In the 1960s, theorists of modernisation looked at the
‘forward march’ of the ‘Third World’. African, Asian, and Caribbean aspirations
to become more ‘modern’ were defined as more ‘Western’. Other societies were
expected to march toward the Western model. In 1992, the idea of modernisation
was revived by the Japanese American, Francis Fukuyama, in his book, The End
of History and the Last Man (New York, 1992). His view was that the relentless
march of history was toward a pluralistic, market-orientated, liberal-democratic
political order – the final achievement of human beings. All historical change,
and all modernisation, was toward the apex of democratic capitalism. He regarded
the ‘Second World’, that of failed communism, as evidence of the triumph of
the West. The model has been questioned by many, and recent developments in
Africa, for example, show that the three interrelated concepts of Westernisation,
modernisation and globalisation do not necessarily have validity at all. A study of
Africa and its place in the world can reveal the limitations of both the West and
Africa regarding expectations, communication and interaction.
PURPOSE AND OUTCOMES OF THIS MODULE
This module is offered in the Department of History at the first level of undergraduate
university study (or NQF Level 5).
The formal purpose statement of this module is as follows: ‘Qualifying students will
gain an understanding of major developments in the history of Africa and the world
from the 17th century to the early 21st century, and will also acquire an appreciation
of the critical place of Africa in the history of the world.’
Essentially, we hope that we will enable you to gain an understanding of some major
themes in the history of Africa and the world over the last four centuries, and come
to understand the important place of Africa in these developments. We aim to:
• develop an understanding of the historical roots of current African society
• acquire respect, appreciation and understanding of different societies, cultures
and points of view
(vi)
Introduction
• produce effective learning, analytical and critical skills which are appropriate to the
discipline of History and are transferable to other disciplines and other contexts.
Once you have worked carefully through the learning units and completed the
assignments and the examination successfully, you should have achieved the following:
(1)
Explain the difference between history and the past, through deriving a
basic understanding of the nature of different sources and the ways in which
historians approach, construct and represent the past.
Evidence shows that learners are able to:
• understand the difference between history and the past
• identify different primary and secondary sources that are used by historians
•
•
•
(2)
to construct the past
explain why different interpretations of the past exist and why history is
a contested subject
recognise different ways in which Africa and Africans have been represented
and characterised
demonstrate insight into the construction of race and the phenomenon of
racism in different historical contexts in Africa and the world.
Analyse debates and discourses pertaining to the political and economic history
of Africa and the world in approximately the past 400 years.
Evidence shows that learners are able to:
• demonstrate in broad outline a grasp of political change in Africa and the
•
•
(3)
world as a result of the emergence of nation states, imperialism, colonialism
and decolonisation
provide insight into industrialisation, technological change, developments
in communication and the distribution of, and access to, resources in Africa
and the world
discuss set case studies from African and world contexts related to political
and economic change.
Evaluate perspectives, debates and arguments pertaining to ideological and
religious change in Africa and the world in approximately the past 400 years.
Evidence shows that learners are able to:
• provide insight into ideological and religious exchanges and influences in
•
•
•
Africa and the world
demonstrate insight into reasons for perceptions of both ‘modern’
‘progressive’ societies and ‘primitive’ ‘backward’ societies
understand historical reasons why particular notions of modernity and
progress have tended to dominate historical studies
discuss set case studies from African and world contexts related to ideological
and religious change.
HSY1511/1(vii)
INTRODUCTION
(4)
Analyse debates and discourses pertaining to the historical construction of
gender and the lived experience of men and women in Africa and the world
in approximately the past 400 years.
Evidence shows that learners are able to:
• demonstrate insight into gender as a social and historical construct
• understand gendered domestic arrangements (the home, marriage and
•
•
patriarchy) in different African and world contexts
show insight into gendered interactions and expressions in public spheres
in different African and world contexts
discuss set case studies from African and world contexts related to historical
gendered relationships.
STUDY MATERIAL
When you register, you should receive Tutorial Letter 101 as well as study material
produced in the form of this tutorial letter, Tutorial Letter 501.
• Tutorial Letter 101 introduces you to your studies in this module. It contains
•
essential information about what is required, your work programme and your
assignments.
Tutorial Letter 501 contains the main material that your lecturers wish to convey
to you, and encourages you to participate actively in learning this material. This
material therefore contains varied activities, questions and exercises, as well as
some feedback, and you are expected to complete these tasks as you work through
the module.
If you were studying at a residential university, you would attend a set of lectures
and perhaps tutorials as well, conducted by lecturers and tutors. In a sense, Tutorial
Letter 501 is a set of ‘lectures’ and activities related to these ‘lectures’, similar to
lectures and tutorials in a residential university.
The study material in this Tutorial Letter 501 has been divided into three main learning
units. These are the main themes of the module, and form the module content:
• Each of the learning units has a particular central theme, and the material in that
•
•
•
(viii)
unit relates to that theme.
Every unit begins with a clear statement of the objectives of the learning unit,
telling you what knowledge you should master by the time you have completed
working through it.
There are also some skills you will develop and learn as you work through the
learning units, particularly through the activities which are situated within each
learning unit. The activities are designed to develop your reading and writing
skills, as well as your ability to select information and to organise it logically in
response to different kinds of questions.
Many of the activities have links to various internet sites and domains. The easiest
way to access these will be through the online site of this module, where all the
activities have also been placed. You will be able to click from the respective
activities straight to the respective site.
Introduction
We strongly urge you to access the module website regularly, which we use to enrich
the study material. In particular, we have created three additional learning units
which we believe you will find interesting and useful, and which will complement
the three main learning units in this tutorial letter. These learning units will not be
directly examined in assignments or the examination at the end of the semester, but
the material there will certainly add value to the work that you cover there. We will
post additional material that you will find worthwhile, and there will be discussion
forums where we will encourage you, guide you and hope to develop your learning
and understanding of the module’s content.
At the end of this tutorial letter, you will find a list of sources for further reading
and study. There is no prescribed book for this module, but you are encouraged to
consult further sources where possible. Most of the general published histories are
available in public libraries and bookshops, and all of the titles are available in the
Unisa library, although some are in short supply. The list of sources is very selective;
there are many good books and articles which are not listed. You are free to use any
books or resources available to you. When in doubt, consult your lecturers about
additional reading.
This Tutorial Letter 501 is fundamental to your studies. Its main aim is to guide you
through the syllabus of this module.
OVERVIEW OF THE CONTENTS OF THIS MODULE
We have divided the content of this module into three main learning units (Learning
Units 1 to 3, set out in this tutorial letter) and three additional learning units
(Learning Units 4 to 6, available online on the module’s website). Although we hope
that these divisions are logical and make sense, there is some overlap and regular
cross-referencing between them, and we trust that the learning units do contribute
to a more coherent whole.
• Learning Unit 1 is concerned with how history is constructed and produced.
•
•
•
Some understanding of this is essential for students who are embarking on a
study of history, as it underpins all historical knowledge. We thus explore the
difference between history and the past, the nature of sources used by historians
to construct the past, and methods used by historians to write and produce history,
particularly history in Africa.
Learning Unit 2 explores some of the main political developments that have
taken place over the last four centuries in relation to world and African history,
and considers particular case studies which highlight the different forms taken
by Enlightenment ideas and their impact on political transformation in different
societies.
In Learning Unit 3, ideological and religious change in Africa and the world
is explored over the past four centuries, again with appropriate case studies to
illustrate the significance of these factors in human history.
Learning Unit 4 indicates ways in which Africa and Africans have been portrayed
and represented mainly by outsiders to the continent during the past 400 years.
These representations have had considerable power, but have also been challenged,
particularly in more recent times, by Africans themselves.
HSY1511/1(ix)
INTRODUCTION
• Learning Unit 5 is concerned with major economic transformation over the
•
same period, in which industrialisation, technological change, developments
in communication and the distribution of resources in Africa and the world
affected different societies. There are also some important case studies to consider.
Learning Unit 6 focuses on the lived experience of men and women, and their
relationships with one another, over the past four centuries in Africa and the
world, in both public and private spaces. Case studies are also used to illustrate
some significant themes in gendered relationships.
It is our hope that these six learning units will illustrate different aspects of the main
theme of the module – the place of Africa in the world over the past four centuries
– and that the historical perspectives provided will stimulate you to further thinking
and reading around them.
(x)
1
LEARNING UNIT 1
1
Doing history: How historians
approach the past
LEARNING OUTCOMES
When you have completed this learning unit, you will be able to answer the
following questions:
• What is the difference between history and the past?
• What is the importance of studying history?
• What sources do historians use to study history?
• What different disciplines can help us to construct history?
• How do we study the history of Africa?
In this learning unit, we aim to provide you with an introduction to the subject, or
the discipline, that is called ‘History’. We will look briefly at what the subject entails,
the methods that historians use to produce ‘history’, and the different uses that
‘history’ can provide. We will also discuss how and why historians have interpreted
the past in different ways, and we will focus in particular on the construction of the
African past and how we can understand it and interpret it.
We will focus on the following main themes in this learning unit:
• What is history?
• Why do we study history?
• How do we study and write history?
• Historical writing on Africa
Learning activity 1.1
Spend a few minutes thinking about your understanding of what history is.
Also ask yourself: what are my reasons for studying history?
Make brief notes for yourself on the following questions:
(1)
What do you know about the history of Africa?
(2)
What perceptions do you have about African history?
(3)
What do you know about the history of Africa in relation to the world?
You almost certainly have some knowledge, or if you do not have knowledge, then
you have at least some perceptions, about the history of Africa.
(4)
Where has your knowledge and/or your perceptions been derived from?
What sources have informed you? Books? Newspapers? The Internet?
Television? Radio? People around you?
(5)
Do you think the sources that have informed you are reliable?
HSY1511/11

Think about your goals for this module.
(6)
Do you think that you can learn valuable things from a module on ‘Africa
and the world’?
(7)
What relevance could a module such as this have for your life today?
(8)
What is the importance of history for you as an individual?
Finally, think about your perceptions and your understanding of what history is.
1.1
(9)
Do you think that history is a body of facts to be memorised?
(10)
Is history a subject in which the truth can always be certain?
WHAT IS HISTORY?
Quite often in my life, as I am sure is the case with almost all of us, I meet new
people. A typical question that is asked from someone trying to connect with me,
or showing an interest in me, is: ‘What work do you do?’ I reply to them, ‘I teach
history’ or ‘I’m an historian’. Sometimes a person will ask more about this, or show a
genuine interest, even excitement; but common responses can also be more negative
or even confused. Comments can include ones such as the following:
• ‘That is my worst subject, because there are so many facts’; or
• ‘History is so boring, all those people and events just make me tired’; or
• ‘What is the point of knowing what happened long ago; I am much more interested
•
in things happening around me now’; or
‘I suppose that nothing new ever happens in your field’.
There are, of course, many other possible responses, but this range of responses can
reveal that people think very differently about the past and its place in our world.
Some think that it is genuinely very important and very exciting, while others perceive
history to be dull, full of facts, and has little or no meaning. Many also think that
history never changes: that it is no more than a defined collection of events.
Simply put, history is the study of human society in the past. Human society is never
the same, however, so history is also very crucially concerned with how and why
societies have changed over time. Let us explore this in a little more depth.
History as a systematic study of the past
History is a subject or discipline with its own method, which looks specifically at
the past and the developments which took place. History is also about how people
organised their lives in the past. It focuses on the life styles of groups of people. It is
the study of patterns of work and settlement, developments in technology, systems
of social interaction and political organisation, and of how people’s cultures and
religious beliefs have changed their societies. It is therefore an extremely broad
subject, which encompasses the full range of human activity.
History is not just a collection of facts about the past. Rather it is a story of how the
world of today has come to be the way it is. What history does is to record the lives
and experiences of people in the past and how their struggles and achievements have
shaped our present society.
2
LEARNING UNIT 1: Doing history: how historians approach the past
The difference between the past and history
We must, however, make a distinction between a sense of the past, which we all
experience, and history, which has to be consciously produced. In the process of
systematically studying the past, historians reconstruct or recreate history by using
evidence. This can come from a wide variety of sources, such as contemporary
documents, diaries, letters, and travellers’ accounts, but also from oral traditions of
people, material remains, and artefacts. All of these depict some aspects of the past.
In a sense, therefore, historians assemble a particular version of the past when
they write history. The past is what actually happened, and history is an attempt to
reconstruct what happened.
Historians and history
All historians write from their own particular point of view. What they write is largely
determined by their own background – their values, their social and political situation,
and their experiences. For the most part, historians look back on a past that they
have not lived through themselves, and therefore they have to establish how people
lived in the past. Because historians are part of the present, their understanding of
the past is influenced by their present circumstances and the contemporary concerns
of the society in which they live.
It can be claimed, therefore, that historians stand between us and what actually
happened in the past. Consequently, they shape history to a considerable degree.
Historians certainly give verdicts on the achievements of individuals and societies.
And it is their versions of the past that are generally believed.
Learning activity 1.2
Access this article ‘The Fundamentals of History’, by Arthur Marwick:
https://www.history.ac.uk/ihr/Focus/Whatishistory/marwick1.html
(accessed 24 June 2017)
Read Section 1 of the article.
Note that Professor Marwick’s brief discussion differs a little from the discussion
of what history is in this learning unit (Learning Unit 1). He does not like the notion
of historians ‘reconstructing the past’.
Consider the following question that arises from this, and also use the material
you have covered in Learning Unit 1:
• What do you think of Professor Marwick’s definition of what history is, and
do you find his definition more understandable than that which appears in
Learning Unit 1?
Please do not be perturbed that this Learning Unit has a slightly different approach
to the question of ‘what is history’. Remember that different sources stress different
things, and we can learn from all of them! It also is good if we attempt to reach
our own definitions and understandings.
HSY1511/13

1.2
WHY STUDY HISTORY?
As students embarking on historical study, we urge you to begin to nurture a
questioning mind. Asking questions is essential and we strongly encourage you to
do so. Do not assume that what you read or hear is necessarily true and accurate –
just because it appears in a book, or a website, or on the radio, or in a film, does not
make it completely valid. This process of questioning is essential to the development
of critical thinking. History is not a body of knowledge to be ‘learnt’; rather, history
is an ongoing questioning and dialogue between the present and the past, and we
learn through thinking, questioning, discussing and writing.
To expand on this further, there are several important reasons why we study history.
We have identified three of them.
History as knowledge
Does history have value as an independent body of knowledge? In other words, can
we learn from history? In answering this question, we must approach history as an
exercise in understanding, which involves critical thinking and a careful assessment
and evaluation of evidence (or sources). In this sense, doing history is like preparing
the legal defence of a client in court. What is required is a detailed and careful
investigation, because there are no simple answers to be derived from history. We
will obtain insights and answers from history only if we search our sources, try to be
objective and critical in what we write, and allow the evidence to confirm, modify
or change our preconceived ideas. That is the historian’s task.
Many historians would agree that the purpose of historical research would encompass
at least the three following matters:
• History trains our minds, because we are forced to think about many different
•
•
occurrences and events, and assess these in relation to one another – what are
causes, what are consequences?
History enables us to develop our understanding, our empathy and even
our compassion. In thinking about the actions of humans in the past, we quickly
would realise that the experiences of people are complex. Although we can
certainly conclude that some people had better reactions to events than others,
that some people behaved more honourably than others, it is seldom that we draw
very simple conclusions or judgments.
A study of history provides perspectives on current issues and problems. If we
want to understand our present world, continent, region, or society, one has to
confront and try to understand the historical forces that gave shape to the present.
To provide a historical perspective demands that historians explain fairly and without
conscious bias what motivated people in the past to act the way they did, how they
viewed their own situations, and what the results of their actions were.
Many historians also strive to make history enjoyable. After all, history should excite
our curiosity about other people, their struggles, achievements, different values and
lifestyles. When history is well written it is absorbing to read, and because it is about
real life and the real world it often has a more powerful effect than any work of fiction.
4
LEARNING UNIT 1: Doing history: how historians approach the past
History and change
We cannot escape history because it is all around us. The mere fact of living around
people older than ourselves makes us aware of the past. If we look at buildings in
our neighbourhood or in the city, we are also conscious of history. Even our own
actions are dependent upon our memories. So, the past is a powerful feature in our
lives. And just as individuals have memories, so societies have collective memories
which make up what we call history.
We have an individual past, which relates to our place within the family, but we are
also part of a social group or community, which itself has a past. History helps us
to understand where we have come from and who we are, both individually and as
members of society.
The rapid change in today’s world also gives immediacy and relevance to the past.
History is sometimes part of the process of change, and on occasions history seems
actually to precipitate change in South African society. This is because knowledge
of the past makes people aware of how different things have been and therefore
awakens them to how different the future could be. Consequently, history itself
becomes an instrument of change.
History and political power
Precisely because history is not merely factual, but also interpretative – and because
there are therefore many different versions of history – it is not surprising that the
subject can be controversial, or that it has been used to legitimise all kinds of human
action.
It is true, for example, that history is often the story of those who possess political
power. There are many examples of works of history that reflect the political authority
of those who are in control of society. History can often record the important actions
and deeds of such people. It can also be used to win loyalty to those in authority,
and it can be manipulated to perpetuate such political control.
Communities which have little knowledge or understanding of their past are more
inclined to submit to current power structures, because they are not familiar with
or aware of any alternatives. Many writers who work on subjects such as the history
of workers, or the history of women, or the history of minority groups, have argued
that part of their task is to provide such people with a sense of their own history.
They maintain this because the marginalisation of their history has kept such people
and groups uninformed, without knowledge and therefore without power.
History is not the exclusive possession of the powerful, but it is also the property
of the poor, the dispossessed and the oppressed. Strong bonds which unite large
social groupings within the working class can be forged by a common history and
a shared broad understanding of that history. It has been argued that such a history
can be as powerful in moulding consciousness as something such as language, which
of course is a critical way in which people communicate and are drawn together.
Those who possess political and economic power are often aware of the potential
danger and subversiveness of history to their positions. History can be used to
support opposition as much as it can be used to confirm those in authority. History
can make people sceptical about the ideas that have come down to them, which is
HSY1511/15

why the writing of history is so strictly controlled in repressive societies. History
can serve rebellion and dissent just as well as it has served the power of the state.
A government’s use of the past for its own ends seldom goes unchallenged where
people know their past. Therefore, history can be an important weapon for those
who seek to liberate themselves from oppressive conditions.
Potentially, therefore, history can be reduced to propaganda for a particular political
programme or set of policies. In this context, let us reflect again on the comment at
the beginning of this section: perhaps the best historical work is that which raises
questions, probes received ideas, and questions assumptions. This is of course a
very large task, and indeed one perhaps which never really ends – it has to continue,
because there are always new questions to be asked. But it is vital that it be done.
Learning activity 1.3
Here are three different discussions of why we study history, or the main benefits
of studying history.
(1)
‘The History Guide: A Student’s Guide to the Study of History’:
http://www.historyguide.org/guide/study.html
(accessed 24 June 2017)
(2)
An article by Peter N. Stearns:
https://www.historians.org/about-aha-and-membership/aha-history-andarchives/archives/why-study-history-(1998)
(accessed 24 June 2017)
(3)
Another extract from the article that we encountered in the previous activity:
‘The Fundamentals of History’, by Arthur Marwick:
https://www.history.ac.uk/ihr/Focus/Whatishistory/marwick1.html
(accessed 24 June 2017)
Read Sections 2 and 3 of Marwick’s article.
Work through the three extracts, which are not long.
Make a list of the reasons that each of them outlines as important reasons for the
study of history.
Then, decide for yourself five reasons why you think that the study of history is
important. Which reasons do you find the most important? Which do you think
are the most convincing?
6
LEARNING UNIT 1: Doing history: how historians approach the past
1.3
HOW DO WE STUDY AND WRITE HISTORY?
As we have seen, history is a discipline that constantly changes as historians review
and rethink their ideas about the past. New patterns and new meanings are regularly
presented by many different historians, and this ensures that the discipline remains
relevant to us in our current society.
Thus, we need to ask: how do historians go about this task of reviewing, rethinking,
studying afresh and then writing about the past?
It is probably safe to claim that the great majority of historians, and certainly all
the best ones, work carefully and systematically. Doing history is not something
random, and we cannot derive sound and valid conclusions from fanciful imagination.
Historians need evidence to support any theories and ideas that they might advance,
so that we as people who read or receive these ideas may be convinced that they
have validity. The collection of evidence often takes much searching, thought, and
organising, so that clear patterns can emerge, and a convincing story can be told.
Historians therefore need to gather evidence, or sources, to enable them to construct
history.
Primary sources and secondary sources
Traditionally, historians classify sources into two main categories: primary sources
and secondary sources. Both are vitally important to historians, and both need
careful investigation in order to extend our knowledge into the particular topic
under investigation.
• Primary sources are those which came into existence during the actual period of
•
the past which the historian is studying. Thus, for example, if we are studying a
topic such as the French Revolution of 1789, an official record of the government
from 1789, or diary entries written by someone living in Paris during the events of
1789, or newspaper reports from 1789, would be primary sources. They describe
aspects relating to the French Revolution, they were obviously produced during
1789, and as a result, they are primary sources. Primary sources can vary greatly.
Typically and traditionally, primary sources are mainly written sources, such as
official records, government documents, proceedings of courts of law, religious
records, personal memoirs, letters and diaries. However, in more recent times, other
kinds of primary sources are often used by historians (depending on the nature
of the topic), such as oral traditions and oral histories, archaeological artefacts,
and visual records such as paintings and photographs. Anything produced at the
time of the event being studied can be seen to be a primary source.
By contrast, a secondary source is not a first-hand account, but rather an
interpretation of what happened in the past. A history book is a very good example
of a secondary source, because it gives an interpretation of what actually took place
in the past, and it has made use of primary sources in doing so. Secondary sources
can vary, and sometimes there is a blurred line between a primary and a secondary
source. For instance, a book written at the time of the French Revolution could
be categorised as a secondary source because it gives an interpretation of events,
but it is also a primary source because it was produced at the time of those events.
HSY1511/17

Generally, however, we can say that the historian’s function is to change the raw
material of history – the primary sources – into a piece of historical writing – the
secondary source.
Some people have argued that works based very carefully on primary sources are
better works of history, because they are a better reflection of the times about
which they are writing. They say that if a historian ignores secondary sources (other
interpretations of events) and uses the primary sources, he or she will be less biased
and will offer a more authentic account. However, this is not necessarily true. All
sources need to be carefully evaluated, and subjected to various tests such as how
they were created, why they were created, and what their purpose is. It was once
argued by prominent historians that the best sources available for historians were
government documents, because these were carefully produced to be accurate records
and were properly stored for future generations. However, we now recognise that
government documents can be biased. Governments often highlight certain things
and are silent about other matters. They often want to portray their work and their
policies in a particular way, commonly to show themselves in a favourable way.
Thus, all sources need to be considered carefully by historians, not only for what
they actually say, but also for how they say things.
Studying history is more complicated than merely finding out and writing down what
happened in the past. If it were as easy as that, all historians and all history books
would tell exactly the same story – they would all agree and there would be no debate.
But this is not the case. In fact, historians have many different opinions about the
past. They often disagree about which events, people and facts were significant and
how these facts should be explained.
The reason for this is that historians have to select information which enables them
to answer questions about the past. Of course different historians ask different
questions about the past. They also get different answers, which lead them to
various interpretations or explanations. Our knowledge of the past improves as more
historians ask new questions and find new information to answer these questions.
We all try to give meaning to the things that happen to us in our lives. In this way
we are interpreting events to ourselves; we are explaining why things are the way
they are. We often use our memories to make sense of what is happening to us. For
example, the loss of a job, which at the time may have seemed disastrous, might in later
years be considered a positive event – one which led to greater personal opportunity.
By interpreting such personal events to ourselves, we are actually engaged in doing
what historians try to do for public events.
It should be evident therefore that history is not merely a set of unchangeable facts
about the past. Rather, it is a series of interpretations (i.e. attempts to explain why
certain events, people and processes are important) about what happened. This means
that there is not just a single history, but many histories, as historians constantly
debate different views about the past.
8
LEARNING UNIT 1: Doing history: how historians approach the past
It is wrong to see historians merely as eager hoarders of factual information; more
crucial is their interpretation of the past. For historians, trying to make sense of the
past by explaining why and how things happened is the most important challenge.
It is because of their interest in the present that they look to the past to find ways of
understanding the here and now. In this sense they remake the past in terms which
are useful for the present. Central to this task is how they interpret their primary
and secondary sources.
History and other academic disciplines
Historians often work closely with others in order to create works of history. It is
probably fair to say that everything on the planet has a history, which is why some
people would argue that the work of historians is absolutely central to understanding
anything in society. Historians do, however, often need to work with specialists in
other disciplines – depending on what they are working on, of course – in order to
provide a better and more refined understanding of their topic.
Let us touch on some important academic disciplines that are of particular value
to historians:
• History and Archaeology. Archaeology is the scientific study and classification
of the physical remains of past human settlements. These consist of the bones
of humans and animals, the remains of houses and village settlements, tools,
pieces of pottery, ornaments and various metals. Archaeologists work at sites
where communities lived, and systematically dig through the layers of ruins that
have been left.
Different groups of people may have lived on the same land at different times.
Artefacts which have been left remain scattered on soil at these sites. Archaeologists date such items carefully in order to establish exactly when they were used.
They often find charcoal remains and bones at these sites. Through different
scientific techniques such as carbon-dating, the age of these objects can be ascertained with considerable accuracy.
Although archaeologists are concerned with physical evidence, like historians they
can tell us how people organised their communities, what food they produced,
what implements they used and what trade and crafts they practised. The value
of archaeology goes beyond the mere scientific explanation of sites and the classification of pots, bones and stones to the reconstruction of the past. Archaeology
is therefore a means of extending the study of history.
History and archaeology have been drawn together greatly in the construction
of the history of much of Africa. Archaeological sources are essential to an understanding of the history of many early societies on the continent, and without
them, knowledge of these societies would remain buried and hidden.
• History and Anthropology. Anthropology is the study of the culture, religion and
kinship patterns of societies, and how societies were structured and organised.
Anthropology is also concerned with process, change and development, which
indicates a historical dimension, as well as the encounter between different
lifestyles and peoples.
HSY1511/19

Anthropologists have done invaluable work on numerous African societies, and
in so doing, have pioneered the study of these communities in a way in which
historians have failed to do. They have taken the lead in looking at links between
politics, religion, economics and social relations, issues which now form an important part of historical research. They have also investigated the significance
of oral traditions, myths and legends in various societies, and how these have
held societies together.
• History and Linguistics (Language). Researchers of languages (Linguistics) have
•
identified links between different languages through comparing them with one
another. The connections they have found point to contacts between different
groups of people, which suggests that they have a common past. Often words
from one language are borrowed by others, which shows links between the
speakers of these languages. Historians are therefore able to begin reconstructing
a history of various communities by using linguistic evidence. One good example
is how the reconstruction of the history of speakers of different Bantu languages
in southern Africa has relied partly on understanding the links between the
different languages.
History and Geography. The natural environment has always played a role in
shaping the lifestyles of people. Topography, climate and vegetation in particular
determined the settlement patterns of various communities in Africa. Historians
thus need to take note of the work of geographers and people who study the
physical environment – which is never static and unchanging – to gain a better
understanding of the conditions which affected people who lived in the past.
There are times when historians work with other disciplines not cited here; the
disciplines mentioned above are not the only ones of value to historians. For example,
historians may often work with legal and constitutional experts if they are writing
about the development of law within society, or historians of religion could often
work with specialists in different faith communities. There are therefore many other
examples that we could cite. The point is that because history can encompass a very
wide range of human experience, good historians cannot work in complete isolation
and cut themselves off from other academic disciplines and specialists.
The historian’s method
We have touched on this matter in the two sections above – in the way that historians
have to use sources and sometimes also work with other disciplines and specialities.
We will end this section with a few further thoughts about the methods that historians
use to reconstruct the past.
The past has to be recreated on the basis of the evidence which has been collected –
the primary and secondary sources. To do this, historians have to use factual material
creatively and imaginatively in an attempt to recapture something of what happened
in the past. The sources usually give many clues about what the past was like, but
sometimes the material is too fragmented to provide a clear picture. When this occurs,
historians might speculate about what could have taken place, and attempt to make
some intelligent links or comparisons to recover the past. Naturally, historians aim
to discover as much about the truth of what occurred as possible, and speculation
needs to be kept carefully in check.
10
LEARNING UNIT 1: Doing history: how historians approach the past
The past also has to be explained. This means that the historian has to analyse the
causes and consequences of events that have been depicted. In other words, the
historian has to interpret history as a process (i.e. a series of actions or changes,
which are linked by some cause or result), and not just as a list of facts.
Historians have a role in undermining myths or misconceptions which influence
popular interpretations of the past. By correcting myths about our society, and
by explaining how these have helped to create a common social and political
consciousness or national identity, historians can make a contribution towards
freeing people from a version of the past that prevents them from acting creatively
and independently in the present.
The historian’s method is therefore important. It is not really acceptable, for instance,
only to look for information that confirms what one already believes. In fact, sources
that raise doubts about our opinions and preconceptions often lead to a better writing
of history, and they show more clearly the complexities of the past. Certainly, no
history can be completely objective, but the way one goes about collecting material
and sifting the evidence offers an opportunity to overcome prejudices and to develop
a broader point of view.
Put another way, a careful and systematic study of historical sources provides valid
historical perspectives. There are many different ways of approaching and studying
the past. There are also many different ways of writing about it, although narrative
history (or telling the story) remains one of the most common and accepted forms.
Perhaps one can end this section by saying that there really is no definitive history
of anything, although some of the best historical writing comes close. History really
is a never-ending story of new questions, new approaches, new sources, and reinterpretation and re-writing. This is why the subject remains vital, fresh and alive,
because there are always new ways of looking at, and understanding, past events.
Learning activity 1.4
First of all, to revise and supplement what we have just worked through in this
learning unit (Learning Unit 1), work through the following:
Another extract from the article that we encountered in the two previous activities:
‘The Fundamentals of History’, by Arthur Marwick:
https://www.history.ac.uk/ihr/Focus/Whatishistory/marwick1.html
(accessed 24 June 2017)
Read Section 7, ‘Primary and Secondary Sources’.
Now, answer the following questions:
(1)
What would you describe as the essential difference between a primary
source and a secondary source?
(2)
Would you describe this map as a primary or a secondary source? Why?
ht tp://chnm.gmu.edu/worldhistor ysources/unpacking/Resources/
africa1630tn.jpg
(accessed 25 June 2017)
HSY1511/111

(3)
Would you describe this Bushman rock painting as a primary or a secondary source? Why?
http://quatr.us/africa/art/pictures/san6.jpg
(accessed 25 June 2017)
(4)
Would you describe this terracotta figure from an archaeological site in
Nigeria as a primary or a secondary source? Why?
http://historylists.org/images/nok.jpg
(accessed 25 June 2017)
(5)
Would you describe this book as a primary or a secondary source? Why?
https://bsazone6 -2m4ngwd4.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content /uploads/
remote/2016/08/2779-0-0-0_2524059.jpg
(accessed 25 June 2017)
(6)
Would you describe this extract from a personal diary as a primary or a
secondary source? Why?
http://www.communitycatalogue.co.uk/assets/letterintheattic/images/
processed/LIA_15_11.jpg
(accessed 25 June 2017)
(7)
Would you describe this academic journal, which contains articles written
by historians who specialise in the study of African history, as a primary or
a secondary source? Why?
https://static.cambridge.org/covers/AFH_0_49_1/cover.jpg?send-defaultcover=false
(accessed 25 June 2017)
(8)
Would you describe this newspaper as a primary or a secondary source?
Why?
https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fRlPnc2Mhu4/V2fnDdKbtoI/AAAAAAACQBE/
qyYxDedFwPwpdh_X0wyRHKFLieXYgmSewCLcB/s1600/headlines-ofthe-past-6.jpg
(accessed 25 June 2017)
(9)
Would you describe this stone cross, placed by the Portuguese seafarer
Bartholemeu Dias at Mossel Bay in 1488, as a primary or a secondary
source? Why?
http://www.orwelltoday.com/africabook2.jpg
(accessed 25 June 2017)
(10)
Would you describe this book as a primary or a secondary source? Why?
http://www.orwelltoday.com/africabook2.jpg
(accessed 25 June 2017)
(11)
Would you describe this official government document as a primary or a
secondary source? Why?
https://img.yumpu.com/22686182/1/358x462/complete-document-southafrica-government-online.jpg?quality=80
(accessed 25 June 2017)
12
LEARNING UNIT 1: Doing history: how historians approach the past
(12)
Would you describe this historical photograph of Africans at a missionary
hospital as a primary or a secondary source? Why?
http://johnedwinmason.typepad.com/.a/6a0112791cb10528a40168e888d6
c5970c-550wi
(accessed 25 June 2017)
(13)
Would you describe this collection of recordings of oral history testimonies
a primary or a secondary source? Why?
https://static.c-span.org/assets/images/series/logos/ahtv-oral-historieslogo.460.200.png
(accessed 25 June 2017)
(14)
Would you describe this film, based on historical events, as a primary or a
secondary source? Why?
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81THTBkYX7L._
SL1500_.jpg
(accessed 25 June 2017)
(15)
Would you describe this historical film footage as a primary or a secondary
source? Why?
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/uSnKJnJmDEo/hqdefault.jpg
(accessed 25 June 2017)
(16)
Would you describe this official government document as a primary or a
secondary source? Why?
https://img.yumpu.com/22686182/1/358x462/complete-document-southafrica-government-online.jpg?quality=80
(accessed 25 June 2017)
1.4
HISTORICAL WRITING ABOUT AFRICA
The continent of Africa is a very large, diverse and complex place located between
the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. Africa is the second-largest of the world’s continents
(after Asia), and today has the third-largest population (after Asia and Europe),
estimated in 2013 to be 1.1 billion people.
Africa is an actual place, an area – but ‘Africa’ is also an idea, a concept or even an
‘invention’. An ‘invention’ simply refers to the various images imposed on Africa,
particularly by Europeans and European Americans. Many of these images, or the ways
in which the continent and its people have been portrayed in the past and even in the
present, exist more in the minds of outsiders rather than having much basis in reality.
There are many images of Africa, and many perspectives on the continent; there
are, in a sense, many ‘Africas’.
For this section you will benefit from reading Joseph Ki-Zerbo’s “General
Introduction’ in The UNESCO General History of Africa, Volume 1 (1989),
pages 1–23.
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History before the middle of the 20th century
For a long time, many myths and prejudices existed about Africa, and African
societies were looked upon by outsiders as societies that had no history. Many
different ‘inventions’ – even substantial and entire ‘series of inventions’ – were made
in earlier times by travellers, explorers, colonial rulers and missionaries. This kind
of approach has sometimes continued in more recent times in the work of many
different writers, academics, journalists and development experts. Many of them
have tended to bring preconceptions from outside the continent to bear on their
studies and analyses of Africa.
Until at least the middle of the 20th century (approximately the time when African
countries started to seek, and win, their independence from the colonial powers),
the great majority of experts from outside the continent – including historians –
argued that the lack of written sources and the lack of written do4233cuments made
it impossible to reconstruct the history of Africa. Some even argued that because
there appeared to be virtually no written documents, Africa in fact lacked history –
indeed, there was no such thing as African history. The largest part of the African
continent – Africa south of the Sahara Desert, or sub-Saharan Africa – only began
to be known by Europeans after the 15th century. Thus, only from this time, because
of the written observations of different travellers, explorers and settlers, could they
begin to write about historical developments in Africa, through the records that these
outsiders to the continent left. African oral and cultural traditions were dismissed
as worthless.
Further, historians also tended to create a split between parts of north Africa and
other parts. They generally saw the Sahara Desert as a space that divided the continent
into two distinct sections which had nothing to do with one another. There were
civilizations such as ancient Egypt and ancient Nubia in the far north, and the rest
of Africa which was ‘shut off’ from all other areas of the world. While it is certainly
true that the northernmost parts of Africa had considerable links and ties with the
other parts of the Mediterranean world, there were also numerous connections
between these parts and those further south, across the Sahara Desert.
There is one further issue that needs to be raised, that greatly affected research into,
and understanding of, Africa before the middle of the 20th century. This was the fact
that Africa was greatly affected by the slave trade of the 16th to the 19th centuries and
colonisation by Europeans, particularly in the 19th and early 20th centuries. These
twin processes gave rise to racial stereotypes: that Europeans who were ‘white’ were
also superior, while Africans were ‘black’, were seen as no more than units of labour
to be traded, and were ultimately seen as inferior. Africans came to be portrayed as
people who had limited culture and no history, and most historians believed that
their history was neither recoverable nor worthwhile.
History since the middle of the 20th century
There has been very significant change in the study of African history since
approximately the 1960s. Certainly, a key reason for this was the emergence of many
independent African states during the 1950s and 1960s, with independent political
leadership. These new states began to assert their place in regional, continental
and world affairs. Historians of Africa began to emphasise much more strongly
that African history both could, and had to be, written. Africans themselves also
14
LEARNING UNIT 1: Doing history: how historians approach the past
have increasingly become involved in the writing of the continent’s history, and
unsurprisingly have felt the need to record and establish the historical foundations
of African societies across the continent.
As suggested above, in an earlier section of this learning unit, this has quite legitimately
been done by Africans taking seriously various ‘non-traditional’ historical sources
and approaches:
• Archaeology has been shown to be vital to the recovery of the history of
•
•
•
African societies and civilisations. Enormous advances have been made during
approximately the last 50 years by archaeologists in many parts of the continent.
The artefacts that have been dug from the ground – building materials, tools,
food, different kinds of objects – all require interpretation, but all tell a story of
how people lived in the past in Africa.
Oral traditions have come to be seen as containing the essential social and
cultural record of particular communities and societies. Of course these traditions
require careful treatment and study. Critics say that oral traditions, particularly
epic traditions which tend to present the past in very heroic and congratulatory
terms, are little more than mythology. They also say that oral traditions play a
functional role in society, of bonding people together and giving them a shared
identity, which further distorts any historical value. However, written documents
can do the same. There are many examples of the written record being produced
in a particular way to present the ruling class of a society in heroic ways; and
further, written history can also play a functional and social role, binding people
together. The point is that all sources need to be carefully evaluated, and the
purposes in their creation clearly understood, before they can be used as sources
for the construction of legitimate and useful history. Written documents are not
necessarily ‘objective’ or ‘more true’ or ‘more accurate’, and are just as likely to
be subject to distortion and bias as oral sources and traditions.
Linguistics is a discipline that has come to offer historians very useful insights
into the past. A great deal of very painstaking work has been done, and continues
to be done, by linguists who record languages and compare them to one another.
They can establish words or phrases that can be said to have been spoken earlier
in some societies than others, which suggests that the people using these must
have lived earlier than later ones. This of course is not always easy to establish
and can cause debate and even conflict. Again, however, this is not all that much
different from interpreting written sources, many of which are difficult to date
with complete precision.
Anthropology has increasingly come into its own as a discipline which, through
its study particularly of the structures and practices of societies, can help to shed
light on the historical evolution of those societies. Before the middle of the 20th
century, anthropology was used in certain ways by Europeans to suggest that
Africans were ‘primitive’ and ‘backward’, and structures of societies, once studied
and understood, were pulled apart to make it easier for colonial administrations to
control Africans. Anthropologists tended to try to divide people into all kinds of
different physical categories, labelling them in many different ways. However, over
the past 50 years, anthropologists have rejected such approaches and purposes,
and their work is framed by the assumption that Africans are just like any other
people, but who have been shaped by a different context.
HSY1511/115

Written sources do, of course, also contribute to the writing of African history.
These are unevenly distributed, and it is true that for many sub-Saharan African
societies, there are many centuries where written sources are non-existent. This is
in contrast to much of north Africa, where the written record is relatively rich and
varied. Many of the written sources about sub-Saharan Africa were initially produced
by non-Africans, by explorers, travellers and missionaries, most of whom had their
own assumptions and recorded their experiences in particular ways that made sense
to themselves and to those who read what they wrote. However, this does not mean
that these sources should be dismissed as lacking in validity. Provided later historians
understand the context and the purposes of these early records, they can be creatively
used to understand historical developments in particular societies.
Thus, over the past 50 years, there have been strong moves to counter the Eurocentric
and anti-African outlook and writing that had claimed that written sources could
be the only basis of historical scholarship. This writing had essentially denied nonliterate and relatively small-scale societies (as were the great majority of societies in
sub-Saharan Africa), a history. Using the wider array of sources that we have touched
upon here, this newer scholarship was able to demonstrate convincingly that Africans
had a history. Ideas of Africans being ‘static’ (or unchanging) and ‘backward’ were
strongly rejected. This scholarship has been strongly interdisciplinary in its approach
– in other words, it uses methods from archaeology, anthropology, linguistics and
oral traditions in combination to reconstruct the African past.
In a very real sense, African historians have played a very prominent and powerful
role in transforming the entire discipline of history. Before the middle of the 20th
century, as we have seen, history was essentially dominated by Western Europeans
and North Americans who projected their views of what constituted history onto
the rest of the world. Europeans and their civilisations were seen as triumphant
and ascendant, superior in every way to other regions. Thus, people such as African
historians who have rejected this Eurocentric approach and who have studied
African societies and their histories in their own terms can be seen to have been
even revolutionary. They have successfully shown that just because people were not
literate, or societies whose material base was relatively poor, does not deny them a
legitimate and authentic history.
These developments also contributed to another major change in traditions of
historical writing after the 1960s. Generally, up till this time, historical writing had
been mainly concerned with the achievements of ruling classes, for example, of kings,
emperors, powerful politicians, influential religious leaders, or powerful business
people and companies. Traditional historical writing had neglected all other social
groupings, in Europe and elsewhere. What historians of Africa began to show, along
with historians in other places, was that it was possible to write proper social history
that examined all parts of society, not just the ruling classes. They did this in Africa
through the interdisciplinary methods that we have mentioned, and indeed African
historians have been among the pioneers of writing social history and the history
of all classes of people and of all social formations.
The way in which African historians were particularly pioneering was in the use of
oral history and oral traditions. Although some people began to collect oral traditions
in the first half of the 20th century, the movement to do so only began seriously
after the 1950s. In 1961, an important book by Jan Vansina, entitled Oral Traditions:
A Study in Historical Method was published, which was a significant milestone. This
16
LEARNING UNIT 1: Doing history: how historians approach the past
book argued that oral traditions were valid as historical sources, although (like other
documents) such sources needed to be examined critically and carefully corroborated
with other kinds of evidence.
Another development at this time also boosted the study of African history and its
professionalisation. Up until the 1950s, there were almost no professional historians of
Africa. The history that was written – and which generally viewed Africans as inferior
and lacking history – was produced mainly by colonial officials, missionaries and
travellers. No university regarded African history as worth studying. This situation
began to change markedly from the 1960s, however, when specialist programmes
in African history began to be established in many western European and north
American universities. In addition, with the establishment of many universities in
newly independent Africa, there was much more concentration on African history
within Africa itself, and many African scholars began to be trained and to produce
history themselves. This process was of course not even across the continent – South
Africa, for example, was definitely behind in making moves in this new direction
– but African historical studies unquestionably advanced very significantly during
the 1960s and 1970s.
Today, the history of the world is no longer the history of Western civilisation, or
history seen through the eyes of western civilisation. African historians have been
significant contributors to the broadening of the discipline of history. In recent
times, many Africans have also been leaders in a move to ‘decolonise’ the history
of Africa (and indeed the world), through their work in actively questioning and
rejecting traditional preconceptions and prejudices. They have aimed to construct
a more authentic African past, in which Africans played a leading role as shapers of
their own destinies, not mere victims of outside forces. Increasingly, the contribution
of Africans to the history of the world, the values of Africa, and the interaction of
Africa and Africans with the rest of the world has been studied and highlighted.
Learning activity 1.5
Write a paragraph of about 10 to 15 lines on each of the following topics which
we have covered in Learning Unit 1:
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)
(7)
(8)
(9)
(10)
Explain the difference between ‘history’ and ‘the past’.
Briefly outline reasons why the study of history is important.
Explain briefly why knowledge of history can empower marginalised groups
to challenge their position in society.
Briefly outline reasons why it is important for historical research to be
carried out.
Discuss briefly why history can be a valuable weapon for political elites to
justify their power.
Explain what a primary source is, and provide at least three examples of
primary sources to illustrate your answer.
Using at least three examples, explain the difference between a primary
source and a secondary source.
Briefly outline why historians in Africa can benefit from the research of
archaeologists.
Critically assess the importance of oral tradition in enabling historians to
reconstruct the history of African societies.
Briefly outline major ways in which historians of Africa have altered Eurocentric
approaches to the study of history.
HSY1511/117

2
LEARNING UNIT 2
2
Representations of Africa
LEARNING OUTCOMES
When you have completed this learning unit, you will be able to answer the
following questions:
• What are the historical origins of images held by outsiders about Africa?
• In what ways did Enlightenment thinkers promote certain images about
•
•
Africa?
Did the Enlightenment lay the foundations for racism in the 19 th and 20 th
centuries?
Critically discuss European perspectives on Africa.
One of the questions that face any scholar of the modern world is that of the image of
Africa held by Europeans and how they used these images to create presumed racial
differences. These images were prominent during the phases of the Enlightenment
period, the period of slavery, and the colonial period, and have persisted into the
present (often called the post-colonial period).
A further, related question to consider is: How do we explain the origins of the
concept of ‘race’, which has greatly affected Africa in the past as well as the present?
2.1
ENLIGHTENMENT PHILOSOPHERS, RACE AND IMAGES OF
AFRICA
For this section you will benefit from reading Emmanuel Chukwudi Eze (ed)
Race and the Enlightenment; A reader, Oxford, Blackwell Publishing (1997).
During the 18th century, there were attempts by the Enlightenment scholars and
philosophers, who were almost exclusively based in Europe, to write world history.
Since Africa was completely unknown to these scholars personally, they relied on
information derived from earlier explorers and their ‘imagination’ to reconstruct
African historical past. They also attempted to explain the role of Africa in world
history. In so doing, the Enlightenment scholars were influenced by two factors:
Firstly, European ideology of racial superiority clouded their writing. In order to
justify racial superiority, especially the belief that non-Europeans were inferior to
Europeans, Enlightenment philosophers resorted to ‘scientific’ theories of the time.
We must realise that it was not difficult for these scholars to find justification for their
argument. This was the time when European anthropologists, ethnologists, botanists
and naturalists invented many different ‘scientific’ theories to explain the origin of
species. Therefore, Enlightenment philosophers embraced these theories to justify
the alleged inferiority of Africans. The leading proponents of the classification of
human species during the 1700s were the Swedish botanist, Carl Linnaeus, and the
18
LEARNING UNIT 2: Representations of africa
German zoologist, Johan Friedrich Blumenbach. Blumenbach invented a complex
classification system of the human species, which placed ‘European variety at the
top of the scale’. Africans occupied the lowest rung in this system.
Secondly, the Enlightenment philosophers also linked ‘civilization’ or ‘historical
achievement’ to skin colour or physical appearance. Race and culture were seen as
the same thing. Historian, Phillip Curtin, expresses it as follows: ‘if whiteness of
skin was the mark of the highest race, then darker races would be inferior in the
increasing order of their darkness. On this basis, and with no further evidence,
Africans could be put at the bottom.’1
We can look briefly at the comments of four Enlightenment philosophers, whose
views demonstrated the relationship that they saw between historical achievement/
civilisation and race. These views are important because – as we will see in our
discussion of other themes – they were used by European and American scholars to
justify the slave trade and colonialism. This line of thinking also was a precondition
for the growth of modern racism.
• G.W.F. Hegel, the German historian and philosopher, argued that Africans were
•
backward and did not contribute to civilisation. Hegel tells us that Africa ‘has no
historical interest of its own’, because its people lived in ‘barbarism and savagery’,
and he also argued that Africa is the ‘land of childhood’.2
David Hume, a Scottish philosopher, notoriously argued that black people
were parrots because they simply regurgitated what they learned without any
understanding. He believed that Africans were incapable of meaningful learning.
But what demonstrates the relationship between civilisation and race was Hume’s
much quoted argument in 1748 that:
‘I am apt to suspect the Negroes to be naturally inferior to the white. There
never was a civilized nation of any other complexion than white, nor even any
individual eminent in action or speculation. No ingenious manufactures amongst
them, no art, no science.’3
• Voltaire, one of the most prominent 18th century French thinkers, made crude
remarks about the appearance of Africans and how this limited the intelligence
of Africans. As he expressed this:
‘Their round eyes, their flat nose, their lips which are always thick, their differentlyshaped ears, the wool of their head, the measure even of their intelligence
establishes between them and other species of men prodigious differences.’ 4
• Finally, Emmanuel Kant, another prominent German philosopher, wrote in
1764 that Africans ‘have received from nature no intelligence that rises above
the foolish. The difference between the two races is thus a substantial one: it
appears to be just as great in respect to the faculties of the mind as in color…’5
P. Curtin, The Image of Africa: British Ideas and action, 1780–1850 (Madison, 1964), p 39.
Georg W.F. Hegel (1899). The Philosophy of History. Trans. J. Sibree (New York: Dover Books, 1956).
David Brion Davis, In Human Bondage: The rise and fall of slavery in the New World (New York, 2006), p
75.
4 Ibid.
5 Ibid.
1
2
3
HSY1511/119

Even as these philosophers wrote these opinions and theories, however, their views
were criticised by a small number of intellectual Africans who were accepted into
the European intellectual community. Among them were Abraham Petrovitch
Gannibal (1696–1781), a Russian engineer who had been born in central Africa
and Anton Wilhelm Amo (1703–1755), the first African to receive a degree from a
European university, the University of Halle in Saxony, Germany, in 1729. Other
educated Africans of the time were the letter writer Ignatius Sancho (1729–1780),
the autobiographer and abolitionist Olaudah Equaino (1745–1797), the abolitionist
and pamphleteer Qobna Ottobah Cugoano (1757–1791) and the American poet
Phillis Wheatley (1753–1784).6 Such criticism also came from the Enlightenment
thinkers themselves some of whom were against the categorisation of people into
races.7 For instance, Voltaire and other thinkers were completely against the concept
of race as a category to classify people, because they felt that such an approach was
‘degrading’ to civilisation. Thus, the Enlightenment historians were divided about
the relationship between race and civilisation.
FIGURE 2.1.1
Anton Wilhelm Amo, the first African from Guinea [West Africa] to receive a
degree from a European university Source: https://blackupward.files.wordpress.com/2015/05/capture-d_c3a9cran-2015-05-28-c3a0-19-25-44.png
Work through Activity 2.1.2 and extract A below, which deal with
Anton Wilhelm Amo and Enlightenment thinking. Also work through
Activity 2.1.3 and extract B on Saartje Baartman and the phenomenon
of scientific racism in the early 19 th century.
6
7
20
William E. Burns, The Enlightenment: History, Documents and Key Questions (California, 2016), p 32.
Justin Smith, On the enlightenment race problem. https://kenanmalik.wordpress.com/2013/02/13/
on-the-enlightenments-race-problem/
LEARNING UNIT 2: Representations of africa
Extract A
The Enlightenment’s Race Problem, and Ours
In 1734, Anton Wilhelm Amo, a West African student and former chamber slave
of Duke Anton Ulrich of Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel, defended a philosophy
dissertation at the University of Halle in Saxony, written in Latin and entitled “On
the Impassivity of the Human Mind.” A dedicatory letter was appended from the
rector of the University of Wittenberg, Johannes Gottfried Kraus, who praised
“the natural genius” of Africa, its “appreciation for learning,” and its “inestimable
contribution to the knowledge of human affairs” and of “divine things.” Kraus placed
Amo in a lineage that includes many North African Latin authors of antiquity, such
as Terence, Tertullian and St. Augustine.
Why have we chosen to go with Hume and Kant, rather than with the pre-racial
conception of humanity? In the following decade, the Scottish philosopher David
Hume would write: “I am apt to suspect the Negroes, and in general all other
species of men to be naturally inferior to the whites. There never was any civilized
nation of any other complection than white, nor even any individual eminent in
action or speculation.”
Hume had not heard of Amo, that much is clear. But we can also detect a tremendous
difference between Hume’s understanding of human capacities and that of Kraus:
the author of Amo’s dedicatory letter doesn’t even consider the possibility of
anchoring what individual human beings are capable of doing to something as
arbitrary as “complection.” For Kraus, Amo represents a continent and its long
and distinguished history; he does not represent a “race.”
Another two decades on, Immanuel Kant, considered by many to be the greatest
philosopher of the modern period, would manage to let slip what is surely the
greatest non-sequitur in the history of philosophy: describing a report of something
seemingly intelligent that had once been said by an African, Kant dismisses it on
the grounds that “this fellow was quite black from head to toe, a clear proof that
what he said was stupid.”
Kraus, the rector of Wittenberg, had been expressing an understanding of the nature
of human diversity that was, in 1734, already in decline, soon to be thoroughly
drowned out by the fundamentally racist view of human populations as dividing
into a fixed set of supposedly natural, species-like kinds. This is the view lazily
echoed by Hume, Kant, and so many of their contemporaries.
The question for us today is why we have chosen to stick with categories inherited
from the 18th century, the century of the so-called Enlightenment, which witnessed
the development of the slave trade into the very foundation of the global economy,
and at the same time saw racial classifications congeal into pseudo-biological kinds,
piggy-backing on the divisions folk science had always made across the natural
world of plants and animals. Why, that is, have we chosen to go with Hume and
Kant, rather than with the pre-racial conception of humanity espoused by Kraus,
or the anti-racial picture that Herder offered in opposition to his contemporaries?
Justin E.h. Smith
Source: http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/02/10/
why-has-race-survived/?ref=opinion
Justin E. H. Smith teaches philosophy at Concordia University in Montreal. His
most recent book is “Divine Machines: Leibniz and the Sciences of Life.” He is a
contributing editor of Cabinet Magazine, and writes regularly on his blog.
HSY1511/121

Learning activity 2.1.2
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)
Who was Amo, and where did he come from?
The writer says “Hume had not heard of Amo, that much is clear.” Do you
agree or disagree? Give a reason for your answer. Be sure to quote from
your text or the abstract to support your answer.
Why does the rector of the university praise Africa for its ‘natural genius,’
‘appreciation for learning,’ and ‘inestimable contribution to the knowledge of
human affairs’ and of ‘divine things? Why did he not address Amo directly?
How does the rector’s address challenge the Enlightenment historians’ association of civilisation with race?
Enlightenment historians thought of race and culture as the same thing.
Do you agree or disagree? Quote one sentence from the extract to support
your answer.
Write an essay of about two pages on the following question: David Hume
argued that “I am apt to suspect the Negroes be naturally inferior to the
white. There never was a civilized nation of any other complexion than
white, nor even any individual eminent in action or speculation. No ingenious manufactures amongst them, no art, no science.” Critically discuss this
statement and use the text, the extract and the picture above to substantiate
your point of view.
Extract B
SARA BAARTMAN
This activity is about Sara Baartman, also known as ‘Saartjie’, a Hottentot woman
known for her large buttocks. Sarah was born in 1789 in Eastern Cape, South
Africa. At age sixteen, Sarah’s husband died and she was sold into slavery at the
Cape to Henrik Willem Cezar. Sarah then accompanied Cezar to London to work
as his domestic servant. Cezar, who was fascinated by Sarah’s physical features,
displayed her in London and later in Paris to entertain European onlookers. Many
people – both in London and Paris – were invited to look at her large buttocks.
Upon her death at the age of 26, her body was dissected and put on display
in the British museum. She was symbolic of 19th century colonial exploitation
and racism, of black people as ‘sexually savage’ and ‘racially inferior.’ Saartjie
Baartman’s body was also an object of curiosity for Enlightenment thinkers. Her
body provides a good case of how body shape or sexual metaphors were used
during the 19 th century to justify colonisation and gender and racial discrimination
towards African women.
Extract B continues on next page...
22
LEARNING UNIT 2: Representations of africa
Source: http://personal.psu.edu/ykp5036/assignment%206.html
Sarah ‘Saartje’ Baartman the ‘Hottentot Venus’
The ‘perfect Specimen’ of a Khokhoi female who died in Paris after five years
(1810-15) on exhibition – as a freak – was said to have been born on the “Banks
of the River Gamtoos.” By her own account, she left there when young and
worked as nursemaid for Hendrik Cezar, a farmer near Cape Town. Cezar and a
Britain surgeon had formed a speculative partnership. They took her to London
where they charged admission for the opportunity to view what they described
as “this extraordinary phenomenon of nature.” Saartje’s steatopygous buttocks
were the most visible curiosity, but the public was titillated by news of a genital
peculiarity, the so-called “Hottentot apron.” Steatopygia refers to the tendency
in some women for fat to accumulate on the hips and buttocks, rather than the
abdomen or elsewhere. When Saartje moved, this mass of tissue trembled and
shook. Here striking features were compared to the European norm, and gave
rise to theories that her people had peculiar ideas of feminine beauty and were
closer on the “great chain of being” to apes than human beings.
Some viewers were offended and outraged. They saw a helpless creature being
degraded and exploited for profit. Prominent humanitarians took her handlers to
court. A judge arranged for Saartje to be interviewed in the Low Dutch language
which she could understand.
But according to the affidavit which her interviewers signed, Saartje claimed that
she herself had gone with Cezar to obtain permission to travel to England for the
purpose of exhibiting herself; that she was treated well; and that, although she
did not fully understand her contract, she knew she should receive part of the
proceeds from their show and was entirely satisfied. In view of this, the judge
dismissed the case.
Saartje died in Paris in 1815 when, by her own reckoning, she was under 30 years
of age. Her body was dissected by the French comparative anatomist, Georges
Cuvier, who collected and studied specimens from all over the world.
HSY1511/123

The ‘Hottentot Venus’ added to the negative perceptions which the Khoikhoi have
endured at scientific popular levels. Her physical appearance, which was an extreme
case of a condition by no means common, resulted in generalisations still referred
to today. Saartje appears as a grotesque and repellent figure in surviving doggerel
verse and cartoons, always with the name ‘Hottentot’ (or sometimes, ‘Bushman’)
attached. The very court which heard her case believed that ‘the Hottentot nation’
required the Cape governor’s protection ‘by reason of their general imbecile state.’
Source: E Boonzaier et al, The Cape Herders: A history of the Khoikhoi of Southern
Africa (Cape Town, 1996), pp. 98–99
Learning activity 2.1.3
Study this picture of Sarah ‘Saartje’ Baartman and the accompanying text which
outlines her life, and then answer the following questions:
(a)
Who was ‘Saartjie’ Baartman?
(b)
Why do you think ‘Saartjie’ Baartman was called the ‘Hottentot Venus’?
(c)
How does body language of the four figures in the picture explain the way
Europeans perceived African people?
(d)
Why do you think the woman is kneeling before Baartman’s picture?
(e)
Baartman’s body aroused curiosity of only ordinary people. Do you agree or
disagree? Support your answer with visual information from the picture.
(f)Write a paragraph of about 150-200 words on the attitudes and reactions of
Europeans towards Baartman. Be sure to refer to the picture. Conclude your
paragraph by commenting on why Europeans found it necessary to describe
Khoekhoe people as “extraordinary,” “grotesque” and “imbecile,” for example.
You may use a dictionary to find the meaning of these words.
2.2
IMAGES OF AFRICANS AND THE SLAVE TRADE
The concepts of ‘race’ and ‘civilisation’ played a major role in images of Africa as early
as the 16th century. Europeans used presumed physical differences – skin colour, hair
texture, facial structure and eating habits – and the alleged inferiority of Africans
to argue that Africans were uncivilised. We should, however, realise that, although
Europeans were less concerned about African ‘savagery during the 16th century,’
the need for labour during the 18th century influenced their thinking. Historian,
Winthrop Jordan, comments that ‘it was not until the slave trade came to require
justification, in the 18th century, that some Englishmen found special reason to lay
emphasis on the Negro savagery’.8
Europeans also exploited religious differences to justify the slave trade and slavery.
They described Africans in terms such as ‘savages’, ‘pagans’, ‘idolatrous people’, and
‘heathens’, thereby marking them as very different from themselves. This, of course,
made it easier to justify slavery – the notion that Africans were not fully human made
it easier to enslave people. Slave traders at the time produced works that were used to
8 Winthrop D. Jordan, White Over Black: American Attitudes Toward the Negro 1550–1812 (Baltimore, 1968),
p 27.
24
justify slavery. There are many examples: one can cite Robert Norris’s Memoirs of the
Reign of Bossa Ahadee and Archibald Dalzel’s History of Dahomey which were published
to justify the slave trade in the 18th century Dahomey. Both Norris and Dalzel were
slave traders. In these works, they portrayed Dahomians as ‘war-like’, ‘cannibalistic’
and ‘savage’ in order to defend the slave trade.9
Other historical works were also published to defend the slave trade in places such
as the West Indies. These portrayed African captives and slaves negatively. Among
these works was Edward Long’s History of Jamaica, which significantly influenced
the British policy in the West Indies. Long, a slave trader and defender of slavery,
argued that Africans were ‘brutish, ignorant, idle, crafty, treacherous, bloody, thievish,
mistrustful and superstitious people’.10 These kinds of opinions were central to the
justification of the system of slavery.
From the 16th century to the latter part of the 19th century, European and American
travellers also used Africans’ alleged ‘sexuality,’ ‘savage behaviour’ and ‘ape-like and
libidinous nature,’ to justify the slave trade and enslavement of African people. These
travellers and observers drew on biblical scriptures to assert that Africans had ‘large
propagators’ and that their ‘members [penises] were as members of asses [donkeys].’11
African women were not spared. They described them as ‘hot constitution’d Ladies’
who ‘were possessed of a tempter hot and lascivious, making no scruple to prostitute
themselves to the Europeans for a very slender profit, so great is their inclination to
white men. If they come to the Place the Man sleeps in, they lay themselves softly
down by him, soon wake him up, and use all their little Arts to move the darling
Passion…’ 12 The question we may ask is: Why were European and American travellers
and observers obsessed with this alleged African ‘sexuality’? Literature abounds that
Europeans used African sexuality to justify the slave trade, especially violence and
rape of black women by white men. We know, for example, that the English discovery
of the Chimpanzee came at the time when Europe was involved in the slave trade
with West Africans, who originated from the same region as Chimpanzees (then
called ‘orang-outang’).13 By the beginning of the 17th century, Europeans felt that
there was a close relationship between Africans and chimpanzees. Such speculations
were later in use in the United States of America where Thomas Jefferson, the third
US president, argued in Notes on the State of Virginia about the preference of black
people for whites, ‘as uniformly as is the preference of the Oranootan [sic] for the
black woman over those of his own species.’14 But Jefferson also contradicted himself
when he argued that, although blacks were inferior to whites, they [blacks] ‘in the
endowments both in body and mind’ and were more crudely ‘ardent after their
female.’15 Ironically, we know that Jefferson himself had a sexual relationship with
Sally Hemmings, a slave woman with whom he had children.
9 Curtin, The Image of Africa, p 24.
10 Ibid, p 43.
11 Jordan, White Over Black, pp 34–35.
12 Ibid.
13 Ibid, 86.
14 Davis, In Human Bondage, p 74.
15 Ibid.
HSY1511/125

The alleged inferiority of Africans was so ingrained in the European mindset that it
was also expressed in abolitionist literature. Arguing against the abolition of slavery
in the United States of America, George S Sawyer noted this:
‘The social, moral, and political, as well as the physical history of the negro race bears
strong testimony against them; it furnishes the most undeniable proof of their mental
inferiority. In no age or condition has the real negro shown a capacity to throw off
the chains of barbarism and brutality that have long bound down the nations of that
race; or to rise above the common cloud of darkness that still broods over them.’16
2.3
EUROPEAN EXPLORERS AND IMAGES OF AFRICA
After the formal end of the slave trade in the early 19th century, European interest
in Africa arguably heightened. They needed information about Africa’s geography,
especially its rivers, in order to be able to engage in what was termed ‘legitimate’ trade
(slavery was now seen as not legitimate). Most of the explorers who visited Africa
during the 19th century did not open up Africa for exploration for various reasons.
Firstly, the explorers were portrayed as being interested in pure and scientific enquiry.
Secondly, they were more interested in asserting their sense of adventure, and
a desire for fame. But it was taken for granted among those who financed their
journeys, praised their ‘discoveries’ and avidly read their books, that their major
benefit to Europe was the chance of greater trading profit in the future that could
be derived from Africa.17 Among these early explorers were James Bruce and Rene
Gaille. Bruce, a Scottish explorer, who, upon his return from Ethiopia, provided a
magnificent description of advanced civilisations and the beauty of Ethiopia, especially
its royal palace at Gondar, to his European audience. It was hard for Europeans
to believe Bruce’s account because of their already prejudicial views that Africans
were ‘backward,’ ‘uncivilised’ and ‘primitive.’ Rene Caille’s first-hand description
of Timbuktu as a dusty place did not live up to the Europeans’ expectations of
Timbuktu as a place of gold.18
Thirdly, early European explorers travelled fast, often under conditions of difficulty
and danger. They spent long periods struck down by malaria, which was both
physically and psychologically depressing in the best of circumstances. They were
therefore in no position to check facts or provide work of any substance even if they
wanted to do so.
There were many competing images of Africans during this time of exploration,
ranging from ‘heathenish’ and ‘pagan’ to ‘uncivilised’, ‘inferior’ and ‘backward’.
Richard Lander, for example, did not have respect for African culture and wrote
disparagingly about it. He made fun of the ‘superstitions’ of Africans, making them
look ridiculous compared to the civilisation and ‘achievements’ of Europeans.19 Other
explorers, however, adopted a neutral attitude towards African culture. They reported
what they witnessed without cultural arrogance. For example, Hugh Clapperton
was sympathetic and modest in his portrayal of the culture of the Western Sudan.
16 John Hope Franklin, From Slavery to Freedom (New York, 1994), 189-190.
17 Kevin Shillington, History of Africa (New York, 2012), p 305.
18 Ibid.
19 Curtin, The Image of Africa, p 207.
26
LEARNING UNIT 2: Representations of africa
One example (among many) to illustrate the negative perceptions that Europeans
have of Africans are various descriptions of the Khoesan people at the southern tip
of Africa. In some ways, European perceptions of the Khoesan differed little from
that of other Africans further to the north. Europeans placed Khoesan people at
the ‘lowest rung’ of the ladder of civilisation. Many uncomplimentary terms were
used to describe them: they were portrayed as ‘lazy’, ‘stupid’, and ‘dirty’. These kinds
of attitudes meant that conquest, when it occurred, was not only about taking land
and exploiting its resources. It was also a process that cut even more deeply, that
dehumanised people as ‘backward’ and ‘primitive’.
Why did early sailors and explorers create such negative images of the Khoesan
people? Unsurprisingly, their reports were subjective and interpreted from their own
Eurocentric perspective. However, these perceptions were based on limited contact,
and particularly on a few incidences of conflict. This led Europeans to stereotype
Khoesan people as ‘warlike,’ ‘brutal’ and ‘savage’. Perhaps more significantly, the
fact that they were not Christian led Europeans to believe that they were superior.
Work through the following extracts, and Activity 2.3.1 in Learning Unit 2,
which deal with European perceptions of the Khoesan of Southern Africa.
Extract A
The following extract is an example of the negative image we often find in
early European descriptions of the Khoekhoe:
Their native barbarism and idle desert life, together with a wretched ignorance of all
virtues, imposes upon their minds every form of vicious pleasure. In faithlessness,
inconstancy, lying, cheating, treachery, and infamous concern with every kind of
lust they exercise their villainy…Thus in the hardness of their hearts, resisting
every impulse of humanity, they persist in the savagery of their forefathers.
Source: I Schapera (ed), The Early Cape Hottentots (Cape Town, 1933), p 123.
Extract B
The following extract is a description of Khoekhoe cultural practices by a
European traveller:
[They were] entirely naked but for an ox-hide around them like a cloak … always
stank greatly, since they besmeared themselves with fat and grease … begged for
entrails, which they ate quite raw after scraping out most of the dung, or stretched
it over the fire in four sticks … they speak very clumsily… [they trade] an ox for
two knives, a [calf] for a knife and a sheep for a knife; and some… for less value
than a knife.
Source: E. Boonzaier et al. The Cape herders: A history of the Khoikhoi of southern
Africa (Cape Town, 1996 53–54.
HSY1511/127

Learning activity 2.3.1
Study extracts A and B as well as the text, and then answer the following questions:
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
2.4
What does the extract tell us about early European views of the Khoekhoe?
Imagine what impression the first Europeans must have made on the indigenous inhabitants of the Cape.
Write a short paragraph and describe the possible reaction of a Khoekhoe
person to the European firearms, clothing, manners and language.
Decide why this European traveller found it necessary to describe the
Khoekhoe in derogatory terms. Was it because of Khoekhoe habits? Or was
it because of Khoekhoe trading practices? Or was it because of inherent
racism? Or was it because of complete ignorance?
NEW GENERATION OF EXPLORERS AND THE IMAGE OF
AFRICA
Early explorers were unable to penetrate the African interior owing to various
diseases. However, the situation changed by the mid-19th century due to medical
breakthroughs. With the discovery of the vaccine for malaria in the 1850s, more
European explorers came to Africa. This new generation of explorers included
David Livingstone, Mango Park and many others. Encounters between Africans
and these explorers resulted in many accounts that heightened so-called racial
differences between Europeans and Africans. Most explorers perceived Africans
to be inferior, and they believed that it was their mission to lead them to Christian
salvation. The famous missionary David Livingstone, for example, asserted that he
visited southern and central Africa not only to convert Africans from ‘heathenism’
to Christianity, but also to introduce commerce. He believed that Christianity and
commerce would lead to ‘civilisation’, which, in turn, would save Africa from its
‘darkness’. In this regard, Livingstone’s view about the inferiority of Africans was
connected to the economic exploitation of Africa. According to Livingstone’s
scholar, Tim Leal, Livingstone used Christianity as a kind of ‘divine clothing which
he wore like a suit of armour.’ Through colonialism, the British Empire would bring
3Cs to Africa: ‘Commerce, Christianity and Civilisation’ — the phrase Livingstone
probably learnt from his close reading of the works of the American abolitionist
and passionate preacher, Charles Finney, whose theological tradition was opposed
to slaveholding and the slave trade. Finney’s theological tradition, radical as it was
during that time, played a major role in shaping Livingstone’s faith and attitude
towards the slave trade.20 Commerce, Christianity and Civilisation, in Livingstone’s
view, were interrelated. He believed that the British Empire was a tool through which
to introduce commerce. In this way, the Zambezi would be the trading channel
and ‘God’s highway’ for British trade. One way to open up Africa for colonialism
through the Zambezi was, according to Livingstone, the destruction of the slave
trade and the introduction of legitimate commerce. Commerce would, in turn, bring
about Christianity and civilisation. Drawing this connection between Commerce,
Christianity and Civilisation, Livingstone, in one of the lectures at Cambridge, wrote:
20 Andrew C Ross, David Livingstone: mission and Empire (London/New York, Hambledon and London
publisher, 2002) p. 17.
28
LEARNING UNIT 2: Representations of africa
‘By encouraging the native propensity for trade, the advantages that might be derived
from a commercial point of view are incalculable; nor should we lose sight of the
inestimable blessings it is in our power to bestow upon the unenlightened Africans,
by giving him the light of Christianity.’21
In his attempts to implement his 3Cs vision, Livingstone viewed Africans negatively.
He described Africans as ‘heathens’ who had to be ‘civilised’ through not only
commerce but also education. He writes that ‘Literature is therefore one essential
ingredient in a high degree of civilization, such as that of China, India, and Mexico
… The work of a missionary among the actual heathen is rendered dreary enough
by the daily attempts to convey knowledge of letters to those who care nothing
about it.’22 He also described African natives as ‘morally inferior’ and ‘excessively
wicked because they have no leavening influences.’23 In his letter to the London
Missionary Society, Livingstone compared different African peoples with regard to
their morality. He wrote that ‘I pitied their ignorance and wickedness … in morality
they are decidedly inferior … and considerably worse indeed than the heathen who
have had no advantages.’24 Thus, for Livingstone, Christianity and commerce were
the chief means through Africans could be familiarised with European work habits.
We should also note that Livingstone’s vision to open up or convert Africa was
unsuccessful. He only managed to convert one African, kgosi (chief) Sechele of
Bakwena ba Mmangwato, and this conversion later lapsed. Livingstone’s thinking
was also full of contradictions. For instance, while Livingstone did not openly
attack African cultural practices such as polygamy and bogwera [initiation], he saw
them as an obstacle to true Christian conversion. ‘Yet, while seeing many benefits in
tribal life, he was also aware that no missionaries could make any progress till that
life style had been disorganized and destroyed.’25 He felt that ‘without commerce,
Christianity could make no headway,’ and this ‘was in direct opposition to his heeling
that individual traders were exploiting Africans scandalously.’26 Other contradictions
in Livingstone’s thinking were evident in the fact that while he portrayed Africans
negatively, he had positive things to say about them: ‘With a general opinion they are
wiser than their white neighbours … They go direct to the point, and in so doing
shew a more philosophic spirit than the Germans … They have few theories but
many ideas.’27 Livingstone also said that ‘Africans are not by any means unreasonable.
I think unreasonableness is more a hereditary disease in Europe than in this land.’28
He also pointed out that ‘unbelieving Africans were not stupid, but showed more
intelligence than it is to be met with in our own uneducated peasantry.’
21 William Pakenham Walsh, Christian Missions: Six discourses delivered before the University of Dublin (London:
Hatchard & Company, 1862), p 225.
22 David Livingstone and Isaac Schapera, Livingstone’s African Journal: 1853-1856, vol. 2 (London: Chatto
& Windus, 1963), p 447–448.
23 David Livingstone and Isaac Schapera, Livingstone’s Missionary Correspondence, 1841–1856 (London:
Chatto & Windus, 1961), p 287.
24 Ibid.
25 Tim Jeal, p.3
26 Ibid., 2.
27 Ibid; 24.
28 Charles Saumarez Smith, ed. David Livingstone and the Victorian Encounter with Africa (National
Portrait Gallery, 1996) pp. 24–25.
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The role of Livingstone as a missionary and explorer has sparked a heated controversy
among scholars. Some historians claim that Livingstone was a super hero, an African
nationalist who laid the foundation of African nationalism, while others see him
as an imperialist agent who paved the way for political and economic exploitation
of Africa. In Europe Livingstone was viewed as a mythical super hero; ‘a lightbearing Christ that entered the supposed ‘darkness’ that was Africa; his moral basis
acted as an instrument for Christian expansion.’29 During the Imperial Obsessions’
conference held in Zambia between 19 and 21 April 2013 to celebrate Livingstone’s
life and legacy, a number of international scholars described Livingstone as an
African nationalist who was empathetic to the suffering of Africans. They viewed
Livingstone as a hero who displayed an undying courage during his exploration and
missionary work in southern and central Africa amidst famine, starvation, attacks
by slave traders and disease (malaria). An acclaimed Livingstone’s scholar, Tim Jeal,
argued that Livingstone, with his mixture of ‘bravery, pride, faith and obstinacy,’ had
a great vision to use the Zambezi exploration as a trade outlet and ‘God’s highway’
for commerce.30 Dr. Gary Clendennen of Kyoto University spoke about Livingstone’s
visit to the Shoshong Hills in present day Botswana in 1842, describing him as a
courageous and brave person, an ‘African nationalist’ who ‘knew no fear.’31 Similarly,
Chieftainess Nkhomeshya Makamambo II of Zambia described Livingstone as a
‘peace broker’ who ‘had feelings for the sufferings of others.’ She also pointed out
that ‘African hospitality had been crucial to his journeys.’ ‘He suffered with us, we
suffered with him,’ she told the attendees. She also spoke about Livingstone’s role in
fighting the slave trade, which was initiated by the Arabs under Sultan Oman on the
east African coast. 32 The minister of traditional affairs in Zambia, Professor Nkandu
Luo, indicated that Livingstone played a central role in Zambia’s history as he opened
up African trade and tremendously improved tourism.33 Dr. Joanna Lewis of London
School of Economics (LSE) said that while it was important not to lose sight of
the role of racism and exploitation which were integral to Livingstone’s exploration
in Zambia and Southern Africa, there was also a legacy Livingstone’s contribution
to development and education that needed to be revealed and understood.34 Even
Kenneth Kaunda, the former president of Zambia, described Livingstone as the first
person to fight for African liberation. According to Fidelis Nkomazana (1998) in the
article ‘Livingstone’s ideas of Christianity: Commerce and Civilisation,’ Livingstone
attacked the slave trade because it hampered African development and civilisation,
ideally moving towards ‘legitimate commerce and away from bartering and mutual
enslavement.’35
29 Ibid; 24.
30 Tim Jeal, LSE conference in Zambia. Accessed at http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/africaatlse/2013/04/23/
african-nationalist-or-imperial-agent-david-livingstone-analysed/
31 Ibid.
32 Ibid.
33 Ibid
34 Ibid.
35 Ibid.
30
We should realise that Livingstone himself once expressed this idea of fighting the
slave trade during one of his lectures. ‘By trading with Africa,’ he once remarked,
‘we should at length be independent of slave-labour, thus discountenance practices
so obnoxious to every Englishmen.’ In this regard, he believed that Christianity
would help African natives to move towards moral and material improvement.36
There are some critics, however, who argue that Livingstone was an imperialist
agent who paved the way for colonialism. This argument is hardly surprising,
because the British government funded Livingstone’s exploration of the Zambezi
in 1858, which dismally failed. According to Dr. Walima Kalusa of the University
of Zambia, Livingstone was a British imperial agent or figure who ‘tried to impose
values of industrial capitalism on tribal chiefs such as Sekeletu, the Makokolo king of
Barotseland, in present day Zambia.’ Livingstone had a tendency ‘to diminish anything
or any person that stood in his way.’37 This helps to explain his poor leadership skills
and inability to get along well with his fellow European explorers and friends. It also
explains that Livingstone did not explore Africa or create missions because he had
the welfare of Africans at heart. He used religion, specifically Christianity, as a tool
in his pursuit of British imperialism. The fact that Livingstone the missionary and
explorer was viewed as a ‘near-saint’ in both Africa and Europe is questionable. As
a geographer, Livingstone also ‘made faulty observations and had therefore misled
people into thinking whole regions were suitable for trade and missions, which were
in fact inaccessible and malarial.’38
We should also bear in mind that Africans were not passive agents of European
exploration evident in the spirit of Ubuntu they displayed towards European travellers.
Many provided European explorers with shelter, food and other basic necessities.
Africans acted as carriers, interpreters, translators, guides and servants to European
explorers, most of whom would not have survived without African assistance. David
Livingstone was often enormously dependent on African support. For example, the
Arab slave trader provided Livingstone with food. Mango Park, a Scottish explorer,
who almost died from hunger and thirst on his travels, was saved by a group of
African women who provided him with food and shelter. According to Park, the
women extemporaneously composed a song, which revealed much about their
Ubuntu and hospitality.
The winds roared, and the rain fell;
The poor white man, faint and weary, came and sat under our tree;
He has no mother to bring him milk; no wife to grind his corn;
Chorus:
Let us pity the white man; no mother has he.39
36 David Livingstone, William Monk and Adam Sedgwick, Dr. Livingstone’s Cambridge Lectures (London:
Bell and daldy, 1860), p 165.
37 LSE conference in Zambia. Accessed at http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/africaatlse/2013/04/23/
african-nationalist-or-imperial-agent-david-livingstone-analysed/
38 Tim Jeal, Dr. Livingstone and the cult of Victorian celebrity. The Telegraph, p.3. Accessed at
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/history/9937770/Dr-Livingstone-and-the-cult-of-Victorian-celebrity
39 Mungo Park, Travels in the Interior Districts of Africa (New York, 1971), p 198.
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Kevin Shillington expressed this spirit of Ubuntu in exploration, arguing that ‘it
is also worth observing that virtually every european explorer was dependent on
African hospitality and travelled with the aid of African guides and servants.’40
FIGURE 2.4.1
David Livingstone was a medical missionary with the London Missionary Society, and
an explorer of Africa during the mid-1800s. He was one of the first Westerners to make
a transcontinental journey across Africa, and became famous for his explorations.
He had many qualities that made him an excellent explorer; he travelled light with
few weapons, and had only a small company with him. this allowed him to venture
across many territories, because the chiefs did not see him as a threat.
Source: By Shannon Briden
Historical Significance, Livingstone’s travels.
FIGURE 2.4.2
robert Moffat, a Scottish Congressionalist missionary, was the father-in-law of
David Livingstone. He travelled and did work in many places throughout Africa
including Cape, namaqualand and griquatown. He had ten children, one of which
was John Smith Moffat who also became a missionary. Moffat outlived Livingston
by 10 years and a picture of him can be seen on page 38. Have a look at that beard.
Source: By Shannon Briden
Historical Significance, Livingstone’s travels.
40 Shillington, History of Africa, pp 304-305.
32
LEARNING UNIT 2: Representations of africa
FIGURE 2.4.3
Sechele I a Motswasele, also known as Sechele, was the ruler of the Kwena people
of Botswana. Sechele valued education, eventually mastering reading and writing,
and even sending his five children to study with missionary Robert Moffat. He was
converted to Christianity by David Livingstone, and happened to be Livingstone’s
sole converter. He later served as a missionary among his own African people.
Source: By Shannon Briden
Historical Significance, Livingstone’s Travels.
2.5
EUROPEANS’ PERCEPTIONS OF OTHER SOCIETIES
It was not only Africans who were singled out by Europeans as inferior. Another
example is the Native Americans of North America, who were seen as innately inferior
and degenerate. Native Americans, like Africans, were seen to be ‘stupid’, ‘dirty’
and ‘lazy’, and that they could not cultivate the land effectively. This, of course, led
to the justification that European settlers could use land in more productive ways.
Not all Europeans accepted these historically inaccurate myths about Native
Americans. Some Scottish Enlightenment thinkers, in particular, claimed that Native
Americans served as living proof of the early ‘hunting’ stage of social development
before the emergence of herding and the practice of agriculture, and they likened
the Native Americans to the early Greeks, Romans and Germans whose societies
emerged under similar conditions. They also maintained that Native Americans
were wise, and they appreciated their contempt for wealth and status, which, they
felt, should be emulated by Europeans. They symbolised ‘natural man’ who was not
influenced by the evils of civilisation.
During the colonisation of the Americas, French, Spanish and British held different
views about Native Americans. Many French and Spanish relied heavily on the
assistance of Native Americans in their exploration of the Americas, and they held
positive views about them. There were cases of intermarriage between them, as
further evidence of non-hostile contact. By contrast, the British tended to view
Native Americans more negatively and tended to marginalise them.
Another example of negative stereotyping is the British image of the Irish, whom
they frequently viewed in similar terms – labelling them as ‘savage’, ‘barbarians’,
‘inferior’, ‘superstitious’, ‘dirty’ and ‘violent’. In many significant ways, the British
perceived the Irish as little different from Africans and Native Americans. They
used these negative images to support their notions of their own racial superiority
and to justify their conquest of their territories. Why did the British create negative
HSY1511/133

stereotypes of the Irish as inferior? Britain experimented with Ireland in preparation
for her racial domination and conquest of, firstly, North American Indians and,
secondly, Africans in Africa. The English perceived the Irish as no different from
the Africans and the Native Americans. They used these negative images to support
their racial superiority and to argue that it was justifiable to take their land and
destroy their culture.
These kinds of notions were prominent during the period of colonial rule from the
end of the 19th century. European scholars such as H.G. Wells, Arnold Toynbee and
others presented a world history that placed European civilisation at the top of a
hierarchy’ of civilisation. They were influenced by ideas of European cultural primacy
and the absence of written historical records in Africa. This has been discussed in
some detail in Learning Unit 1.
2.6
IMAGE OF AFRICA DURING COLONIAL RULE
The views of the Enlightenment historians on the relationship between race/skin
colour and civilisation/historical achievement were carried over into the colonial
period. Following the footsteps of the early Enlightenment historians, scholars such
as H.G. Wells and Arnold Toynbee, presented a world history that placed European
civilisation at the top of the societal hierarchy. Like the Enlightenment scholars before
them, these historians were, in their writing of world history, influenced by the idea of
European cultural primacy and Africa’s absence of written historical sources, which
led them to believe that Africa had history not worth recording. (Read unit 1: what is
history? It provides a detailed analysis of other historical methodologies employed by
historians to reconstruct the historical past). The following 20th century European
scholars, whose interpretation and understanding of what constituted history were
inspired by the Enlightenment thinkers, should be studied:
• James Brested believed in the superiority of the European race, asserting in his
book, The Conquest of Civilization, that:
“On the South of the Northwest Qudrant lay the teeming black world of Africa,
as it does today. It was separated from the white race by the broad stretch of the
Sahara Desert. Sometimes the blacks of inner Africa did wander along [the Nile]
into Egypt, but they only came in small groups. Thus cut off by the desert barrier
and living by themselves, they remained uninfluenced by civilization by the North,
nor did they contribute appreciatively to this civilization.”41
• Hugh Trevor Roper, who vigorously argued that studying the historical experience
of non-African societies (especially in Africa) was to “amuse ourselves with the
unrewarding gyrations of barbarous tribes in the picturesque but irrelevant corners
of the globe.”42 Then, he pontificated without evidence with reference to Africa:
41 Berkshire publishing, Introduction: Africa’s role in world history (2011), p xv. http://berkshirepublishing.com/
assets/PDF/AfricaWH_Intro.pdf
42 Y.G-M Lulat, A history of African higher education from antiquity to the present (London, 2005), p 2.
34
LEARNING UNIT 2: Representations of africa
Perhaps in the future there will be some African history to teach. But at the
present there is none, or very little. There is only the history of Europe in
Africa. The rest is largely darkness, and darkness is not a subject of history.43
Echoing Trevor-Roper’s argument, historian Margery Perham in 1951 argued that
Africa prior to European contact was ‘without the wheel, the plough, or transport
animal; almost without stone houses or clothes except for skins; without writing
and so without history.’44
As we have seen, a new generation of Africanists in Africa, the United States and
Europe challenged the notion of equating history with written historical documents
during the 1960s and later. They developed a new method of studying history that
included not only written documents but also oral histories, linguistics and archaeology
as a means of reconstructing the African past. One of the leading challengers was
the Nigerian historian, Kenneth Dike, who vigorously questioned the historians’
Eurocentric approach to history and the tendency to equate history with literacy. To
Dike, the myth that Africa had no culture and past worthy of study was a colonial
paternalistic justification to conquer Africa and transform Africans into inferior
people. Europe’s unwillingness to grant Africa political independence was, according
to Dike, also based on the notion: ‘so long as the African is regarded as a man without
history, doubts concerning his ability to govern himself will find credence.’45 Jan
Vansina, a medieval historian by training, was another historian to challenge the
notion of equating history with literacy and written historical sources. In his book,
entitled Oral Tradition (1965), Vansina, was able to show that African oral traditions
are historical documents just like medieval manuscripts are historical documents, and
that historical methodologies can be developed for their proper understanding and
analysis. African historians began to use examples of complex African civilisations,
such as Great Zimbabwe, ancient Egypt, Mali and Songhay, as powerful evidence
against those who had paternalistically alleged that they were backward and without
culture. They were able to use these advanced African civilisations, especially ancient
Egypt, to challenge European concepts of race and civilisation, whose foundation
had been laid by the Enlightenment thinkers and scholars.
43 Zubairu Wai, Epistemologies of African conflicts: Violence, evolution and the war in Sierra Leone (New York,
2012), p 29.
44 Ibid, p 28.
45 Ibid, p 28.
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Figure 2.6
Great Zimbabwe ruins
Extract A
What have archaeologists found out about Great Zimbabwe?
Great Zimbabwe is an archaeological site which is a very important heritage
resource in Southern Africa. The name of Zimbabwe is based on the Shona term
dzimba dzembabwe, meaning ‘house of stone’. The ruins of Great Zimbabwe
provide evidence of an early and sophisticated civilisation.
In 1888, Cecil John Rhodes occupied the area of present-day Zimbabwe and it
became a British colony. For nearly 100 years, until independence in 1980, the area
was known as Rhodesia. During this period of colonial rule, the African people of
the area were dispossessed of their land, their rights and their heritage. Although
the evidence clearly showed that Great Zimbabwe had been built by Africans, the
Rhodesian government did everything in its power to suppress this knowledge.
Cecil John Rhodes and other white settlers refused to believe that Great Zimbabwe
was built by Africans. Rhodes employed a miner called Theodore Bent to dig up
bits of Great Zimbabwe in order to prove that it had been built by either Arabs or
Phoenicians.
Despite colonial attempts to suppress the heritage of the African people of the
area, Great Zimbabwe became a potent symbol of African achievement and
resistance. During the war years of the 1960s and 1970s, the African people held
up Great Zimbabwe as a symbol of the African nationalist struggle for freedom.
However, it was only after independence that Zimbabwe was able to reclaim its
history and heritage. The ruins of Great Zimbabwe have become a symbol of the
new state and its freedom from colonial rule. Symbols of the ruins are used on
Zimbabwe’s banknotes, coat of arms and flag.
Evidence was deliberately suppressed in order to promote the policies and belief
systems of the white colonial government in what was then known as Rhodesia.
36
LEARNING UNIT 2: Representations of africa
Extract B
The conclusions of Theodore Bent after excavating the ruins of Great Zimbabwe:
“A prehistoric race built the ruins ... a northern race coming from Arabia ... closely
akin to the Phoenician and Egyptian ... and eventually developing into the more
civilised races of the ancient world.” – P Tyson, The Mystery of Great-Zimbabwe
Extract C
The conclusion of Randall MacIver, an early archaeologist working on Great
Zimbabwe:
The former mud dwellings within the stone enclosures “are unquestionably African
in every detail and belong to a period which is fixed by foreign imports as, in
general, medieval.” – P Tyson, The Mystery of Great Zimbabwe
Extract D
Paul Sinclair, Curator of Archaeology at Great Zimbabwe, wrote:
“I was the archaeologist stationed at Great Zimbabwe. I was told by the then-director
of the Museums and Monuments organisation to be extremely careful about talking
to the press about the origins of the Zimbabwe state. I was told that the museum
service was in a difficult situation, that the government was pressurising them
to withhold the correct information. Censorship was a daily occurrence. Once a
member of the Museum Board of Trustees threatened me with losing my job if I
said publicly that blacks had built Zimbabwe”.
Source: http://www.sahistory.org.za/
Learning activity 2.6.1
Study figure 2.6 extracts A–D and then answer the questions that follow:
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
Who is the author of the book from which extract D is taken?
Study figure 2.6. extracts A-D and then critically answer this question in a
paragraph of 10 sentences. Who built Great Zimbabwe? Conclude your paragraph by commenting whether or not Great Zimbabwe was built by Africans.
Extract D refers to “withholding the correct information. What is this “correct information?”
For the following statements, write true or false. Give a reason for your
answer (one sentence).
(a)
Theodore Bent was an archaeologist.
(b)
E xtract B argues that Great Zimbabwe was built by Africans with
foreign assistance.
HSY1511/137

2.7
THE IMAGE OF AFRICA IN THE DIASPORA
The term ‘Diaspora’ refers to the scattering or dispersal of people from their original
country to various places in the world, spreading their customs, language and
religion as they go. In the case of Africans, diaspora was the result of the slave trade.
Millions of Africans were forcibly removed from their homelands and shipped across
the Atlantic. Africans in the diaspora used complex African civilisations, such as
Great Zimbabwe, ancient Egypt, Mali and Songhay, as their oasis of hope to return
to in times of scathing attacks by those who paternalistically justified slavery and
colonialism; against those who, time and again, reminded them that they were
uprooted from their homeland because they were ‘backward,’ ‘uncivilized and
‘without a culture.’ By the early 20th century, Africans in the diaspora used these
advanced African civilisations, especially ancient Egypt, to challenge the concept
of race and civilisation, whose foundation was laid by the Enlightenment thinkers
and the European scholars. A sense of pride and identification with Africa became a
prominent recurring theme that characterised some of this new tradition of casting
the image of Africa in much more positive terms. Leading this approach in the first
half of the 20th century were two African American scholars, Carter G. Woodson
and W.E.B. DuBois. Woodson wrote about the civilisations of Ethiopia, ancient
Egypt, Ghana, Mali, Songhay and Timbuktu. He argued that Ethiopia was ‘a highly
civilized Negro land’ and ‘at no time did the Negroes fail to figure conspicuously
in the civilization of Egypt’.46 Woodson challenged the conventionally accepted
arguments of missionaries and travellers, and proudly asserted that Egypt was a
black civilisation. DuBois, like Woodson, challenged European racial superiority
with such essays as ‘What is Civilization’, and argued that Africa was the cradle of
world civilisations. W. E. B. DuBois tells us:
Always Africa is giving something new … On its black bosom arose one of the
earliest, if not the earliest, of self-protecting civilizations, and grew so mightily
that it still furnishes superlatives to thinking and speaking men. Out of its darker
and more remote forest vastness came, if we may credit many recent scientists, the
first welding of iron, and we know that agriculture and trade flourished there when
Europe was a wilderness.47
DuBois continues:
Nearly every human empire that has arisen in the world, material and spiritual, has
found some of its greatest crises on this continent of Africa … It was through Africa
that Christianity became the religion of the world … and it was through Africa that
Islam came to play its great role of conqueror and civilizer.48
DuBois challenged the notion that Africa was backward, arguing that a number of
African people were extremely civilised before they were colonised by Europeans.
He made reference to a ‘particular collective’, the Wa-Nkonde, and argued that they
were one of the most successful groups in east and central Africa. DuBois tells us
that Wa-Nkonde ‘by their own inherent ability and the natural resources of their
country, were on the high road of civilization.’
46 Pero G. Dagbovie, Carter G. Woodson: The Father of Black History (South Carolina, 2014), p 130.
47 Samuel O Doku, Cosmopolitanism in the fictive imagination of W.E.B DuBois: Toward the humanization of a
revolutionary art (Lexington, 2015), p 120.
48 W. E. B. DuBois, Darkwater Voices from within the veil (New York, 1999), p 32.
38
LEARNING UNIT 2: Representations of africa
The themes of Africa’s connections with African Americans, and Africa’s contributions
to the world, were prominent in the writings of scholars in the Diaspora (those of
African descent in other parts of the world, particularly in the United States). While
scholars such as DuBois pointed to the economic, artistic and spiritual contributions
of Africans to America, others, such as Frederick Douglas, Martin Delany, Edward W.
Blyden and William Wells Brown had, like Woodson, celebrated the contributions of
Egyptians and Ethiopians in particular, and their agriculture, farming, ship-building
and mathematics. For example, Blyden argued that Africans had institutions that
were worthy of study, respect and preservation.49
Enlightenment philosophers therefore laid the foundations of powerful images of
Africa that tended to suppress any positive images of the continent and claim that
Africa was not part of any significant historical development. They attempted to prove
European cultural superiority and largely succeeded in doing so within their own
societies before the 20th century. This certainly helped in justifying the slave trade
before the 19th century, because Africans were seen to be inferior and even not fully
human. The European invention of Africa and Africans – as different, backward,
‘savage’ and the like – therefore underpinned the two powerful historical forces of
both slavery and colonialism.
Extract 3
Africans in the New World
From the very beginning of European exploits in the New World, Africans came
as explorers, servants and slaves. Even if Pedro Alonso Nino of Columbus’s crew
was not a Negro as has been claimed, there were many blacks who accompanied
other European explorers to the New World. As early as 1501, Spain relinguished
her earlier ban and permitted Africans to go to Spanish lands in the New World.
Thirty Africans, including Nuflo de Olano, were with Balboa when he discovered the
Pacific Ocean. Cortes carried blacks with him into Mexico, and one of them planted
and harvested the first wheat crop in the New World. Two accompanied Velas in
1520. When Alvarado went to Quito, he took 200 blacks with him. They were with
Pizarro on his Peruvian expedition and carried him to the cathedral after he was
murdered. The Africans in the expeditions of Almagro and Valdivia saved their
Spanish masters from the Indians in 1521. As Spanish and Portuguese explorers
moved into the interior of North America, Africans assisted in the undertakings.
They were with Alarcon and Coronado in the conquest of New Mexico. They
accompanied Narvaez on his expedition in 1527 and were also with Cabeza de
Vaca in the exploration of the southwestern part of the present United States.
One of the outstanding African explorers was Estevanico, who opened up New
Mexico and Arizona for the Spaniards. Although Estevanico was murdered, he
had prepared the way for the conquest of the Southwest by the Spaniards.
49
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Africans were with the French in their explorations of the New World. In Canadian
expeditions, they were with the Jesuit missionaries. When the great conquest of
the Mississippi Valley was undertaken by the French in the 17th century, Africans
constituted a substantial portion of the pioneers who settled in the region. Around
1790, Jean Baptiste Point du Sable, a French-speaking black, erected the first
building in a place that came to be known as Chicago. While Africans did not
accompany the English on their explorations in the New World, it is not without
ironic significance that they were extensively engaged in the task of opening the
New World for European development. If blacks helped to raise the curtain on
the drama of economic life in the New World, they were to play an even more
important part in the exploitation of its resources. Once fastened to a lifetime
status of slavery, they became an integral part of the economic life of both the
Old World and the New.
Source: J
ohn Hope Franklin, From Slavery to Freedom: A History of African
Americans, 7th edition, 1994. New York: McGraw-Hill, Inc., pp. 30–31
Learning activity 2.7.1
Study the extract above, and then answer the questions that follow:
(1)
Who discovered the Pacific Ocean?
(2)
What role did the following Africans play in the exploration of the New World?
(a)
(b)
(c)
2.8
Nuflo de Olano
Almagro
Jan Baptiste Point de Sable
CONTEMPORARY AFRICA AND VICTIMHOOD: POVERTY,
HIV/AIDS AND CORRUPTION
Africa is still portrayed negatively in both the western media and historical works
after colonialism and decolonisation. The major themes of this negative image are
poverty, HIV/AIDS and corruption. Poverty and HIV/AIDS have turned African
children into orphans, prostitutes and child soldiers, and have also created refugees
with lack of access to food and other services. Poverty also leads to domestic violence
against women and children.50 Poverty in Africa is so bad that even poverty-reduction
measures to boost economic growth cannot save Africa. Tony Howard White, et
al write:
Lacking political voice of their own, the introduction of anti-poverty
measures usually requires support from the middle class, either from
enlightened self-interest or to reduce the threat they perceive from the poor.
There is little evidence of such tendencies emerging in Africa which may be
attributed to growth failure.51
50 Howard White, Tony Killick and Steve Kayizzi-Mugerwa, African poverty at the millennium: causes, complexities and challenges (Washington, D.C: The World Bank, 2001), p xv.
51 Ibid; xix.
40
LEARNING UNIT 2: Representations of africa
The structural adjustment programmes (SAPs) introduced in the 1990s could not take
Africa out of poverty, nor prevent the poor from becoming poorer. White observed
that ‘early claims that policy change, as required by Structural Adjustment Programmes
(SAPs),’ would improve distribution appear to have been unfounded.52 According to
the author, ‘policy management under adjustment continued a tradition of neglect
of poverty-reduction’ measures.53 Governmental attempts to introduce the support
systems failed. Warfare, famine, HIV/AIDS are responsible for the breakdown of
such support systems in Africa.54
While some African countries faced poverty in the 1990s, others made great strides
to economic growth. Individually and collectively, Africans worked hard to provide
for their families and to improve the lives of their communities and the world. Luc
J. Christiaensen, Lionel Demery and Stefano Paternostro argue that the poverty
situation in Africa is not as hopeless as other historians and the media would like
us to believe. They draw our attention to the role of the International Monetary
Fund [IMF] and World Bank in eradicating poverty in Africa, arguing that African
governments were required to meet certain conditions of the IMF and World Bank
that required liberal reforms called SAPs. These programmes benefited a number
of African countries, such as Ghana, Uganda and others because they introduced
liberal reforms to reduce poverty.55
While HIV/AIDs epidemic has taken its toll in most parts of Africa, various African
countries, such as South Africa, Botswana, Senegal and Uganda have put measures in
place to contain the impact of the HIV/AIDS problem. Although these countries have
lost many people to HIV/AIDS, they now possess the capacity (antiretrovial drugs)
to curb the epidemic and to reduce its impact. The future in Senegal and Uganda
is more promising than in South Africa and Botswana. Yet, neither historians nor
the media tell these success stories. Their portrayal of Africa is negative, pessimistic
and hopeless.
Corruption is another major problem that has impacted negatively on Africa’s
economic growth. Corruption in the past and present, and whether in Africa or
throughout the world, is the result of ‘the bloated, parasitic, and highly inefficient
bureaucracy which has consumed a lot of valuable resources through generous
compensation packages, embezzlement and other unethical and illegal activities.’56
But we might ask the question: how do we explain the origin of this pervasive
corruption in various African countries then and now? The answer may lie in the
fact that, following the independence of African countries, African leaders engaged
in ‘opportunistic institutional reforms … geared’ towards self-aggrandisement to
benefit themselves, their families and their supporters.
52 Ibid; p xix.
53 Ibid; pp. xix-xx.
54 Ibid.
55 Luc J. Christiaensen, Lionel Demery and Stefano Paternostro in Growth Distribution and Poverty in Africa:
Messages from the 1990s, pp. 36-37.
56 HJohn Mukum Mbaku, Corruption in Africa: Causes, Consequences, and Cleanups (New York: Lexington
Books, 2007), p 4.
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We should always bear in mind that poverty, HIV/AIDS and corruption are not
unique to Africa. They are a world or global problem. Countries such as, Italy, United
States of America, Korea, Indonesia, Japan and many more face poverty, HIV/AIDS
and corruption on a daily basis in one way or another.
FIGURE 2.8.1
FIGURE 2.8.2
As late as the 21st century, Africa and Africans are still viewed negatively. A sense
of hopeless is reflected both in history books and the media.
FIGURE 2.8.3
42
Extract A
The inspirational story of how an African-owned coffee company became a
profitable global brand offers an argument for trade as opposed to aid, and
a lesson in how Africa can dictate the terms of its future
Since it was founded in 2003, Good African Coffee has helped thousands of farmers
earn a decent living, send their children to school, and escape a spiral of debt and
dependence. Africa has received more than $1 trillion in aid over the last 50 years
and yet despite these huge inflows, the continent remains mired in poverty, disease,
and systemic corruption. Here, Andrew Rugasira argues that trade has achieved
what years of aid failed to deliver, and has provided a tantalising glimpse of what
Africa could be. As he recounts the very personal story of his company and the
challenges that he has faced and overcome as an African entrepreneur—from the
impossibility of finding capital to discrimination at every step to close calls with lions
in the foothills of the Rwenzori mountains—Rugasira discusses the barriers that
currently prevent fair and equal trade between Africa and the rest of the world. He
sets out the arguments for building a sustainable trade framework and reducing
dependency on handouts, and he builds up a manifesto for a revolution in the way
that Africa is perceived.
Extract B
Government action to improve well-being: AIDS prevention in Senegal
Unlike some African countries, the Senegalese government has been the driving force
behind tackling AIDS at home and this led the way for the Organization of African
Unity’s AIDS declaration in 1992. Most of the country’s population is either Muslim
or Christian, so religious leaders were brought into the programme at an early age,
gaining their acceptance of the messages to be conveyed. Surveys show a very high
knowledge of AIDS, how it is spread, and how to prevent it. And this knowledge has
translated into changed behaviour. Women are postponing the age at which they first
have sex – the median being nearly 19 among 20-24 year olds compared to under
17 for 40-44 year olds. Data on condom use is hard to gather for the population as
a whole, but sales have risen from 800 000 in 1988 to seven million in 1997. The
vast majority of sex workers report that they use condoms with all paying partners.
Such high levels of condom use are unknown elsewhere in Africa, with the exception
of Uganda, where a combination of observing the effects of the disease firsthand
and government efforts have raised AIDS awareness and preventive practices.
Senegal’s success in combating AIDS clearly shows that African governments can
have the capacity to implement successful programmes if they have commitment.
Source: UNAIDS (1999)
Extract C
UGANDA AND HIV PREVENTION: SUCCESS OVERVIEW
It is hypothesised that the most important step taken by Uganda was recognising the
HIV epidemic early. Uganda’s President, Yoweri Museveni, was one of the first African
leaders to deal candidly with AIDS in 1986; one of his most successful moves was
a multi-sectoral collaboration across the country (Rule, 1986; UNAIDS, 2001). The
government have played an integral role in the war on HIV, not working solely but
strongly supporting the mobilisation of hundreds of community level organisations
such as NGOs, religious groups, and community activists (Murphy et al., 2006;
Parkhurst, 2002; E. C. Green et al., 2006). The successful collaboration efforts were
evident when the government widely acknowledged the roles other groups have
played, as it referred to those organisations as ’partners’ in the country’s effort to
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fight HIV, and involved them in the development of policy-level documents(Parkhurst,
2002). Furthermore, despite its poor financial resources, the government established
the earliest and most elaborate system of HIV monitoring in Africa at the time,
allowing for continuous monitoring of the epidemic (Asiimwe-Okiror et al., 1997;
Moodie et al., 1991; Slutkin, Chin, Tarantola, & Mann, 1988, 1990; Slutkin et al.,
2006; Stoneburner & Carballo, 1997; UNAIDS, 1998b).
Uganda’s success is widely attributed to successful behaviour change on the
population level (Anon, 1987; D. Kirby, 2008; UNAIDS, 2007) which occurred
within two to three years of Uganda’s planned and extensively implemented
AIDS education effort, thereby decreasing overall incidence rates among the
overall population (Douglas Kirby, 2008; Slutkin et al., 2006). Trends in sexual
behaviour appear to further support the trends in HIV prevalence in this HIV
epidemic (Kirungi et al., 2002).
However, Uganda’s falling HIV prevalence was confounded by speculation that
it relates to measurement bias (Stoneburner & Low-Beer, 2004; USAID, 2002),
a ’natural die-off syndrome,’ (Douglas Kirby, 2008; Stoneburner & Low-Beer,
2004; USAID, 2002), urban bias, migration, civil war, or natural HIV dynamics
rather than to reductions in HIV incidence linked to interventions (Korenromp et
al., 2002; UNAIDS, 1998a, 1999). There is evidence to counter these arguments,
including relatively stable HIV mortality rates since the early 1990s (Nunn et al.,
1997; Stoneburner & Carballo, 1997; Stoneburner, Lessner, Fordyce, Bevier, &
Chiasson, 1993), similar decline in HIV prevalence rates in male military, and other
wide-ranging supporting data on the epidemiological and behavioural changes
(Amana, 1990; Asiimwe-Okiror et al., 1997; Atkinson, 1989; Kamali et al., 2003;
Konde-Lule, 1995; Moodie et al., 1991; Stoneburner & Low-Beer, 2004; USAID,
2002). In fact, researchers estimated that 80% to 90% of the cases of HIV infection
were caused by sexual transmission, and consequently reductions in these sexual
behaviours were the primary causes of the decline in prevalence (Douglas Kirby,
2008). The rate of change in sexual partners, particularly concurrent partners,
is considered a critical determinant in the spread of HIV (Garnett, 1998; Shelton
et al., 2004). In general, the size of sexual networks directly affects the rate of
HIV transmission, and it has been found that reduction in the number of sexual
partners has the potential to destroying those sexual networks, and thus affecting
the HIV transmission rate (D. Kirby, 2008; Douglas Kirby, 2008). Consequently, in
Uganda, the key factor in the reduction of this rate has been linked to the reduction
in concurrent partnership among men and women (Murphy et al., 2006; Cohen,
2004; Shelton et al., 2004) although more significantly among men (Murphy et
al., 2006; D. Low-Beer & R.L. Stoneburner, 2004; Stoneburner & Carballo, 1997).
However, we also cannot neglect all the other diverse interventions that have taken
place in Uganda at the time, for the decline in the incidence and prevalence of HIV
in this country surely carries a more complex relationship with a multitude of factors.
Source: Zeenah Haddad, Understanding Uganda’s Change Success in curbing
a generalised HIV Epidemic
Harvard School of Public Health
44
LEARNING UNIT 2: Representations of africa
Learning activity 2.8.1
(1)
What message do figures 2.8.1 and 2.8.2 convey about how Africans are
portrayed in the media?
(2)
Africa always relies on foreign economic aid for survival. Do you agree
with this statement? Quote evidence from extract A to justify your answer.
(3)
Compare extracts B and C. What are the similarities? What are the differences? How do these extracts challenge the notion that Africa has been
ravaged by HIV/AIDS, and is in a state of helplessness?
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3
LEARNING UNIT 3
3
Political transformation in Africa
and the world
LEARNING OUTCOMES
When you have completed this learning unit, you will be able to answer the
following questions:
• Discuss the main political developments that have taken place over the
•
•
3.1
last four centuries with a particular emphasis on world and African history
Understand the ways in which different primary sources are used to construct
history
Consider the ways in which case studies are used to highlight the
different forms taken by Enlightenment ideas and their impact on political
transformation.
A BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO THE ENLIGHTENMENT:
REVOLUTION AND DEMOCRACY
There are certain political, economic and ideological features of our society that are
so powerful that they are seen as having always existed. Concepts such as democracy
and capitalism are familiar to us in the 21st century and have a great influence on
our lives – but this was not always the case.
If you lived in Europe in the 17th century, the world was a very different place to
what it is now. People’s lives were governed by their position in society. Ordinary
people were under the power of the aristocracy, the church and the ruler. They lived
during a time when the world was largely unknown – most people had not travelled
further than their own village, so other countries, people and beliefs were unfamiliar
to them, and seemed to them to be in the realm of legend and myth. Their lack of
knowledge about the world meant that disease, natural disaster or any other form of
misfortune was attributed to divine wrath. They believed that God was displeased
with them and punished them for their misdeeds.
Things, however, had slowly been changing – although these changes would take
some before it began to affect the way in which people thought about the world.
In the 15th century, the voyages of discovery dramatically increased the world as
Europeans knew it. Explorers like Christopher Columbus and Ferdinand Magellan
sailed to lands unknown to Europeans, encountering people who looked, spoke and
believed very differently from them. These contacts had both positive and negative
effects, but they ultimately challenged and changed the perspectives of Europeans
and the people that they encountered. We live in a world that has been shaped by
that process.
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LEARNING UNIT 3: Political transformation in africa and the world
In addition to having their geographical understanding expanded, Europeans also
had their intellectual understandings tested as well. People were largely illiterate, and
education was reserved for the clergy. Most people’s knowledge of the creation of
the world and their place in it was therefore derived from the Bible as explained to
them by the Church. In the 16th century, however, a new spirit of enquiry pervaded
society in what became known to historians as the Scientific Revolution. Scientists
such as Nicolaus Copernicus – drawing upon the findings of the ancient Greeks
two thousand years earlier – challenged the view that the Earth was the centre of
the universe. Isaac Newton’s three laws of motion provided an explanation for the
movements of the stars and planets. Science suggested that the natural world was
something that, instead of being a fearful place, could ultimately be understood. The
basis of this understanding was the scientific method. This method was suggested
by Francis Bacon, who proposed that reason and experimentation could be used to
understand the natural world.
What do you think was the implication of this?
These early scientists were often religious men and believed that science was a
means of understanding the magnificent workings of the universe that God had
created. However, the questioning attitude adopted by scientists and their reliance
on experimentation placed them at odds with religious belief which was based on
faith. This would ultimately bring science into conflict with the Church – which was
experiencing its own upheaval.
The Catholic Church, based in Rome, was the supreme power in Europe with
authority over even kings and emperors. The Church, however, was challenged by
the Reformation which was begun by a monk, Martin Luther, who expressed his
dissatisfaction with existing Church practices. The Reformation led to a breakaway
Christian movement which came to be called Protestantism. This form of Christianity
emphasised the individual’s relationship with God which did not have to be mediated
by the Church. The invention of the printing press had, for the first time, made
books cheap to print and, therefore, more accessible to everyone. People could
read the Bible for themselves. This also promoted a questioning of the authority of
religious leaders.
You should therefore be able to see that there were far-reaching changes that occurred
in European society in the 15th and 16th centuries. These can be briefly summarised as:
• The voyages of discovery
• The Scientific Revolution
• The Reformation
By the 17th century, then, the foundations were set for great change – and this would
come in the form of the Enlightenment.
It is difficult to overestimate the importance of the Enlightenment in shaping the
world as we know it. You will find that some mention is made of it in most of the
learning units in this module. It has affected most aspects of human history over the
past 300 years. The focus in this learning unit, however, will be on the Enlightenment
as it relates to states, governments and revolution.
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In this learning unit, we will be covering a great period of time and focusing on
countries and territories in different parts of the world. Some of you may find this
daunting. During the course of your reading, you may want to refer to the timeline
below in order to better orientate yourself in time and space.
Timeline of events
1650s–1720s (mid 17th to
early 18th centuries)
The Enlightenment begins in Western
Europe
1757–1857
East India Company rule in British India
1776
Outbreak of the American Revolution
1807
Britain abolishes the slave trade throughout
the British Empire, resulting in the formation
of ex-slave colonies in Sierra Leone and
Liberia
1857
Indian rebellion and the establishment of
British rule in India under Queen Victoria
1870–1914
High Imperialism marked by
European competition for colonies in Africa
and Asia
1870s
Japanese modernisation
1914–1918
First World War
1920s–1930s
Economic depression and the growth of
totalitarianism in Europe
1933
The Nazi party comes to power in Germany
1939–1945
The Second World War and the Holocaust
1941
The Atlantic Charter
post 1945
The Cold War begins; empires fragment
and Asian and African states gain
independence
The Enlightenment
European states in the 17th century were absolutist. This means that they were under
the control of a single leader – usually a monarch – who ruled with absolute power
with royal authority that passed from generation to generation. Kings were believed
to have been chosen by God and hence given a Divine Right to rule. To disobey
the king, therefore, was to defy God, which was something that few people could
contemplate. As you can imagine, then, the voice of the people counted for little.
Moreover, the state was very different from that with which we are familiar today.
The state (and the government) took little interest in the quality of life of their people
other than to collect taxes from them, most of which was used to finance the wars
48
LEARNING UNIT 3: Political transformation in africa and the world
that often wracked Europe. As the king was not elected, he did not usually feel a
great sense of responsibility or accountability to the people under his control.
The Enlightenment was the period when this situation began to change. Drinking
coffee had become quite fashionable in Western Europe, and coffee houses sprang up
in European capitals like London and Paris. Here, men would get together to discuss
current events that were now circulated through the large number of newspapers
and periodicals that owed their origins to the printing press. These men were largely
middle class – they were educated and wealthy but lacked political power which
was held by the aristocracy by virtue of their noble birth. This congregation of men
allowed for the flourishing of ideas and opinions in the new spirit of inquiry and
created a civil society. A similar process occurred in the salons of Paris. This refers
to the drawing rooms of wealthy homes where there were intellectual gatherings of
the middle class and aristocracy which allowed for discussion and the free exchange
of ideas. Although these were largely gatherings of men, their hostess was often a
woman of high status.
As you can see, the Enlightenment was confined to a wealthy elite who were educated
and had enough time and resources to engage in these activities. It is for this reason
that some of its earlier thinkers or philosophes were men from the nobility. The ideas
that they had, however, would have far-reaching effects and would ultimately affect
all levels of society.
Just as the work of scientists like Isaac Newton had resulted in the formulation
of scientific principles or laws that could explain the workings of the universe so,
too, was the Enlightenment based on a search for natural laws. Enlightenment
thinkers believed that just as reason could be used to explain the universe, reason
could also be used to explain the ways in which society worked. If these laws were
understood, they would allow for intervention in society to correct social ills. No
longer was poverty to be considered punishment from God, but could be attributed
to social and economic causes that could be addressed and solved. In this sense,
the Enlightenment was optimistic – society did not have to be accepted as it was
but could be improved for the benefit of all. What you must remember, however,
is that Enlightenment thinkers were not always in agreement as to the best way of
achieving a perfect society.
There are a number of key Enlightenment thinkers whose philosophies have influenced
the political development of the world since the 17th century:
• John Locke was an early English philosopher who argued that all human beings
•
were born with ‘natural rights’. To an extent, these can be equated to human rights
– people had the right to life, to be free (so long as their freedoms did not affect
the rights of others) and the right to own property. When human beings form a
society, each gives the state the right to ensure that their rights are maintained.
This is called the ‘social contract’. Law and authority should therefore be used
for the protection of its citizens. Should the state fail to uphold the rights of its
citizens, people have the right to overthrow the state.
Baron de Montesquieu was a French aristocrat who believed that the best form
of government was one that ensured that liberal rights were upheld and tyranny
avoided. To do this, there need to be restraints on the absolute power of the state
where the judiciary (or law) needed to be separate from all other state structures
in order to remain just and unbiased. While he spoke of liberalism, Montesquieu
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•
•
did not envision a democracy as we understand it. He felt that the best form of
government was a monarchy but, to prevent the monarch from becoming a tyrant,
there needed to be a strong and free aristocracy that would curb the power of
the king. Political power would thus still be held by the elite.
Jean-Jacques Rousseau was another French philosopher who stated that ‘man is
born free, but he is everywhere in chains’. This implied that all people were born
with ‘natural rights’ but were not allowed to exercise these rights. Rousseau adapted
the ‘social contract’ to a notion of the ‘general will’. This referred to the will of
all members of a society of rational human beings that served the good of all or
the common good. While Rousseau saw himself as defending the ordinary citizen
against the unrestrained power of the state, the concept of the ‘general will’ has
also been used to suggest that the rights of all are more important than the rights
of the individual. This has two implications – it promotes the social welfare state
which ensures that everyone has a basic standard of living. It can also be used to
defend authoritarian rule where a government can claim to represent the general
will of the majority of its citizens at the expense of their individual freedom.
Jeremy Bentham promoted utilitarianism which can be described simply as
‘the greatest happiness of the greatest number’. The actions of a state should be
judged by the extent to which they provide for the happiness of the majority of
their citizens. This was to be most evident in the creation of laws that would
promote prosperity and progress. As with Rousseau’s ‘general will’, utilitarianism
emphasised the common good or what was best for the majority, and Bentham
advocated for a democracy as the best form of government, as he believed it
would best represent the will of the people as expressed by the state.
We have just considered four Enlightenment philosophes or thinkers here, but you should
be able to see that there exists a tension in the Enlightenment which is something
that you need to bear in mind as you work through this learning unit.
Although the Enlightenment allowed for the birth of democracy, it was in absolutist
states that its impact was first felt. This occurred in Prussia under Frederick II who
became known as an ‘enlightened despot’. He drew upon Enlightenment philosophy
to reform the Prussian state, playing an active role in attempting to improve the lives
of his people by reforming the legal system, the bureaucracy and advocating religious
tolerance. No longer would rulers simply enjoy the benefits of their position without
the additional responsibility. Frederick II saw himself as a servant of the state, and
his role was to ensure the common good. His rule, however, remained absolutist.
It was in the creation of the democratic state that the Enlightenment left a lasting
legacy. It led to revolution in France and the overthrow of the king, which you will
learn more about in Learning Unit 3. The first state, however, that was created as a
result of the Enlightenment was the United States of America.
Case study: The American Revolution
Since its discovery by Europeans in the late 15th century, North America had been
subject to various waves of colonisation – Spanish, French, Dutch and British. By
the 18th century, British settlers had formed 13 colonies in the eastern part of North
America. These American colonists formed a society based on slave labour and were
considered British subjects. They maintained strong ties with Europe, and leading
American figures such as Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson contributed to
the intellectual ferment of the Enlightenment.
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LEARNING UNIT 3: Political transformation in africa and the world
Colonial discontent with British rule began as a result of a number of taxes that
were imposed on Americans. The British Parliament had passed the Declaratory Act
in 1767 which allowed them the right to pass legislation that affected the colonies.
Through this Act, Americans were subject to a number of taxes to which they had
not agreed, and the rallying cry of the American Revolution was ‘No taxation without
representation’. As British subjects, they felt that they had been unfairly treated when
Parliament passed legislation without their consent, thus ignoring their natural rights
as Englishmen.
Relations between Britain and the American colonists became increasingly tense. In
1773 the British Parliament allowed the East India Company to monopolise the sale
of tea to the various colonies. This would force Americans to purchase tea solely from
the Company and pay a tax on the tea. In response a group of colonists boarded a
ship carrying tea that was docked in Boston harbour and threw the tea overboard
in an act that became known as the Boston Tea Party. Tensions continued to grow
and war broke out in 1775.
The Americans had formed a Continental Congress which ultimately advocated
American independence from British rule. On 4 July 1776, Thomas Jefferson wrote
a declaration of independence on behalf of the Continental Congress.
Learning activity 3.1
Access the American Declaration of Independence at the following website:
http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/declaration_transcript.html.
accessed 6 April 2016.
Answer the following questions:
(1)
(2)
(3)
As you would have discovered in Learning Unit 1, historians use sources to
construct a view of the past. The Declaration of Independence is a primary
source, so what does it tell you about the impact of the Enlightenment on
the American Revolution?
Which of the Enlightenment philosophers do you think influenced Jefferson
as he was writing the Declaration?
Briefly summarise the view of that or those philosophers.
Support your answers with examples from the Declaration of Independence.
The war continued for a further eight years until the British were forced to concede
defeat, leaving the United States of America an independent country. The country
that came into existence was built upon democratic principles and the separation
of the executive, legislative and judicial branches of government. It was a blueprint
for the democratic states that were to follow – including our own. Yet, there were
limitations to their understanding of democracy.
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Learning activity 3.2
Look at the following definitions of different terms, and match them with the terms
below:
Athis emphasises individual freedoms or liberties such as freedom of speech
and association with safeguards taken to prevent a state from encroaching
upon these liberties
Ban action is judged to be correct if it upholds the happiness of the majority
C this is why power is exercised completely and is usually tyrannical in nature,
often leading to abuses of liberty
D
a theory that holds that power must be held by a single ruler or authority
Eemphasises an obedience to power which may entail the sacrifice of individual
liberty
F
a type of government that is headed by a hereditary ruling power
G
a group of like-minded citizens that are able to act together politically
Ha period in the 17th and 18th centuries when tradition was being questioned
in favour of reason
Ia system of government that is elected by the popular vote and represents
the interests of the majority
Ja form of agreement between members of society where individual freedoms
may be sacrificed in return for the protection afforded by the state
Match each of the terms listed below with one of the definitions above:
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)
(7)
(8)
(9)
(10)
3.2
Enlightenment
Despotism
Absolutism
Authoritarian
Civil society
Social contract
Liberalism
Democracy
Monarchy
Utilitarianism
THE ENLIGHTENMENT IN THE 19TH CENTURY: THE
ABOLITION OF THE SLAVE TRADE AND IMPERIALISM
By the dawn of the 19th century, the political impact of the Enlightenment had been
felt over much of Europe and North America. Absolute rulers, influenced by the
Enlightenment, envisaged a greater role for state intervention in the daily lives of
their people. The role of government was to improve the lives of its people and to
better society. This was carried out by the provision of educational opportunities,
infrastructure to facilitate communication and trade and philanthropic institutions
to provide social welfare for those most in need. Humankind would no longer be
the helpless victims of fate. Through the application of reason, the natural laws
governing society could be determined and this knowledge would enable progress.
We have, however, already seen that the Enlightenment was not all-inclusive. Those
that most benefited from revolution and the removal of inherited privilege were
white middle-class men – self-made men of property – who came to form a new
52
LEARNING UNIT 3: Political transformation in africa and the world
elite. These men became the citizens of the enlightened state who were considered
most qualified to exercise their democratic rights. This notion of citizenship was a
limited one – it excluded fully half the population (women), the working classes and
those who were considered property (slaves). These groups were believed to lack
the faculty of reason, making them ill-equipped to exercise the rights of citizens.
As you will see in the material for Learning Unit 4 (available on the module’s website),
reason and science could be used to determine a hierarchy of civilisation which placed
white men at the very top. Other groups fell further down the hierarchy based on
their perceived capabilities for reason. In this way, inequalities became fixed and
were given the status of truth as they were considered ‘scientific’. Enlightenment
philosophers had, however, introduced the language of rights and equality and, over
time, this could be used to address these inequalities.
This section focuses on the ways in which inequalities were both challenged and
reinforced in the 19th century.
The Abolition of the Slave Trade
Enlightenment philosophers highlighted natural rights which applied to every human
being. These rights included the right to life, liberty and property. The institution
of slavery highlighted a contradiction evident in this. If slaves had the right to life
and liberty, how then could they be held in captivity? In addition, slaves were also
considered property and belonged to their masters. Freeing them would infringe
upon their masters’ right to property. Social Darwinism had apparently solved this
contradiction by considering slaves to be less than human due to their racial origins.
The notion of the ‘survival of the fittest’ meant that white men, placed at the top
of the ladder of civilisation, were considered superior over the other races. They
possessed full ‘natural rights’. Slaves – considered subhuman – did not.
However, even as these arguments were being made, they were being challenged. The
trans-Atlantic slave trade was triangular in nature – slaves were obtained in Africa
and taken to the Americas and the West Indies. Here, they laboured on plantations
producing, among other crops, sugar and cotton which were shipped the factories of
Europe. The resulting manufactured goods were then traded to Africans in exchange
for slaves and raw materials. The trip across the Atlantic from Africa to the Americas
was called the ‘middle passage’ and was horrendous. Slaves were packed on board
ships in horrific conditions and many of them did not survive the voyage. Once in
the New World, they laboured under difficult conditions and were subject to harsh
punishments. The mortality rate was extremely high.
The conditions of slavery provoked an outcry and abolitionists drew upon Christian
morality as well as the ideas of equality and natural rights characteristic of the
Enlightenment to argue for the abolition of slavery.
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There has, however, been debate over the influence of humanitarian grounds on
the abolition of slavery. The United States of America was a country founded on
Enlightenment principles where slavery continued unabated in the southern states
until the mid-19th century. On a more practical level, however, the economy itself
was undergoing a shift. As you will see in Learning Unit 5 (available on the module’s
website), the industrial revolution and the growth of capitalism (also with its origins
in the Enlightenment) emphasised a free market economy which meant very little to
no state interference in the economy. This was based on waged rather than forced
labour. This ultimately led to the abolition of the slave trade in 1807 by Britain,
the country that, until then, had played the largest role in the slave trade. By 1815,
Britain was policing the seas to prevent the trade in slaves. You should remember
that, although the slave trade was abolished, this did not end slavery itself which
continued in the Americas. In fact, slaves became more valued items of property as
it was increasingly difficult to replace them due to the greatly reduced supply from
Africa.
Britain was now left with a dilemma – what was it to do with the slaves freed from
slave ships? The solution was to relocate them to the West African territories of
Sierra Leone and Liberia.
Case study: Sierra Leone and Liberia
The first settlers began arriving in arriving in Sierra Leone in 1787, and established
their capital in Freetown. A large proportion of these early settlers were made up of free
blacks from England, and the colony was founded upon the humanitarian principles
of abolitionists. At the same time, the colony was expected to be economically selfsustaining, demonstrating the economic viability of free waged labour. The colony
expanded in the early nineteenth century, its numbers swelled by a mixture of freed
slaves known as ‘Liberated Africans’ and those blacks who had sided with Britain
during the American Revolution.
The British government assumed direct control over Sierra Leone in 1808. During
this period, the transition from slave labour to free labour proved to be difficult
and freed slaves were sold as apprentices in a system of indenture that lasted for
seven years. As indentured workers they were tied to a particular employer until
their contract had expired. Although this could not be considered free waged labour,
those who opposed slavery approved the system as they believed that apprenticeship
was a means of instilling the values of civilisation in these freed slaves. Civilisation
was also undertaken by the Church Missionary Society, which emphasised Christian
values. Converts married, had families, went to church regularly and were educated,
forming a new middle class. This middle class saw themselves as British subjects,
adopting British culture in the form of dress, religion, education and trade. The
colony was seen as a means of promoting British values of civilisation, free trade
and, with it, abolition.
Sierra Leone attracted large numbers of settlers and provided a model for a new
settlement called Liberia, which was established in West Africa with the financial
assistance of the United States. Its capital was Monrovia, named in honour of
American president, James Monroe. Liberia attracted freed slaves and free blacks
from North America as well as slaves liberated from slaves ships. While Sierra Leone
was strongly British in character, Liberia had a greater American influence. Liberians
followed American middle-class traditions – Christianity, democracy, free trade
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LEARNING UNIT 3: Political transformation in africa and the world
and education. With the majority of Liberians originating in North America, they
created a culture that was distinct from that of the indigenous Africans around them.
Liberians also believed that they had a duty to spread the moral values of Christianity
and civilisation – which sometimes led to conflict between the two groups. Liberia
eventually declared its independence in 1847. It continued to grow in the mid-19th
century, fuelled by the steady emigration of ex-slaves from the United States after
the abolition of slavery.
Both Sierra Leone and Liberia are important, because they show the ways in which
ideas of civilisation that had their origins in Western Europe and North America
in the 17th century were increasingly applied to Africa after the abolition of slavery.
These values were not simply imposed by Europeans but by black immigrants from
Britain and, in particular, the United States. It would be these three ‘Cs’ of Civilisation,
Christianity and Commerce that underpinned British – and European – imperialism
in the latter half of the 19th century.
Imperialism
The imperialism that we are discussing here is more accurately known as high
imperialism which took place in the late 19th century. There are a number of factors
that contributed to the acquisition of colonial empires, one of which was the abolition
of the slave trade. As evident in the case of Sierra Leone and Liberia, the abolition
of slavery was tied to a desire to inculcate European Enlightenment values of
civilisation to people outside of Europe and the United States. When the slave trade
was abolished in 1807, missionaries were provided with the opportunity to go to
Africa and assist freed slaves. This allowed them to introduce Christianity, first to
slaves and then to indigenous Africans. They also become adept at speaking African
languages and acquired knowledge regarding the various customs of the African
groups with whom they interacted. They sent reports back to Europe regarding
the indigenous inhabitants of Africa as well as the potential natural resources that
could be obtained on the continent. In addition, as missionaries moved further
into the interior, they required land in order to set up permanent mission stations
and protection from hostile groups. This provided Europeans with the pretext for
a greater military presence on the continent.
Imperialism was also made possible by advances in European technology and
knowledge such as weapons, the use of quinine to combat malaria and the rapid
growth of communication and transport technology (see further discussion in
Learning Unit 5 on the module website).
The reasons for European interest in colonies were varied:
• The industrial revolution meant that European factories could produce
•
•
manufactured goods cheaply and in large quantities. Once European markets
were exhausted, the rest of the world could potentially provide new markets.
Colonies were also a source of raw materials required by industry and used for
domestic consumption such as rubber and cocoa.
Rich mineral resources were also exploited, such as gold in South Africa.
Colonies were also acquired for their strategic value, such as the Suez Canal which
allowed the British access to India for trading purposes as well as islands in the
Indian Ocean where fuelling bases were established to provide coal to the new
steamships that crossed the oceans.
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• Nationalism was a major motivation for imperialism. European nations competed
with each other for colonies – the greater the amount of territory controlled, the
greater the prestige of the imperial power.
Beginning in the 1880s, and for the various reasons outlined above, Europeans began
to vie for colonies in Africa in what became known to historians as the Scramble
for Africa. This competition was given a sense of structure when the chancellor of
Germany, Otto von Bismarck, held a conference in Berlin in 1884 to organise the
territorial division of Africa among the various European powers. The conference
laid down the rules for the acquisition of colonies – European powers had to take
control over a territory in order to claim it for their own. This stimulated European
expansion into the African interior and the continent was rapidly colonised until,
by 1914, only Ethiopia and Liberia retained their autonomy.
A similar process had been taking place in Asia from the mid-19th century. Britain
had traded textiles for tea with China. Over time, however, the Chinese lost interest
in British textiles while the British demand for tea continued. The British then turned
to the opium trade. Opium was produced in India and traded with the Chinese for
tea and then silver. The Chinese became increasingly addicted to the drug, and the
Chinese government attempted to halt the trade. In reaction, the British used military
force to continue the trade in opium. Britain’s superior military strength meant that
the Chinese were forced to surrender much of their independence to Britain and
other European powers. European states also took control over states that had fallen
under the Chinese sphere of influence: for instance, France dominated Indochina
which comprised Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia.
Case Study: East India Company Rule and the Civilising Mission in India
The Indian subcontinent had been ruled by the Mughals since the early sixteenth
century. However, by the 18th century, the Mughal Empire was in decline, which
led to a weakening of the central state and the growing strength of local rulers. The
French and the British were able to capitalise on this weakness to gain a foothold on
the Indian subcontinent and British forces eventually defeated the French. The British
in the form of the East India Company (EIC) took advantage of the competition
and tensions between local rulers to gain allies, subdue various groups and emerge
victorious, taking control of Bengal, one of the wealthiest areas in India. British
bases were also established in Bombay (present-day Mumbai), Madras (Chennai) and
Calcutta (Kolkata). The Mughal Emperor remained on the throne but, in reality, he
was merely a puppet with little power remaining.
Wealthy Indian states derived their revenue from taxes on agricultural production
– peasants who worked the land paid landlords (known as zamindars) who, in turn,
paid money to the government which was under the control of the EIC. EIC officials
became extremely wealthy and the money was used to enlarge the British army which
comprised Indian soldiers under British officers. This army allowed for further British
expansion in India. The British also used these taxes (paid by Indians) to purchase
Indian products that were then sold in Europe, generating further income. EIC rule
in India was, unsurprisingly, marked by great corruption.
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LEARNING UNIT 3: Political transformation in africa and the world
As the British army grew ever larger, the EIC needed to expand ever further in
search of greater income. Many Indian rulers were unable to meet increasing British
demands and the British took direct control over these areas. This army was then
used to further British expansion in south-east Asia where they established bases in
Sri Lanka, Indonesia and created the city-state of Singapore.
In India, the British found themselves faced with a society that was very different
to their own and their reactions differed. Early British rulers (known as GovernorGenerals) were known as orientalists. These men acknowledged that India had once
been a great civilisation but had gradually lost that magnificence and their role was
to reform the country to restore this glorious past. Occidentals, on the other hand,
were convinced of the superiority of Western civilisation and firmly believed that
inferior Indian civilisation had to be reformed along Western lines.
Orientalists such as Warren Hastings, a Governor-General, learnt Indian languages
and fostered the study of these languages as well as Indian law. He supported the
Asiatic Society which was established in 1784 which had strong Orientalist leanings.
Early portraits depicted Company officials in European dress and many took Indian
wives, leading to the creation of a new group of Anglo-Indians. At the same time,
EIC economic and military activities created great disruption in Indian society as
Indian rulers lost their independence. As you may remember, the Enlightenment
emphasised the importance of laws and Hastings began the process of reforming
Indian law. He created a bureaucracy and his successors attempted to create a distinct
set of India laws. Unlike British law, however, Indian law was fluid and changed
according to circumstance. The attempt to codify it and make it rigid altered it.
You might think about the question, then: do you think that the era of Orientalist
rule in India promoted only ‘authentic Indian tradition’?
Thomas Babington Macaulay was an uncompromising Occidental who believed the
Indians must receive a Western education in order to instil in them the values of
Western civilisation – all aspects of Indian culture, law and society were inferior and
needed to be reformed along Western lines. He famously said that Indians were to
be educated ‘to form a class who may be interpreters between us and the millions
whom we govern; a class of persons Indian in blood and colour but English in taste,
in opinions, in morals and in intellect.’57
Think about this quote carefully. What do you think he means here?
57 Quote taken from ‘Minute by the Hon’ble T.B. Macaulay, dated the 2nd February 1835’, http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/pritchett/00generallinks/macaulay/txt_minute_education_1835.html, accessed
3 May 2016.
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Under British rule, Indians, too, sought to reform their society. One such reformer
was Raja Rammohan Roy who was described as the ‘Father of Modern India’. Roy
advocated the use of reason in seeking to uncover truth, in contrast to religion. He
opposed the Indian practice of sati. This occurred when a man died and his wife was
cremated alongside him while still alive. The British termed the practice barbaric and
an indication of India’s lack of civilisation. Roy agreed. He believed that religious and
cultural practices should not be blindly followed but should be subject to inquiry and
criticism. He embraced Western science and mathematics but nonetheless believed
in the value of Indian literature, philosophy and art. This suggested that, while he
was willing to ‘modernise’ Indian society, he wished it to retain its unique identity.
After a century of EIC rule and corruption, Indians rose up in the Mutiny of 1857.
It began with the Indian soldiers or sepoys in the British army and became more
widespread as they attempted to restore the Mughal Emperor to power. After
great destruction and loss of life, the British triumphed. The Mughal Emperor was
removed from power and sent into exile, EIC rule was abolished and Britain took
direct control over India as a colony of the British Crown.
Learning activity 3.3
Letter from a British official in the East India Company to his wife in England1
1 March 1831
My dear Meg
I received your letter last week and it was most gratifying to hear from you, my
dearest wife. The past few weeks since my arrival here have been most trying
and I have developed a yearning for home.
I will do my best to comply with your request to learn more about this strange
land. I have a bungalow in the hills above the city. It is cooler here but the heat is
nonetheless stifling and I do not look forward to the dreaded summer.
I believe that this heat is in no small way responsible for the dress of the inhabitants
of this country which largely seem to consist of strips of coloured cloth woven around
their bodies and heads. The women, in particularly, are attired in the brightest of
hues and I shall endeavour to acquire some samples for you.
The people here follow two religions. The Mughal emperor is a Musselman and
they have been in control of this land for centuries. The majority of the inhabitants,
however, are Hindoo. They worship in ornate buildings and have a variety of gods
to whom they make offerings. Our missionaries have much work ahead of them
and have met with little success.
The people are divided into strict classes that are termed castes. It is a combination
of birth and profession. At the very top are the Brahmins or priests who are the
religious leaders and hold the rest in thrall. At the very bottom are the untouchables.
Those who have had the misfortune to be born as such are responsible for the
most odious tasks such as the removal of night soil. They remain in isolation from
the others and are subject to much discrimination.
Some of the buildings here are very imposing although their architecture is very
different from that at home. They have been built by the Mughals and comprise
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LEARNING UNIT 3: Political transformation in africa and the world
domes and soaring minarets. I have heard tell of the Taj Mahal, built by a Mughal
emperor in honour of his queen and I hope to visit it soon. I have also heard reports
of even more ancient structures that appear to predate the Mughals. It is clear that
this was once a great civilisation but it has lost much of its glory. The people are
in a state of decline and I believe we have an important role to play in instilling in
them the values of our civilisation.
This is a fascinating land and I am sure that I will acquire some familiarity with
it. I have already learnt a few words in the native language but would prefer that
they learn to converse in English instead!
I eagerly await your arrival in six months but, until then, continue to write and
relate to me news of home.
I remain yours,
Richard
Answer the following questions:
(1)
(2)
(3)
Would you consider this a primary or secondary source? Give reasons for
your answer.
Is the writer critical or accepting of Indian society? Use two examples from
the letter to substantiate your answer.
In the light of your understanding of the civilising mission of the British based
on Enlightenment values, what improvements do you think they hoped to
make in Indian society?
This letter is a fictionalised source.
Case study: Imperial Japan
At this point, you may have gained the impression that imperialism in the 19th century
was largely a European phenomenon, but this was by no means the case. From the
mid-17th to the mid-19th centuries, Japan had experienced a period of political stability
and, with this stability, came greater prosperity. There was an increase in agricultural
production that led to an increase in population. Cities expanded until the Japanese
capital of Edo (later to be renamed Tokyo) was one of the largest in the world. The
economy was monetised and there was a growth in trade and prosperity.
Japanese society was extremely hierarchical and ruled by an emperor with a powerful
aristocracy; however, real power was held by the military ruler who was called the
shogun. The Japanese maintained a sense of cultural isolation which they hoped
to preserve against Western influence. European domination of China, however,
presented a threat to Japan and Europeans and Americans believed that Japan could
be forced into unequal trading relationships with the West and allow the entry of
missionaries as China had done. The Japanese were faced with a dilemma. They
had to agree to some European demands until they were militarily strong enough
to defend themselves, or else they would suffer the same fate as China. Having to
concede to Western demands provoked internal conflict within the country which,
ultimately, led to the overthrowing of the shogun and the creation of a new centralised
state under the authority of the emperor.
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Japanese society underwent rapid modernisation in terms of education, a bureaucracy
and national military service. In the 1870s, a Japanese delegation went to the United
States and the Japanese state underwent further changes by adopting what they saw
as the strengths of the American system in terms of government and, in particular,
industrialisation. Through this process of adoption and adaptation, the Japanese
were able to maintain a position of strength when dealing with the Western powers,
and were also able to capitalise on Chinese weakness by acquiring Chinese territory.
Between 1904 and 1905, the Japanese were engaged in a war with Russia and ultimately
emerged victorious, the first Eastern country to do so in modern warfare. Japan
would later attempt to build its own empire in China and south-east Asia.
3.3
TOTALITARIANISM
Briefly read over section 2.1 to refresh your memory regarding the various
Enlightenment philosophes and their theories. Pay particular attention to JeanJacques Rousseau and Jeremy Bentham. By now, you should have seen the influence
of the Enlightenment on the creation of democratic states, the abolition of slavery
and the ‘civilising mission’ of imperialism. The Enlightenment was closely tied to
Western European notions of ‘civilisation’ that can be briefly summarised as free
trade, liberalism and Christianity.
Rousseau and Bentham, however, wrote of the ‘common good’ or the ‘general will’.
This emphasises that which is best for society as a whole over the natural rights of
the individual. This can be positive as it can be used to ensure the equality of all
members of society, protecting the rights of the weakest. This takes the form of the
social welfare state where a basic standard of living in terms of access to health care
and housing is provided for all.
On the other hand, should an individual or group come to power representing the
‘general will’, this allows them to ignore the rights of the individual if these do not
conform to the general will. In addition, it may pose a threat to minority groups
who as the general will or the ‘greatest happiness for the greatest number’ caters to
a majority. This is what happened in Germany in 1933.
Case study: Nazi Germany
Europe took a long time to recover after the First World War. The use of modern
technology – the tank, the aeroplane, the machine gun, poison gas – in warfare
resulted in a devastating loss of life, leaving the continent reeling. It also tested the
optimism and belief in progress that were hallmarks of the Enlightenment.
During the 1920s, European states had borrowed heavily from American banks and
the United States had invested in Europe. In the United States, people had been also
investing heavily in the stock market. As they continued buying shares, the prices
of these shares were artificially inflated far beyond their real value. In October
1929, however, the stock market crashed – panic-stricken investors began selling
their shares and the prices fell. Banks, too, had invested in the stock market using
the money that had been deposited and millions of people lost their savings. Banks
closed and people were unemployed. This affected the rest of the world as well,
because Americans started calling in foreign loans and stopped purchasing goods
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from overseas. American investment overseas was halted, and the United States
focused on its domestic economy. The Great Depression challenged the view of
capitalism as the ideal economic system. This resulted in the growth of communism
as a solution to the inequalities of capitalism.
The Great Depression also contributed to the rise of authoritarianism. The Soviet
Union was already a left-wing authoritarian state under the leadership of Stalin.
Fears of communism, however, contributed to the rise of right-wing authoritarian
movements in states like Spain, Italy and Germany.
Germany had suffered defeat at the end of the First World War. The Treaty of
Versailles which concluded the war forced Germany to pay reparations to the victors.
In addition it had lost territory and was forced to disarm. This Treaty became a
source of humiliation for the German people. The high reparation payments had
a negative effect on the German economy which was made even worse by the
Depression. Although Germany had become a democracy at the end of the First
World War after the abdication of its emperor, Kaiser Wilhelm II, this democratic
state was unable to handle the political and economic crises of the 1920s – which
allowed for the rise of fascism.
Adolf Hitler was born in Austria and had served as a soldier during the First World
War. Like many Germans, he was appalled by the Treaty of Versailles and believed
that Germany had not been defeated in the War but had lost due to the subversive
activities of people within Germany. For Hitler, these people were the Jews and the
Communists. He gathered like-minded individuals to form the National Socialist
Germany Workers’ Party, called the Nazi Party. However, Hitler’s initial plan to over
throw the German government in 1923 ended in failure and he was imprisoned.
During his imprisonment he wrote Mein Kampf (‘My Struggle’) where he attacked
Western liberalism, the communists and the Jews for what he saw as their role in
Germany’s failure. The Great Depression and the resulting economic and political
woes of Germany resulted in a huge increase in support for the Nazi Party. And, in
1933, Hitler was elected the chancellor of Germany.
Although his election was democratic, Hitler soon convinced the German Reichstag
(parliament) to pass laws that suspended civil rights such as the freedom of the press
and the right of people to hold public meetings. His supporters also used violent
means to suppress other political groups, eventually completely banning other
political parties. This left the Nazis in sole control of Germany. In this way, through
the use of force, intimidation and the abolition of liberalism, the Nazis established
authoritarian rule in Germany. This was done in the name of the ‘general will’ of
the German people. Hitler was elected into a position of power and he promised to
make Germany a supreme military and economic power once again.
A key feature of Nazi policy was the prioritising the state or the society over the
rights of the individual. Propaganda was used to instill the values of the Nazi Party
in German citizens and no political opposition was tolerated. The Hitler Youth
was formed to teach German children obedience and loyalty to the German (Nazi)
state. The German Women’s Bureau emphasised the important role of women in
bearing the children of the nation and they were encouraged to have large families
and denied access to birth control.
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At the same time, Hitler also had a very narrow definition of what constituted the
German people. Refer to the discussion on Social Darwinism and scientific racism
in Learning Unit 2. For the Nazis, people considered inferior were not the ideal
Germans. These people were those who were mentally challenged, homosexuals,
gypsies, political dissenters and, of course, the Jews. In 1933, the year the Nazis came
to power, laws were passed to sterilise those deemed ‘inferior’ so that they would
not contaminate German purity. Discriminatory policies were enacted against Jews
which prevented them from being employed by the state or by tertiary institutions.
Two years later, the Nazis passed the Nuremberg Laws. These laws were used to
identify Jews or those with Jewish ancestry who had to wear a Star of David to show
their ethnicity. They were no longer considered German citizens and, so, had no
access to the rights of citizenship. They were not allowed to marry Germans and
their property could be seized by the state. In addition, violent acts were carried out
against them with tacit state approval.
The Second World War finally broke out in September 1939 when Hitler’s aggressive
territorial expansion led to the Allied countries, led by Britain, declaring war against
Germany. At this point, Jews were physically isolated from other Germans in ghettos
and, eventually, concentration camps.
As the Second World War drew to a close, American and Soviet forces advancing
towards Berlin, encountered the concentration camps filled with emaciated internees
and piles of corpses. Over the months, mounting evidence and numerous eyewitness
accounts would make public the events of the Holocaust that resulted in the
extermination of six million Jews and a further six million ‘undesirables’.
Learning activity 3.4
(1)
Consider the following two features of totalitarian societies:
• Dictatorship
• Censorship
What would you expect the situation to be in a liberal society in relation to
these two features?
(2)
Consider the following three features of liberal societies:
• Rights of the individual are upheld
• Minority rights
• Transparency of state and legal process
What would you expect the situation to be in a totalitarian society in relation
to these three features?
(3)
Use a dictionary to define the following terms:
• Economic depression
• Reparations
• Communism
• Fascism
• Subversive
• Propaganda
• Ghetto
• Holocaust
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LEARNING UNIT 3: Political transformation in africa and the world
(4)
(5)
3.4
Consider the following question: Was the Holocaust ultimately a product of
the Enlightenment? In your answer, you should consider the role of industrialisation, science and technology in identifying and exterminating the Jews.
If we use imperialism and the Holocaust as examples, how are human beings
denied their ‘natural rights’? Your answer should take into account notions
of civilisation as well as Social Darwinism.
INDEPENDENCE
In this section you will benefit from reading the following online articles:
(1)W. E. B Du Bois,’The African Roots of War’, The Atlantic, World War
I Issue, https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2014/08/
the-african-roots-of-war/373403/
(2)W. E. B Du Bois, ’The African Roots of War’, ’In a very real sense Africa
is a prime cause of this terrible overturning of civilization which we have
lived to see.’ The Atlantic, May 1915 Issue, https://www.theatlantic.com/
magazine/archive/1915/05/the-african-roots-of-war/528897/
The Second World War broke out in 1939 after Germany had aggressively expanded
in Europe, taking over Austria, Czechoslovakia and Poland. Realising that diplomatic
measures would do little to stop Hitler’s ambitions, Britain and France declared war
on Germany on 1 September 1939. Two years later, after the Japanese attack on Pearl
Harbour, the United States entered the War.
Although the Second World War drew in countries from all over the world – including
South Africa – it was fought between two main groups, the Axis powers (Germany,
Italy and Japan) and the Allied powers (Britain, France, the United States and the
Soviet Union). From this, you should be able to see that, with the exception of the
Soviet Union, the Allied powers were largely democratic, while the Axis powers were
authoritarian states. The Allies believed that they were fighting a war to preserve
democracy and freedom against the tyranny of totalitarianism. With this in mind,
the leaders of the United States and Britain met in Newfoundland in 1941 and drew
up the Atlantic Charter which supported the principles of liberalism. Countries like
Britain and France, however, still held colonial territories. The question remained
as to whether they could reconcile a fight for the principles of freedom with their
own control over vast territories and people all over the world.
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Learning activity 2.5
Look at the Atlantic Charter, a document which supported the principles of liberalism.
The Charter can be accessed on the following website:
http://avalon.law.yale.edu/wwii/atlantic.asp, accessed 19 April 2016.
While the Atlantic Charter was designed to support those nations already conquered
or under threat by the Axis powers, it also gave some hope to colonised territories.
Which points, do you think, that the colonised people of Africa and Asia would find
most relevant to their own position? Give reasons for your answer.
The Second World War ended in 1945 with an Allied victory of Germany and
Japan. The devastation caused by six years of fighting left much of Europe in ruins.
Even the victors were not exempt from this. Britain had suffered repeated German
air raids, France had been occupied by Germany, and the Soviet Union had lost
the greatest number of soldiers and endured the greatest damage to property and
infrastructure as a result of a failed German invasion. Only the United States was
left largely intact as no fighting occurred on the mainland. In fact, the United States
emerged out of the war stronger than ever – its industries had benefitted from war
production and there was full employment. This placed the United States in an ideal
position to offer assistance to a shattered Europe – which it proceeded to do. Most
countries, including Britain, used American assistance to rebuild. There are several
points worth remembering here:
• In the post-war era, maintaining colonies for countries like Britain and France,
•
•
•
struggling with their own domestic economies, seemed more trouble than it was
worth.
At the same time, the indigenous inhabitants of these colonies began demanding
their freedom and political independence. To them it seemed hypocritical that
the countries involved in a war to defend freedom denied this same freedom to
the colonised.
Many colonised people had played an active role in the Second World War and
wanted their service and loyalty to be rewarded.
Finally, the United States did not consider itself a colonial power and advocated
independence. As the balance of power had shifted from Europe to the United
States by the end of the war, America’s influence was therefore great.
It is within this context that African and Asian states began achieving their
independence from colonial rule.
Decolonisation began rapidly after the end of the Second World War. In some states
such as Vietnam, independence was only achieved after war; in others it was a more
peaceful process. Colonisation left a lasting legacy in places like India, where the
partition of the country created the independent state of Pakistan and was marked
by a great deal of violence between Hindus and Muslims.
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LEARNING UNIT 3: Political transformation in africa and the world
Decolonisation was also complicated by the Cold War, which was a war of ideology
between the Communist Soviet Union and the democratic United States and drew
in much of the rest of the world. Both sides actively intervened in newly independent
states in order to foster their respective ideologies. The new states that came into
being ranged from democracies to military dictatorships, and their domestic policies
were now part of a global struggle for ideological supremacy.
Case study: The Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo can be found in Central Africa. You may
have frequently heard of it in news reports, which highlight the ways in which the
state has failed to fulfil the social contract by either repressing or failing to protect the
natural rights of its citizens. This has created a climate of corruption, violence, fear
and intimidation. The roots of the political, economic and social ills of the Congo
can be traced back to the late 19th century when European countries competed for
colonies in Africa in what became known as the Scramble for Africa.
By the time of the Berlin conference of 1884, Leopold II, king of Belgium, had
already laid claim to the Congo which was then subject to a particularly harsh form
of imperialism. Leopold claimed that his interest in the Congo was humanitarian –
he would end slavery and bring civilisation to the people of the Congo. The reality
was far different, however. A key motivation in the Scramble for Africa was the need
to obtain raw materials for European industries, and the Congo was first a source
of ivory and then of rubber. Using forced labour that was little different to slavery,
Leopold II and various concession companies exploited the area with little regard for
the natural rights of Africans and, despite claims to be introducing civilisation, the
only infrastructure that was built was that which was used to transport raw materials.
Men, women and children were forced to collect rubber and, for those who failed to
do so, their hands were chopped off. Hostages were taken to force people to work,
and women were subject to rape as a form of intimidation and torture. European
visitors to the Congo were appalled and a public outcry was raised until, eventually,
Leopold was forced to relinquish control of the area – for a price – to the Belgian
government in 1908.
The Belgians were willing to grant independence to the Congo in 1960, but they
had not prepared the country in any way for this, which would lead to chaos. Recent
studies have suggested that Belgian haste was a deliberate attempt to leave the Congo
unprepared in the hopes of still retaining some form of power over the state. African
leaders would remain dependent on Belgium and Belgium could still exploit the rich
mineral resources of the country that were found in the Katanga province. Before the
first democratic election took place, the Belgian government adapted the country’s
constitution to allow greater power to the provinces so that, even if the country was
led by someone unwilling to follow Belgian dictates, Katanga would retain its power.
The country also lacked the necessary skills and resources for its development, since
Belgium had only been interested in exploiting the country’s resources than training
the citizens. In spite of that, Congo was expected to start running its affairs using
European models previously unknown to them, and to forgo the tried and tested
pre-colonial governance systems. As a result, the country was ill equipped to run
its own affairs.
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Patrice Lumumba became the first democratically elected prime minister of the
Congo and was to prove hostile to Belgium from his very first speech, where he
claimed that his people had finally been liberated from colonialism. In contrast, the
Belgian king spoke of Belgium’s noble role in the Congo in fostering civilisation
and hoped that Lumumba would continue to follow Belgian advice. Unsurprisingly,
Lumumba proved unwilling to do so.
Two months after the election, the armed forces rebelled and, in reaction, Lumumba
had the Belgian military leaders replaced with African officers, including Mobutu
Sese Seko, who was made chief of staff. The Belgian government intervened in
the crisis, sending their own troops to protect their interests in the Congo. Their
presence also encouraged the wealthy Katanga province to declare its independence
from the rest of the Congo.
For Lumumba, this was seen as an act of war by Belgium, which no longer had the right
to interfere in an independent state. However, the United Nations was unsympathetic
as the United States and Britain were opposed to Lumumba’s government which
they feared was furthering socialism. You must remember that this occurred during
the context of the Cold War which had divided the world into two hostile camps
and newly independent states were also drawn into this conflict.
Due to Lumumba’s failure to follow Western dictates, Britain, the United States
and Belgium decided that Lumumba – a democratically elected leader – needed to
be ousted from power. The American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) exerted
pressure on the President of the Congo, Joseph Kasavubu, to fire Lumumba and
he was put under house arrest by Mobutu, also working with the CIA. In January
of 1961, Lumumba was executed in Katanga, an event which was witnessed by
representatives of the Belgian military.
The Katanga province maintained its independence for more than two years,
during which its mineral resources were exploited by Belgian mining companies.
It once again became part of the Congo in 1963, after the United Nations finally
played an active role in ending the secession. Mobutu took authoritarian control
of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1965, and was supported for much of
his rule by the United States, due to his hostility to Communism. His renamed the
country Zaire and his period of leadership was marked by corruption and human
rights abuses. Mobutu was ousted from power in a coup in May 1997 and later died
in exile in Morocco in September 1997.
Since 1996, the region (once again known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo)
has been subject to internal conflict resulting in the death of millions of Congolese
and necessitating intervention by the United Nations (including the involvement
of South African troops). Despite its rich mineral wealth, development is poor and
there is a high level of violence, particularly against women. Child soldiers are also
a product of years of conflict. The Democratic Republic of the Congo remains a
state in crisis.
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LEARNING UNIT 3: Political transformation in africa and the world
Learning activity 2.5
Consider the following questions:
(1)
Based on the case study of the Congo that you have just read in Learning
Unit 3, do you think that European and American intervention in the region
was based on Enlightenment principles?
This is a more complex question than it appears to be and your answer
will need to take into account ideas of individual freedom and the common
good, trade, civilisation, and the competing ideologies of communism and
capitalism.
(2)
Would you consider the Congo to be an example of a failed Enlightenment
project or do you think that its roots lie in the Enlightenment? Give reasons
for your answer.
Further reading on the Congo:
Those of you who are interested in reading more about the Congo could profitably
consult the following book: Adam Hochschild, King Leopold’s Ghost: A Story of
Greed, Terror and Heroism in Colonial Africa (London: Pan Books, 2006).
Case study: Tanzania and an alternative to capitalism
Tanzania gained its independence from Britain in 1961 under the leadership of Julius
Nyerere, who then ruled the country for 25 years. He had a particular vision for
Tanzania which differed from that of Western capitalism and communism which
were the two poles of the Cold War. Nyerere was influenced by the work of JeanJacques Rousseau and had a vision of an African state that followed a particular
African socialist path that he described as ujamaa which meant ‘pulling together’.
Socialism can be considered as placing an emphasis on the common good rather
than the individual and ujamaa was an attempt to put that into practice.
Whereas liberalism consists of a free market economy with little state interference,
the practice of ujamaa meant that industry and agriculture were taken over by the
state which used the profits to invest in education, housing and health care to ensure
a decent standard of living. All citizens were considered equal economically and the
gap between rich and poor was greatly reduced. Collective villages were set up where
people shared resources and work equally and made decisions together.
Other than attempting to overcome the poverty left in the wake of colonisation,
Nyerere was also particularly concerned about the discrimination experienced by
women in these rural areas, noting how they suffered inequality. In these collective
villages women were encouraged to voice their concerns and their opinions. They
were no longer placed on the lowest rungs of society due to their gender and, because
of their greater empowerment, there was less domestic violence as well. Western
monetary assistance flowed into Tanzania in order to support this vision. It seemed
as if Nyerere had created the perfect egalitarian society – but it did not last.
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By the time Nyerere stepped down as president, the country’s agriculture was in a
poor state and its economy had been steadily declining. People spent far less than
they had previously and earned barely enough to make a living. At the same time,
the country had a high standard of education and there was little of the warfare that
had marked the move to independence in other African countries.
For Nyerere, the failure of Tanzania did not lie with ujamaa but with the outside world.
Tanzania was not a country in isolation but was dependent on a global economy.
The price of oil rose in the 1970s and 1980s which was imported by Tanzanians. At
the same time, the prices of their own exports of hemp and coffee fell dramatically.
The leader who replaced Nyerere, Ali Hassan Mwinyi, moved Tanzania away from
the socialist path in order to help the country recover economically. But Nyerere
continued to believe in the strength of ujumaa.
While we have looked at the way in which the Western-inspired Enlightenment helped
shape the world, a British socialist named Ralph Ibbott was so inspired by ujamaa
that, upon his return to Scotland, developed something similar in an economically
depressed part of Glasgow and went on to write about Nyerere’s socialist project.
Learning activity 2.6
Work through the following questions:
(1)
Using a dictionary, provide a definition of the following important three terms:
Communism
Socialism
Capitalism
(2)
In South Africa, the term Ubuntu is often used. What is your understanding
of its meaning? Can we relate this to Nyerere’s ujamaa?
Is Nyerere’s philosophy solely African or can you compare it to aspects of
the Enlightenment? Consider the work of Rousseau and Bentham here.
What does Nyerere believe the reasons were for the failure of the ujamaa?
What does this suggest to you about the power of an individual state?
(3)
(4)
68
•
•
•
4
4
LEARNING UNIT 4
Ideological and religious change in
Africa and the world
LEARNING OUTCOMES
When you have completed this learning unit, you will be able to answer the
following questions:
• Differentiate between various ideological and religious developments which
•
•
•
occurred over the course of the past 400 years.
Demonstrate insight into the reasoning for perceptions of ‘modern’ societies
about ‘primitive’ societies.
Understand why historically different notions of modernity dominated
historical studies.
Discuss case studies from global perspectives, related to ideological change.
TIMELINE OF EVENTS
1450–1950 Extensive European colonisation
1700–1750 The Enlightenment
1775–1783 The American Revolution
1789–1799 The French Revolution
1791–1804 The Haitian Revolution
1800 London Missionary Society establishes mission station in
Bechuanaland
1804–1903 The Sokoto Caliphate
1823–1900 The Anglo-Ashanti Wars1835 A merican
Board
of
Commissioners for Foreign Missions establishes mission station
in Dakota
1895 Amadou Bamba exiled by French authorities
1900
First Pan-African Conference, London
1917
Bolsheviks in Russia seize power: start of communist rule
1919
First Pan-African Conference, Paris
1921
Second Pan-African Congress, London, Brussels, Paris
1923Third Pan-African Congress, London and Lisbon
1927
Fourth Pan-African Congress, New York
1945
Fifth Pan-African Congress, Manchester
1947 India achieves independence
1947–1991 The Cold War
1955 The Bandung Conference
1957 Ghana becomes first African country to gain independence
1961 The Wretched of the Earth by Frantz Fanon first published
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4.1
INTRODUCTION
This learning unit will introduce you to some of the most influential ideologies of the
past 400 years. However, before you can successfully engage with the work which
will follow, it is important that you understand what an ideology is.
An ideology, in essence, is a set of ideas (or a doctrine) that a group of people shares.
Ideologies are important because they embody ideas which affect several aspects of
society, including political, economic and social theories and policies.
As you can imagine, world history consists of thousands of different ideologies. I
have subsequently only selected some ideologies which had a profound impact on
modern society. Please be aware that several other ideologies that I do not discuss
in this unit do in fact exist: these include ideologies relating specifically to gender,
the environment, politics, and the economy.
By the end of this unit, you will be acquainted with ideologies such as liberalism,
religion, pacifism, communism, nationalism and decolonisation. As ideologies often
act as catalysts for change, they are resisted at times. Your attention will be drawn to
some of these instances. These ideologies and their related developments will only
be discussed briefly, to ensure that you acquire a general overview. If you would like
to explore any of these ideologies in more detail, you are encouraged to peruse the
recommended reading list at the end of this unit.
4.2
THE BIRTH OF LIBERALISM
Think back to Learning Unit 2’s discussion about the Enlightenment and the
American and French Revolutions of the 18th century. That unit focused on the
political implications of those historic events. However, you should be aware that
these events did not occur in a political, social or economic vacuum. They originated
and were shaped by ideas. In addition, these events had an impact on the development
and spread of certain ideologies. This section will introduce you to some of the
ideologies associated with these events.
The Enlightenment saw philosophers write about a broad variety of topics, covering
aspects such as:
• Liberty
• Equality
• Progress
• Fraternity
• Tolerance
• The nature of the state
As you should recall, the Enlightenment was, in essence, a period of new and often
radical ideas. These were focused on creating a more rational and humane society.
The invention of the printing press enabled the spread of these ideas on a great
scale. As a result, coffeehouses all over Europe became meeting places for people
of different walks of life to talk about these ideas that they read about.
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LEARNING UNIT 4: Ideological and religious change in africa and the world
For the purposes of this section, the ideology which you should be able to grasp is that
of liberalism. Liberalism is an ideology associated with ideas of liberty and equality.
It goes hand-in-hand with the notion of progress. During the Enlightenment, this
related specifically to the implementation of these ideas of freedom and egalitarianism.
The Enlightenment refined the idea of liberalism. In recent history, this ideology
has evolved into several diverse forms, including classical, economic and democratic
liberalism, to name but a few.
Liberalism is important, because it had an impact on both the American and French
Revolutions. Subsequent to that, it also affected notions of progress which Europeans
had at the time that they colonised vast areas of land across the globe.
Several of the key figures in the Enlightenment, such as David Hume, Dugald
Stewart and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, found resonance with this ideology. Their ideas
of liberty and equality also later provided an ideological framework for the American
and French Revolutions. For example, in Hume’s seminal work, A Treatise of Human
Nature, he explores ideas of modernity relating to human beings’ morals, passions
and understanding.
The ideas of liberalism eventually spread across the Atlantic Ocean and had an impact
on The American Revolution, which was discussed in more detail in Learning Unit 2.
Read the following extract from the Declaration of Independence of 4 July 1776,
where the American colonies stated their intentions:
‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they
are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are
Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.’58
Can you see how the ideas of the Enlightenment are present in this document?
Ideas of liberty and equality were deeply rooted in the conflict that ensued during that
revolution. Both the American Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution
emphasise liberty and equality.
The American Revolution’s opposition to Britain was supported by the French.
After the conclusion of the war, French soldiers returned home from America with
a new confidence. This assurance lay in the knowledge that a revolution based on
the principles of the Enlightenment was practically possible. Subsequently, in 1789,
the French Revolution started. The French revolutionaries sought:
• Equality for all its citizens
• Fraternity (solidarity) in their society
• Liberty (freedom) from the oppressive feudal system
The French insurrectionists essentially based an entirely new revolution on similar
ideas to the American Revolution. Their Declaration of the Rights of Man (1789)
also focused, inter alia, on the fact that all men are equal, as well as on the liberty
to do as one pleases, as long as it does not injure anyone. The French Revolution,
although violent, brought about large-scale change to the structures of French society.
These include the abolition of the absolute monarchy and the long-standing feudal
58 http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/declaration_transcript.html, accessed 3 May 2016.
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system, the introduction of democratic principles, as well as the notion of a nation
state. As with the American Revolution, these changes were possible because of the
ideological framework provided by the Enlightenment years before.
The Enlightenment and the American and French Revolutions utilised liberalism
as harbingers of progress within their respective societies. Liberalism specifically
focused on enhancing individual freedom.
Learning activity 4.1
Once you have worked through the section relating to liberalism, you should have
a basic understanding of liberalism serving as a mechanism to achieve social and
political progress.
See if you can answer the following questions:
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)
4.3
Provide a definition of the word ‘progress’.
Does progress mean the same thing to different people?
Did ‘progress’ entail the same thing for the American Revolution and for the
French Revolution? If you are uncertain about the American Revolution, you
can refer back to Learning Unit 2 for more details on what the intentions
and subsequent outcomes of that revolution were.
Why do you think the notion of progress is affected by an individual’s social,
economic and political background?
Are progress and modernity the same thing?
From what you have learnt, do you think that Europeans applied this notion of progress to Africa in asserting that all men are equal? Refer to the
material in Learning Unit 4 on the website to assist you to formulate your
response to this question.
THE SPREAD OF RELIGION
One of the most influential and lasting ideologies that spread globally over the past
400 years is that of religion. Although the world currently contains thousands of
different religions, this section will briefly look at two religions: Christianity and
Islam. These two religions affected the largest number of people in the course of
the past four centuries.
Learning activity 4.2
Look at the map that has been provided on the module website for this activity.
It indicates the prominence of various religions across the globe in recent times.
This map illustrates an overview of the global concentration of various religious
denominations.
List the regions of the world where Christianity and Islam are most prevalent.
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LEARNING UNIT 4: Ideological and religious change in africa and the world
Four hundred years ago, the religious map of the world looked very different. Islam
and Christianity had already established themselves in parts of Europe, the Middle
East and Northern Africa, but large portions of the world had not experienced any
significant contact with other religions apart from their traditional beliefs.
It was only with the outset of colonialism and imperialism that the ideology of
Christianity spread considerably. Although colonisation and Christianity are two
wholly different things, the former enabled the spread of Christianity, specifically
through its missions, known at the time as ‘civilising missions’.
Christianity
Before you read more about the spread of Christianity, you need to assess some
ideological factors and imperialistic motivations that facilitated the spread of the
religion. Europe went through a series of changes relating to ‘progress’, which
ultimately enabled colonisation. This included the Industrial and French Revolutions,
as well as the birth of new nation states of the 18th and 19th centuries respectively.
Some European nations had also established trade routes with regions in Western
Africa. This was part of the triangular trading process with the Americas. Europeans
subsequently already possessed some idea of the potential that Africa could provide
in terms of securing resources and economic stability.
Another ideological aspect that justified large-scale colonisation came from an unlikely
source: the naturalist Charles Darwin. In 1859, Darwin published one of his most
famous works, On the Origins of the Species. In this seminal publication, he proposed
the theories of evolution and natural selection. Darwin’s research relating to natural
selection postulates that it is common in nature for the strongest and fittest organism
to survive, often at the expense of the less strong.
A variety of contemporary intellectuals adapted Darwin’s hypothesis of natural
selection to also apply to people – hence the term Social Darwinism. This ideology
ultimately entails that one group of people could ‘scientifically’ justify the oppression
of another group, due to their perceived historical, cultural and religious superiority.
This ideology was not only used by colonists, but also in Japan, China and Nazi
Germany. Learning Unit 2 explored totalitarianism in the milieu of Nazi Germany
in more detail.
In line with this, some Europeans believed that they belonged to a forward-thinking,
technologically advanced and ‘modern’ civilisation. This assumption was made in the
wake of the previous two centuries of economic, political and social progression. The
Europeans believed that people indigenous to the parts of the world that they had not
yet colonised were ‘primitive’, ‘backward’ and ‘barbaric’. These descriptions related,
to name but a few, to differences in various aspects of the lives of indigenous people:
• Attire
• Beliefs
• Languages
• Social customs
• Lack of written languages in favour of oral traditions
For a more detailed view on how Europeans viewed Africans, you can refer to
Learning Unit 4, available on the module’s website.
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This notion of superiority played a part in the significant extent of imperialism and
the spread of Christianity. Europeans believed that it was their duty to ‘civilise’
indigenous people across the world. To ‘civilise’ an indigenous person was to convert
and westernise them. This essentially aimed to transform them into replicas of
Europeans. One of the ways in which they achieved their ‘civilising mission’ was
through the implementation of Christianity.
In 1884, the Conference of Berlin formally started the Scramble for Africa. This
was despite the fact that several European countries already occupied some parts of
the continent. However, the Conference officially set out the formal conditions of
colonisation. European nations subsequently colonised Africa in a frenzied manner.
This historic event, although associated with colonisation, was also responsible for
the increased spread of Christianity on the continent (which had begun well before
1884 but which accelerated in the wake of the Conference of Berlin).
However, the spread of Christianity extended beyond Africa. As settlers established
themselves in various parts of a global colonial empire, so too did their religious
ideology. It was often postulated that religion was the most effective tool to ‘civilise’
an indigenous society.
The role of missionaries was formative in the civilising mission. Mission stations were
established with the express intention of converting the local population. However,
missionaries’ objectives spanned beyond the spiritual. They also, amongst many others:
• Provided aid in terms of medical assistance.
• Recorded several oral traditions and local languages.
• Introduced local people to western agricultural techniques.
• Attempted to teach indigenous people across the globe how to read and write.
However, not all missionaries had philanthropic intentions. Some, under the guise of
spreading their gospel, instead furthered imperialist interests. They often, inter alia:
• Undermined local religious traditions.
• Misquoted the Bible to further imperialist intentions.
• Participated in the decay of cultural traditions of indigenous people.
• Forced converts to westernise, often leading to individuals being ostracised from
their communities.
Local inhabitants had varying responses to missionaries. Some were treated with
suspicion (as with the Native Americans), whereas other missionaries were welcomed.
Some local communities were of the opinion that missionaries brought bad luck,
and were to blame for natural disasters such as droughts or cattle disease. The
reception that they received depended largely on the individual communities. When
missionaries were treated with suspicion, it was often due to the fact that they also
represented encroaching imperial values. Christianity generally did not allow for local
people to remain rooted in what were described as ‘heathen’ traditions. Practices
such as polygamy, initiation and sacrifices were frowned upon. The western way
of life that missionaries advocated also often removed local inhabitants from their
natural environment.
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LEARNING UNIT 4: Ideological and religious change in africa and the world
On the other hand, missionaries were also seen as harbingers of wanted goods, such
as firearms. In addition, invitations to missionaries to establish themselves in local
communities served as a political message for imperialists, indicating a willingness
to cooperate. Furthermore, western agrarian techniques were often coveted, as more
successful agricultural production increased wealth.
Learning activity 4.3
As we have mentioned in the section that we have just covered, the impact of
missionaries was a global one.
Read the two case studies provided on the module website for Activity 3.3, which
deal with the contexts of Bechuanaland and North Dakota respectively, and mission
stations there in the 19 th century.
Now answer the following questions:
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
How can you deduce that the missionaries believed that the local inhabitants were ‘uncivilised’ and ‘primitive’?
Why did the missionaries believe that they were ‘civilised’ and ‘modern’?
Historical writing is hugely dependent on primary sources. Read through
the two case studies again and identify extracts that could be regarded as
primary sources. You can refresh your memory about primary sources by
referring to Learning Unit 1.
Bearing oral traditions and the availability of certain primary sources in mind
(as illustrated in the two case studies), why is it that history is sometimes
regarded as being ‘Eurocentric’?
Although these two case studies take place on two different continents,
there are similarities between them, specifically pertaining to the manner in
which Europeans perceived and treated indigenous inhabitants. Similarly,
there are also several differences. Write a paragraph where you highlight
these similarities and differences.
Negro Spirituals
Christian evangelical activities in America were not limited to mission stations. Slave
owners in that region ensured that their slaves were regularly read scriptures from
the Bible. Often slave owners used extracts from their holy book to justify slavery.
Sections from the Bible that were emphasised to the slaves included passages that
focused on the virtue of hard work, obedience and servitude. This helped the slave
owners to ensure that the slave population was cooperative, docile and submissive.
The Bible was also used to justify the ill-treatment which slaves faced regularly, such
as public beatings and lynching. Slaves were also forced to westernise.
As time progressed, slaves found great resonance with and comfort in Christianity.
They particularly identified with the hardships that certain Biblical characters
endured, as in the tales of Moses, Jonah and Noah. The notion of a heavenly reward
at the end of their difficult lives also encouraged slaves and gave them hope. Soon,
Christianity became an integral part of the slave societies’ social fabric. Slaves held
their own church services in what they coined ‘praise houses’. In addition, slaves
developed their own hymns, named Negro Spirituals.
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These songs often contained not only religious, but also social meanings. Recurring
themes in the songs include:
• Freedom
• A desire for justice
• Heaven being the land of their dreams
• A reunion with a loved one who had passed away
• An escape from the wearisome world in which they lived, often through death
• Despite the fact that slaves experienced great losses during the trans-Atlantic
slave trade, their spirit remained intact.
Slaves did not only sing these songs while they were participating in religious practices.
Instead, they permeated all spheres of their lives. Slaves sang Negro Spirituals while
they worked for their slave owners in order to break the monotony, while going about
their daily lives, and during social occasions. For example, slaves who were required
to pick cotton on the plantations sang these songs in groups while performing their
back-breaking and arduous duties. This alleviated the boredom of the monotonous
task, while also strengthening their sense of community with other slaves with shared
experiences. Thomas Wentworth Higginson, an American abolitionist, detailed the
importance of Negro Spirituals to slave communities in a newspaper article in 1867.
Of the tune, ‘Room in There’, he noted that:
Every man within hearing, from oldest to youngest, would be wriggling and shuffling,
as if through some magic piper’s bewitchment; for even those who at first affected
contemptuous indifference would be drawn into the vortex erelong.59
Negro Spirituals also strengthened the sense of community for the slaves. This is
due to the fact that the songs often required participation from a large group of
people, where every slave was given an opportunity to sing a verse. Slaves also often
interjected with personal exclamations (such as an ‘amen’, or ‘ah-ha’) if a certain
phrase resonated with them.
Several Negro Spirituals have been assimilated into popular culture, such as the hymn
‘Michael Row the Boat Ashore’, and ‘Swing Low, Sweet Chariot’. Have a look at the
Negro Spiritual below and see if you can identify any of the themes highlighted earlier.
I Know Moon-Rise
I know moon-rise, I know star-rise,
Lay dis body down.
I walk in de moonlight, I walk in de starlight,
To lay dis body down.
I’ll walk in de graveyard, I’ll walk through de graveyard,
To lay dis body down.
I’ll lie in de grave and stretch out my arms;
Lay dis body down.
I go to de judgement in de evenin’ of de day,
When I lay dis body down;
And my soul and your soul will meet in de day
When I lay dis body down.60
59 T. Wentworth Higginson, ‘Negro Spirituals’, The Atlantic Monthly, 19, 116 (1867), 685–694.
60 Wentworth Higginson, ‘Negro Spirituals’, 685–694.
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LEARNING UNIT 4: Ideological and religious change in africa and the world
Of ‘I know Moon-Rise’, Wentworth Higgison wrote that ‘never, it seems to me,
since man first lived and suffered, was his infinite longing for peace uttered more
plaintively’.61
Christianity continued to spread as imperialism extended its influence over the world.
It subsequently was to become the largest religion in the world.
Learning activity 4.4
Listen to this example of a Negro Spiritual:
https://archive.org/details/TheSouthernFourSwingLowSweetChariot
(accessed 16 May 2016)
While you listen to it, consider the following questions:
(1)
Identify prominent themes contained in the lyrics.
(2)
Think about how the ways in which slaves were treated affected their attitude
towards religion. Link your thoughts to the knowledge that you acquired
about slavery in Learning Unit 2.
(3)
How did Negro Spirituals enhance the slaves’ lives?
(4)
How did the Bible and Christianity contribute to both the suppression and
the upliftment of the slave population in North America?
Independent Churches: early expressions of nationalism62
African political and religious authority were closely interrelated. Traditionally, the
chief was the guardian and protector of religious shrines and ancestral spirits. In
some contexts, especially in West Africa, the chief was viewed as ‘the spirit of the
land.’ The arrival of Europeans destroyed the African chief’s traditional authority and
tremendously weakened the authority of African traditional religion, thus paving the
way for the spread of Christianity. This was particularly the case by the beginning
of the 20th century, which saw a major growth of Christian missionary expression.
The missionaries introduced elementary education and rudimentary health clinics in
African communities. These services attracted thousands of Africans to Christian
mission establishments whose religion was allied closely to European culture and
political power from 1910 into the 1920s.
With the passage of time, however, some Africans expressed their dissatisfaction with
these Christian missions. Already in the 1880s and 1890s in South Africa, African
Christian clergymen had rebelled against European domination of their churches.
A number of these clergymen formed their own independent Christian churches,
encouraged in many instances by American evangelists. The movement was known as
the ‘Ethiopia Church’, after the use of Ethiopia’ as a name for Africa in the Christian
Bible. The tendency to reject European control and to form independent African
churches spread to central Africa in the wake of European colonialism. African
church leaders took the teachings of the Bible more literally than some of their
European colleagues. They saw in the Bible the doctrines of justice and the equality
61 Wentworth Higginson, ‘Negro Spirituals’, 685–694.
62 See, K.E. Fields. Revival and Rebellion in Colonial Central Africa, (Princeton: Princeton University
Press, 1985) and Kevin Shillington, History of Africa, (Palgrave-Macmillan, 2012).
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of humankind. The promise of the ‘second coming’ or what W.E.B DuBois with
regard to American slavery later called ‘The Coming of the Lord,’ was seen by many
as heralding an end to the oppression of the new colonial regimes. In this regard,
the Independent Church movement can be seen as an early expression of African
nationalist sentiment against European colonialism. One of the strongest voices of
African Christian protest came from Elliot Kenan Kamwana who, inspired by an
iterant English preacher Joseph Booth and Charles Russell’s WatchTower teachings,
founded the WatchTower sect, later called Jehova’s Witnesses, in 1908 at Malawi,
and the movement was popularised throughout Central Africa. It was in particular
Charles Russell who exposed Kamwana to a mixture of his own Sabbatarian beliefs
and WatchTower doctrines. Such influences shaped Kamwana’s stance against
colonialism, especially his ‘second coming’ preaching which would liberate all of
Africa from colonial rule. Added to Russell’s influences was Kamwana’s education,
which he received at the Free Church of Scotland mission, Bandawe (Malawi) and
the United Free Church of Scotland Livingstonia Mission between 1898 and 1901.
There is no doubt that Kamwana, like John Chilembwe discussed below, was exposed
to enlightenment ideas, which came to fruition in his challenge against colonialism,
especially the introduction of school fees. Born in 1872 in Mzimba District of Malawi,
Kamwana was a pacifist who strongly believed that such practices as school fees
and colonial taxation would be ended and that Africans would achieve political selfgovernment. Kamwana’s WatchTower preaching attracted thousands of followers,
as it went against restrictions set by European missionaries. Among such limitations
were the fact that Africans had to undergo a two-year preparation period before
they could be baptised and were also required to have basic literacy. Kamwana’s
WatchTower millennial message (‘second coming’ preaching) landed him in trouble
with the British authorities who regarded his preaching as seditious. This led to his
arrest in 1909, and in 1910 he was deported to South Africa. Even after his arrest
and deportation, Kamwana’s Watchtower movement grew in strength in various
African countries such as the Belgian Congo, Zambia and Tanzania.
Perhaps the most famous African Christian ‘rebel’ of the 20th century was John
Chilembwe, also from Malawi. Chilembwe, like, Elliot Kamwana, was influenced by
Joseph Booth, a radical and independent English missionary. In 1897, Chilembwe
enrolled at the Virginia Theological Seminary in Lynchburg, Virginia. While in
America, he was influenced by the works and ideas of John Brown, Frederick Douglass
and Booker T. Washington. Upon completion of his studies in the US, Chilembwe
returned to Malawi, and with the support of the National Baptist Convention of
America, founded his own mission station, Providence Industrial, in the Shire
Highlands – an area of white plantation settlement with huge European estates.
Inspired by Booker T. Washington’s teachings, Chilembwe used his position in the
church to preach about the values of hard work, self-respect and self-help to his
congregation, and to deplore the condition of Africans in the protectorate. He also
worked closely with other independent churches such as the Seventh Day Baptist
and Churches of Christ to address the exploitation of African tenants, chronic food
shortages, compulsory hut tax and other general poor living conditions on whiteowned estates. His main message was African advancement through Christianity
and hard work. Chilembwe, unlike Kamwana the pacifist, favoured armed revolts
in his quest for rapid African advancement. By 1914, Chilembwe was viewed with
suspicion by the British government, which then decided to deport him to Mauritius.
But before the government carried out its plan, Chilembwe and his ‘new men’ or
educated lieutenants had, in 1915, led their followers in a brief rebellion against
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specific local and general injustices of the colonial regime, which included inhuman
treatment of African workers on the white-owned estates, excessive labour and poor
payment of African workers. Like the American John Brown, Chilembwe first wanted
to obtain arms and ammunition and then attack European estates.
While the inhuman treatment of Africans on white-owned plantations drove
Chilembwe’s agitation, it did not sufficiently account for his uprising against the
British rule. It was the First World War that mostly played a major role. Chilembwe
objected in particular to the conscription of more than 200 000 Africans into the
war and the shedding of innocent African blood in the First World War conflict in
the northern borderlands of Malawi. He drew parallels with John Brown’s uprising
and had resolved to ‘strike a blow and die,’ and he did indeed die, shot while escaping
into Mozambique. But the blow he struck was symbolic, an inspiration to a later
generation, which earned him an honourable place in the folklore of the Malawian
nationalist movement and contemporary independent church movements.
Islam
The most prolific spread of Islam occurred in the centuries immediately after the
death of the Prophet Muhammad in the year 632 of the Christian era (C.E.). This
religion spread on a large scale, partly due to the fact that it went hand-in-hand with
military conquests in the Middle East. It was also introduced to individuals who
were willing to convert themselves, in an attempt to unite diverse people and to
avoid violent altercations.
Islam arrived in Africa one century later, during the 8th century, and Africans in the
northern parts of the continent converted readily. This was due to the fact that many
Africans favoured Islam, as it was not as prescriptive as Christianity and it allowed
for Africans to remain rooted in their treasured traditional beliefs. However, in other
instances, Islam spread through military conquest.
In addition, as time progressed, trade routes between African and Islamic merchants
became well established, including the trade route that spanned across the Sahara
desert. This was also a vehicle which enabled Islam to spread. Furthermore, Muslim
scholars assisted with the development of religious expansion in that area.
A similar pattern occurred in parts of Asia (such as Indonesia and China), where
Islam spread at the hand of traders. Islamic states were generally peaceful towards
individuals aligned to different denominations and as a result, their converts increased
systematically. For example, in some Islamic regions in Asia, there was a discernible
lack of discrimination against individuals who prescribed to other religious ideologies,
such as Christianity. However, these other religious denominations had to pay
extra taxes. As a result, conversion rates to Islam saw a significant increase, because
Christian local inhabitants converted over time as individuals sought to evade taxes.
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More recently and notably over the past four centuries, however, Islam’s spread
was markedly slower than that of Christianity. As you have already read, one of the
reasons why Christianity spread so rapidly in the past four hundred years, is because
it was an extension of colonisers’ ‘civilising mission’. Christianity and imperialism
in the 18th century go hand-in-hand. As imperialism extended its reach to a global
society, so did the adherents of Christianity. Ultimately, as empires and civilisations
expand, so too do their religious adherents. Similarly, if an empire or civilisation
experiences a decline, so too does the prevalence of its religious denominations wane.
Thus, in contrast to Christianity, the spread of Islam during this period is often
associated with the Islamic Ottoman Empire. However, by the 19th century, the
Ottoman Empire underwent a notable decline. As its imperial ambitions waned, so
too did the extent of Islam’s growth in the region. Proportionately, the growth of
Islam also reduced globally, especially when in comparison with Christianity. As the
Ottoman Empire declined, so too did the spread of Islam under its control.
However, the legacy of the Ottoman Empire remained manifested in religious
ideology. As a result, several countries which were part of the Ottoman Empire
have Muslim denominations to this day, if in some instances only in the minority.
The Ottoman Empire’s trade routes on the Indian Ocean also led to the Islamic
conversion of a number of Africans on the east coast of the continent.
Islam, at this stage in history, saw limited growth. That is not to say, however, that this
religion did not expand its global influence to some extent. Islam spread specifically
in Africa, the Middle-East and South East Asia. However, Islam’s development did
not reach the same extent as Christianity in this timeframe.
In Africa, Islam grew as a result of a number of successive jihads. Historically, the early
stages of the spread of Islam were sometimes associated with individuals converting
freely and willingly. In the past four centuries, however, a more militant approach
was taken where individuals were more frequently coerced into conversion. These
religious wars against non-believers took place in western and northern Africa. The
jihads were largely successful in the 18th and 19th centuries.
From these jihads (such as during the Fulani Revolution in West Africa), the powerful
Sokoto Caliphate came into existence in Western Africa. This Caliphate saw it as
its religious duty to participate actively in the spread of Islam. Jihads, as a vehicle of
spreading the Islamic gospel in Africa, peaked in the early 19th century. These were
a successful way of ensuring that large numbers of individuals converted to Islam,
as illustrated by the fact that the Sokoto Caliphate was able to unite an estimated ten
million people in Western Africa under its rule. The Sokoto Caliphate is therefore
also regarded as one of the most powerful territories in Africa in the 19th century.
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This state eventually declined as a result of encroaching European interests, which
culminated in conflict between the British and the Caliphate. The British triumphed
and had taken control of the region by 1906. Tension between indigenous Muslims
and imperialistic Christians was certainly prevalent during this period, and several
Muslim groups resisted the encroaching Christian interests that the colonisers
brought with them, notably through military resistance. Local populations had by
this time accepted Islamic beliefs with the local population, and these were deeply
engrained, which meant that Christian colonisers faced extreme difficulties in their
pursuit of converting indigenous Africans to Christianity. Generally, the colonisers
were ruthless in their suppression of opposition.
On a global scale and to a much more significant extent, Islam enjoys the spread
of its ideological beliefs in much less dramatic ways than the means utilised by
the extremist minority. The large-scale migration of Muslims to parts of Europe,
America and South East Asia is responsible for the global characteristic which Islam
has assumed. It is currently the second largest religion in the world.
Ultimately, the spread of religious ideologies runs concurrently with the movement
of people. This principle applies to creeds beyond those of Christianity and Islam.
Judaism, Hinduism and even Buddhism grew as their believers engaged in trade
and migration through the ages. The growth of Christianity, specifically, was rooted
in a ‘civilising mission’ as Europeans attempted to westernise what they regarded
as ‘primitive heathens’. Due to the magnitude of colonisation, Christianity became
the most prominent world religion. Islam saw the spread of its religious ideology in
Africa as a result of trade, people settling in new regions, and sometimes through the
activities of extremist Islamic groups. Ultimately, the ideological legacy of religion
remains engrained in the fabric of most societies across the world.
Learning activity 4.5
Draw a table of two columns, one for Christianity and one for Islam.
Provide reasons in each respective column on why Christianity spread so
significantly over the course of the past four centuries, while Islam experienced
slower growth.
4.4
RESISTANCE TO THE SPREAD OF WESTERN IDEOLOGIES
This section focuses on various forms of resistance against encroaching colonial
interests and western ideologies. It aims to make you aware of different types of
resistance, with examples from Haiti and the Ashanti Kingdom, as well as two case
studies relating to pacifism.
As you could gather from section 3.3, western ideologies globalised at a rapid pace.
This process was largely facilitated by European powers expanding their colonial
territory. Colonies were established worldwide and ideas such as white supremacy
and Social Darwinism were introduced to new communities. In the Caribbean, these
ideas were perpetuated, as the economic growth of colonies in that area was largely
reliant on slave labour from Africa. The white colonisers believed that they were
superior to their slave population. As a result, slaves were treated poorly, and were
harshly punished for breaches of imposed codes of control and behaviour.
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You can refer to Learning Unit 2 for more information about the trans-Atlantic slave
trade and its ultimate abolition.
The Haitian Revolution
The island of Haiti used to be called Saint-Domingue. It was a French colony from
the mid-17th to the early 19th centuries. Economically, it was a very rich colony,
because it produced prolific amounts of commodities that Europeans wanted, such
as sugar and coffee.
Demographically, Saint-Domingue was similar to other colonies in the Caribbean,
as its slave population largely outnumbered the number of settlers. By the time
the Haitian Revolution started at the end of the 18th century, the black population
outnumbered the white population by twelve to one.63 Its entire population in the
mid-18th century can simplistically be divided into three main groups:
• The white population, which consisted of European bureaucrats; wealthy land
•
•
owners and merchants; as well as middle- and lower-class whites;
The mulattoes and manumitted slaves, a group which consisted of wealthy mixedrace individuals as well as freed slaves;
The black population, which largely consisted of slaves, including some runaway
slaves.
The slave population enjoyed relative social cohesion. This was partly because of their
ideological affinity to a practice known as voodoo. Voodoo was an amalgamation of
different indigenous African traditional religions from West Africa, from where the
slaves originated. During their captivity, the slaves were separated from their African
spiritual leaders. They subsequently adapted their religious beliefs. This could be
seen as the slaves’ attempt to bridge social differences and to maintain a connection
to their homeland, Africa. Ancestral worship, for example, is a prominent feature in
both voodoo and traditional African practices.
Another important factor was how the black intelligentsia was affected by the
ideologies of the Enlightenment, as well as the American and French Revolutions.
One such an individual is the famous rebel leader of the Revolution, General
Toussaint L’Ouverture.
The Haitian Revolution started after France’s National Assembly withdrew its previous
decree of 15 May 1791, which provided mulattoes and manumitted blacks with
limited rights. This can be regarded as a catalyst for the Haitian Revolution. After
knowledge of the decree’s withdrawal became widespread, slaves participated in a
voodoo ceremony and planned their first violent uprising against their oppressors. A
number of violent and often brutal conflicts between the black and white population
ensued between 1791 and 1804. Both sides were assisted by foreign powers, such as
France, Spain and Britain.
After several years of bloodshed and shifting alliances, the Revolution come to an
end in 1804. Saint-Domingue was renamed Haiti and became the first independent
nation under black leadership in the wake of colonialism. After this development,
the remainder of the white population was massacred. It is estimated that up to
63 V. Peguero, ‘Teaching the Haitian Revolution: Its Place in Western and Modern World History’, The
History Teacher, 32, 1 (1998), 34.
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150 000 people lost their lives in the Revolution.64 This had a profound impact on the
West’s ideological development. It sparked globalised debates and discussions, unrest
in other slave colonies such as Jamaica, as well as unease and an intensification of
racism with some white plantation owners in the American South. Other influential
leaders seeking independence were also inspired by Haiti, including Simón Bolívar,
who played a great part in South America’s liberation struggle from Spain.
Learning activity 4.6
Study the three accounts, or depictions, in Activity 3.6 on the module website.
Answer the following questions:
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
Why would these three eyewitness accounts differ?
What do you think Account One’s agenda is?
How does your answer to Question 2 compare to the respective agendas
of Accounts Two and Three?
How does the quote in Account Three reflect the ideas of the Enlightenment,
as well as the American and French Revolutions?
Do you think the artists’ emotions and personal feelings are reflected in the
three different accounts?
The Ashanti Kingdom
Not all resistance against the spread of western ideologies was always successful.
The inhabitants of the Ashanti Kingdom, which is situated roughly where Ghana is
today, failed to drive out British colonisers, despite considerable effort.
The Ashanti Kingdom was a very powerful empire in West Africa, which emerged
in the 17th century. It initially gained influence and great wealth from its trade
relationships with Portugal. As a result, the Ashanti people were able to maintain
their power, because they owned superior weapons to their neighbouring states. One
of the most famous Ashanti leaders was Osei Tutu, who united the Kingdom in the
early 18th century. He made several significant reforms, which further strengthened
the position of the kingdom, such as making Kumasi the capital. One of his most
famous legacies is that he presented his followers with the Golden Stool, which
served as a throne to the king. The Golden Stool became an embodiment of all of
the Ashanti people’s spirit.
Britain only became the Ashanti Kingdom’s primary rival in the 19th century. From
1823, Britain and the Ashanti Kingdom were involved in conflict with each other.
Britain, under the guise of abolishing the Ashanti Kingdom’s continued trade in slaves,
decided to attack the Kingdom violently. However, Britain’s primary motivation for
colonising the Ashanti Kingdom lay in the region’s economic prosperity, associated
with its gold deposits. The Ashanti people successfully resisted British encroachment
for several decades, until the British took occupation of Kumasi in 1874. In total, four
wars were fought in the Anglo-Ashanti Wars, before the Kingdom was assimilated
into Britain’s Gold Coast in 1901.
64 Peguero, ‘Teaching the Haitian Revolution’, 36.
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Britain ultimately ruled the Gold Coast indirectly. Despite this, Britain still perpetuated
its ‘civilising mission’ of the local people by instructing local chiefs on how they
should rule. They built several schools and churches to facilitate this process. One
of the ideological legacies that remains in the area to this day is that of Christianity,
which boasts the largest religious following in that country. However, despite this
conquest by the British, the Ashanti people’s fighting spirit remained intact. The
region would become Ghana, the first African nation to gain independence from
their colonisers, in 1957.
Pacifism
Opposition to encroaching colonial powers was not always violent. Some instances
of peaceful resistance can be classified as pacifism.
Pacifism is an ideology which relates to the peaceful resistance to an event (such
as warfare) or any display of aggression or violence. This means that a pacifist will
resist oppression or militarism through peaceful, non-violent ways.
Learning activity 4.7
Read the two brief case studies below, to see how different individuals approached
pacifism.
Case Study 1: Amadou Bamba
Amadou Bamba was a Senegalese religious leader who is best known for his nonviolent approach in dealing with French colonists, as well as starting the Mouride
Brotherhood. Born in 1853, he entered a life of religious teaching and very quickly
gathered followers who had great reverence for him. His admirers believed that
Bamba was sent to them by the Prophet Mohammad to renew their faiths.
He founded a new city, Touba, when he was just 34 years old. It is one of the largest
cities in Senegal today. As Bamba travelled, his number of followers increased.
His growing popularity alarmed the French authorities who had gained control of
the territory some years before. The French administration feared that he would
harness the power of his followers to fight against their encroaching interests. At
that stage, the French government had already experienced instances of conflict
with Muslim military resistance fighters and they sought to pre-empt further violent
encounters. As a result, French authorities arrested Bamba and transferred him
to Saint-Louis to be tried by the French Private Council. On 5 September 1895,
moments before the ruling against Bamba took place, he performed an Islamic
religious ritual and rejected French colonial power, asserting that he would only be
subjected by his Islamic God, Allah. As the French were Christian colonisers, they
viewed this declaration as defiant and potentially destabilising. They sentenced
Bamba to exile. However, this only strengthened Bamba’s popularity among the
Mouride Brotherhood. They viewed his actions as ardent and courageous. His
appearance at the Private Council became a strong symbol of non-violent colonial
resistance.
Meanwhile, French colonisation efforts intensified in Senegal. They required
Muslims to Christianise and assimilate into the French way of life. They were
forceful in their suppression of any violent resistance. Subsequently Bamba became
a respected advocate of peaceful resistance, refusing to sacrifice his religious
beliefs in favour of that of his colonisers. Bamba termed his resistance as a jihad
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al-‘akbar, which alludes to a ‘greater struggle’ – one which was ideological. He
also published literature reflecting this stance.
Bamba was ultimately kept in exile for 32 years of his life. He was imprisoned first
in Gabon, then later in Mauritania and finally he was placed under house arrest in
Senegal. Eventually, however, the French colonisers came to realise that rather
than being a thorn in their side, Bamba could work to their advantage and was not
a threat. He continued to develop his Mouride Order, which was aimed at uplifting
the economy and empowering workers.
To this day, Bamba is regarded as one of the greatest spiritual leaders of Senegal.
The Mouride Brotherhood is still in existence, and is regarded as one of the
most economically powerful brotherhoods in Western Africa. Bamba was able
to successfully facilitate a marriage between two different religious and social
orders. The legacy of his work remains to be seen in the lifestyles of millions of
Muslim Senegalese.
Case Study 2: Mahatma Gandhi
Mahatma Gandhi was an Indian civil rights activist who played an important role
in that country gaining independence from Britain in 1947. He is often regarded
as the unofficial ‘Father of the Nation’ in India. Gandhi was born and raised in
India and studied law in London. Once he concluded his studies, Gandhi moved
to southern Africa where he became a practising lawyer.
His tenure as a lawyer in South Africa profoundly impacted him in terms of the
development of his ideology of satyagraha, for which he received international
acclaim. His first-hand experiences of racial discrimination awakened a sense of
activism, particularly with regards to civil disobedience and passive resistance.
He was consequently arrested on numerous occasions in South Africa. Gandhi
was also called ‘Mahatma’ for the first time in South Africa, a title which means
‘high soul’ in Sanskrit.
Gandhi applied his developed ideology of peaceful resistance in India when he
returned there in 1915. He became the leader of the Indian National Congress
(INC) – an organisation which aimed to achieve, amongst many causes, selfgovernance in India from British rule. India eventually gained its independence
after Gandhi and the INC’s efforts. This independence, however, came at the price
of rising religious tension and fighting between Muslims and Hindus. Muslims
were relegated to the newly-formed Pakistan. Similarly, Hindus moved south from
Pakistan to India. Gandhi maintained his approach of self-sacrifice and religious
obligation, by undertaking several hunger strikes. He hoped to achieve religious
harmony in the two regions by doing so. Gandhi also published several of his
teachings, most notably Hind Swaraj.
Gandhi was assassinated in 1948 when he was shot three times in his chest at
point-blank range. His global legacy remains prominent, with many streets, buildings
and monuments named after and dedicated to him. His pacifist ideology of nonviolence also affected several activists in recent history, including individuals such
as Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King Junior and Aung San Suu Kyi.
***
Once you have worked through the two case studies of Amadou Bamba and
Mahatma Gandhi, make a table where you highlight similarities and differences
between the two pacifists’ lives.
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4.5
A CONTEST BETWEEN IDEOLOGIES
It is apparent that there are numerous historical instances where communities resisted
encroaching western ideologies. However, other countries rejected the spread of
western beliefs entirely. One such an ideology is that of communism. This ideology
spread to several countries across the globe, including Russia, China, Vietnam and
Cuba. Communism developed some states into formidable political and economic
giants, but steadily declined in ideological prominence over the past 30 years. Today,
only a handful of communist states remain. However, several states globally have
selectively chosen to adapt some aspects of communism economically and socially,
in what is known as socialism.
Before we can continue, we need to establish: what is communism? Communism is
an ideology relating to social, economic and political aspects of governance. With
communism, the state is in complete control of property, resources, production,
finances and industry. A pure communist society is also one which does not have
class systems.
Communism as a modern ideology was first introduced by the German intellectuals,
Karl Marx and his associate, Friedrich Engels. It was popularised by their publication,
The Communist Manifesto. Some academics postulate that communism and the western
ideology of capitalism are intrinsically linked. They believe that communism was a
reaction to industrial capitalism and its associated problems in the west. Thus they
argue that communism does not exist in a historical vacuum and that it would not
exist if capitalism did not exist. Different interpretations and forms of this ideology
exist, prominent among which are Marxism, Leninism, Stalinism, and Maoism.
The first country to implement communism on a grand scale was Russia. That country
had traditionally been governed by powerful monarchs, known as Tsars. By the 20th
century, Russia struggled to keep within the same economic trajectory as its rapidly
industrialising western European counterparts, and was increasingly impoverished
by comparison. By 1917, there was large-scale discontent in Russia for a variety of
reasons. These include, but are not limited to:
• Extensive and far-reaching poverty, which affected millions of Russians.
• A lack of representation of the working classes in the Russian Parliament.
• Discontent with the ruling emperor, Tsar Nicholas II, and his ineffective
•
governance.
Russia’s participation in the First World War, which lead to food shortages, great
losses of Russian lives and military defeats.
Russia’s ‘old regime’ under Tsar Nicholas II came to an end during the February
Revolution of 1917, after starving and dissatisfied workers revolted against the
government. The Tsar was replaced by a Russian provisional government, which
lasted only a few months. In October 1917, Vladimir Lenin and the Bolsheviks led
a second revolution which overthrew this government in favour of a communist
government.
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LEARNING UNIT 4: Ideological and religious change in africa and the world
Once Lenin came to power, he implemented a series of objectives which were
inspired by the writings of Karl Marx. These changes stood in direct contradiction
to western ideological norms, which included:
• Establishing a one-party state;
• Collecting all food that was produced;
• Nationalising all productive land and banks;
• Rationing and redistributing food to citizens;
• Rejecting religion, particularly on a state level, and replacing it with atheism;
• Countering opposition and suppressing it violently, in actions which came to be
•
known as the ‘Red Terror’;
Implementing ‘war communism’, which placed several aspects of society, such
as farms, railroads and factories under strict government control.
However, Lenin soon came to realise that these changes to Russian society were
not immediately viable, as that country was too poor. Several Russians were also
not in support of the Bolshevik’s stance pertaining to war communism, where the
government confiscated surplus goods without compensating farmers. A brutal civil
war between the Lenin’s Red Army and the opposing White Army crippled Russia
economically from 1917 to 1922. In reaction to these unfortunate circumstances,
Lenin revised some of his policies and implemented his New Economic Policy (NEP)
in 1921. This reform allowed surplus goods to be sold at a profit, as well as enabled
farmers to hold markets. Subsequently, under the guidance of the NEP, agricultural
production increased significantly as farmers were given incentives again to produce
goods. However, despite this success in agricultural production, Russia was still not
able to compete with other nations in terms of their industrial development.
Ultimately, Lenin’s rule and policies came to an end after a series of strokes left him
incapacitated, and also later proved to be fatal. Joseph Stalin took over as leader of
the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) in 1923.
Stalin was a ruthless leader, who developed his own interpretation of the communist
ideology. He replaced Lenin’s New Economic Policy with a series of Five Year Plans.
These enabled the USSR to move from an agrarian society to global industrial giant.
Stalin’s reforms included:
• Military factories;
• Collective farming (collectivisation);
• Industrial development (industrialisation);
• Improvement of railways;
• Centralised authority over the economy;
• The ‘Great Terror’ and the ‘Great Purge’, which respectively led to the imprisonment
and/or deaths of millions of people.
Stalin’s approach to collectivisation meant that smaller farms were consolidated
into large agrarian holdings, and with time he modernised the farming techniques.
However, peasants were reluctant to participate in the collectivisation process, as
they had to give up their land and sell their surplus goods to the government at low
prices. Incentives for them to succeed personally had been diminished. As a result
of the forced collectivisation, peasant resistance to collectivisation and insufficient
technological assistance being provided to peasants, famine became rife in the USSR
under Stalin’s rule.
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Stalin desired for the USSR to contend with other European powers in terms of
their modernity and industrial strength. As a result, the policy of industrialisation
under his Five Year Plans focused on the development of heavy industries such as
steel and coal. Workers were rigidly regulated, had targets set for them and were
subjected to propaganda as a means of motivating them to work harder.
Stalin proved to be a callous leader who never hesitated to remove anyone who
stood in the way of communism’s development. His government was opposed to
any expressions of free speech or revolt against the manner in which communism
was implemented. It is estimated that millions of civilians were murdered, tortured
or exiled to labour camps during Stalin’s rule. However, despite his ruthless means
of punishment, the USSR did enjoy some success under Stalin’s leadership. His
interpretation of communism ensured that the USSR had become a leading industrial
nation by 1940. In addition, literacy improved, and housing and health care became
more accessible to the working classes. Stalin led the country through the Second
World War and remained its leader until his death in 1953.
Learning activity 4.8
Propaganda was a very important aspect of society in the USSR. Propaganda
is information which is used to endorse a political ideology or cause. It is often
information which is prejudiced and deceptive. It can take many forms, such as
posters, literature, film and radio inserts.
In the USSR, propaganda posters were often utilised to further the cause
of communism.
Evaluate the two posters in Activity 3.8 on the module website and answer these
questions:
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)
(7)
Why was propaganda needed to motivate workers in the Soviet Union?
Describe the emotions that the two posters evoke.
Why would propaganda be necessary to play on individuals’ emotions?
Analyse Poster 2. Why would Stalin rely on the image of Lenin (and essentially the past) to promote his cause?
How did Lenin and Stalin’s policies differ?
The title for the Poster 2 mentions socialist construction. Refer to a dictionary and define socialism.
Is there a difference between socialism and communism?
After the Second World War in 1945, the Soviet Union emerged as a formidable
world power, and one which the capitalist West found threatening to its interests.
The period known as the Cold War came into existence shortly after 1945, and was,
loosely, a struggle between western capitalistic nations (led by the United States and
Western European countries) and the eastern communist bloc (the Soviet Union
and its allies). On some levels, it was an ideological war, in which the west actively
resisted communist power and its encroachment.
The Cold War saw considerable tension between the two divided worlds, and had a
powerful impact on political, social and economic developments globally. Important
developments of the Cold War period include:
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LEARNING UNIT 4: Ideological and religious change in africa and the world
• A space race (from the 1950s to 1970s);
• An arms race throughout the period, including the building of nuclear power;
• Numerous liberation struggles, in Europe, South and Latin America, Asia and
•
•
Africa
Several major international crises and flashpoints, such as crises over the Suez
Canal (1956), the status of Berlin (1961) and the Cuban missile crisis (1962);
A series of proxy wars, such as the Korean War (1950–1953) and the Vietnam
War (1955–1975), a significant dimension of which pitted communist and
non-communist forces against one another.
The Cold War is generally regarded as having come to an end in 1989, when the
Berlin Wall, separating the western and eastern parts of the city under their respective
governments, was broken down. In 1990, the USSR government ceded its singleparty power, as well as its strong control over Eastern Europe and other constituent
parts of the Soviet Union.
The Cold War was of immense importance historically, as it represented both a
real and an ideological struggle (a war of ideas) between the east and the west.
Alliances and propaganda campaigns were forged by both sides in an attempt to
solicit supporters to their respective cause. The end of the Cold War has sometimes
been represented as the triumph of the capitalist west over the communist east, but
it is important to remember that communism did not completely vanish after 1990.
Forms of communist government continued to exist in different parts of the world,
and indeed consideration of this forms part of the next activity.
Learning activity 4.9
This activity has two sections.
(1)
Communism in China
The collapse of communism in Russia did not mean the end of communism.
In Eric X. Li’s TEDTalk, entitled ‘A Tale of Two Political Systems’, he discusses in
detail what life in a modern communist society in China is like. This will supplement
your understanding of communism.
Click on the following link:
TEDTalk: https://www.ted.com/talks/eric_x_li_a_tale_of_two_ political_
systems?language=en
(accessed 16 May 2016)
Based on what you have read in this section of Learning Unit 3 and on this
discussion, what are the main things strike you about life in a communist society?
Write down three main issues that seem to you to be most important.
(2)
Most important moments in the development of communism
Now that you have worked through the section in Learning Unit 3 relating
to communism, you should have a very broad understanding of what communism
entails.
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Scan through the text again and highlight the most important moments in the
development of communism.
Once you have done this, add these significant events to a flow chart. Your
flow chart should start with the February Revolution of 1917 and finish with the
government of the USSR relinquishing its power as a single-party state in 1990.
4.6
NATIONALISM AND DECOLONISATION
Over the course of the past 400 years, boundaries and national identities have often
changed. Particularly during times of war, a strong sense of nationalism has emerged
in different areas. This ideology relates to making an individual feel patriotic, loyal
and devoted to his or her country. Often nationalism also means that one group of
people fosters feelings of superiority over another group or nation.
There are many different historical interpretations and varieties of nationalism.
Examples of different forms of nationalism include civil, cultural, religious and
anti-colonial nationalism.
In more recent times, academics have argued that the following conditions should
ideally be in place in order for nationalism to successfully manifest itself:
• A society which can sustain itself economically.
• A central authority which is capable of ruling the society.
• Some form of unity between individuals within the society.
language or languages that individuals associate with their personal
• A common
65
identity.
Needless to say, the nation state is an important geographical determinant of
nationalism. You can refer back to Learning Unit 3 for more detail pertaining to
what constitutes a nation. Symbols, customs and even songs relating to a particular
nation’s identity are all features which encourage nationalism.
Nationalism first largely manifested itself in the modern interpretation of the ideology
during the American and French Revolutions. As you should be aware by now, with
reference to both Learning Unit 2 and this learning unit, the American and French
Revolutions had a profound impact on the ideological constructs of the western
world. In both these revolutions, individuals were willing to die fighting for the
causes that they believed in.
As Italy and Germany became unified states in the 19th century, more European
countries took pride in and developed their national identities. The Balkan Wars of
1912–1913, for example, were deeply rooted in nationalistic ambitions. Increased
competitiveness between nations during the era of industrialisation and colonisation
also resulted in a heightened sense of nationalism. It is for this reason that nationalism
is often considered to be one of the long-term causes of the First World War
(1914–1918).
65 A. Motyl, ed., Encyclopaedia of Nationalism (San Diego: Academic Press, 2001), 508-509.
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LEARNING UNIT 4: Ideological and religious change in africa and the world
The First World War, and later the Second World War (1939–1945) were both
watershed moments for the spread of nationalistic ideas in significant areas of the
world. By virtue of the nature of these world wars, inhabitants from many colonies
were recruited to fight for the cause of their colonial powers. Africans who fought in
the wars, for example, experienced first-hand the powerful impact that nationalism
could have on a society. The Second World War also had a positive impact on the
way in which Europeans viewed their fellow African soldiers.
In most cases, however, once Africans returned to their regions after the end of these
two major conflicts, they were not treated as equal to the Europeans with whom
they had fought. Understandably, this caused great unhappiness. Former soldiers in
Africa formed self-help organisations to protect themselves from the injustices they
experienced. In addition, ideas of working towards developing self-governing states
also began to develop, as part of an anti-colonial form of nationalism.
Learning activity 4.10
Look up the term ‘nationalism’ in a dictionary.
Also enter the term into a search engine such as Google to see some definitions
of nationalism.
Based on what you have read in the discussion of nationalism in this learning
unit and on what you have found through your own research for this activity, try
to summarise your understanding of nationalism in a paragraph of no more than
150 words.
In the United States, black political intellectuals such as Marcus Garvey and William
E.B. Du Bois advocated Pan-Africanism. This ideology was rooted in ideas of
anti-colonialism and reclaiming Africa for the Africans. Pan-Africanism had a
resounding impact, not only on the African diaspora, but also on Africans living on
the continent at that time. (Note: Pan-Africanism is covered in more detail in
the next section) It is for that reason that academics often argue that nationalism
and decolonisation are strongly linked.
India also inspired many international nationalistic movements, after that country
gained independence from Britain in 1947. Although some African countries, such as
Egypt and South Africa, had already achieved sovereignty in the early 20th century,
the first African country to gain independence successfully from its coloniser
was Ghana in 1957. Its leader, Kwame Nkrumah, identified strongly with ideas of
Pan-Africanism.
As nationalist ideology spread, it was inevitable that decolonisation would gain
momentum. European powers increasingly ceded independence to their colonies
across the world, mainly during the 1950s and 1960s. This involved territories in
Africa, the Caribbean, South America, Asia, and the Middle East.
Pan-Africanism occurred within a broad historical context of many countries in
Africa striving to achieve independence from their colonisers. It is essentially an
anti-colonial ideology. However, decolonisation stretches far beyond the drawing
of new boundaries and declarations of independence in colonial societies, although
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these were crucial first steps. Decolonisation in post-colonial societies is an active
process which former colonised regions, societies and individuals need to go through,
in order to remove themselves from the oppressive forces of the past. It is also an
ideology which applies to all aspects of society and encompasses political, economic,
institutional, cultural and even psychological features.
Decolonisation first became a contentious issue at the Bandung Conference, which
took place in 1955 in Indonesia. African and Asian representatives and delegates
from 29 different countries were present as ideas of independence and decolonisation
came to the forefront of their minds. It was at this conference where the ‘Third
World’ trope first emerged. The term ‘Third World’ semantically refers to countries
in Africa and Asia which were colonised by European powers. Due to their recent
independence, these countries were also historically associated with territories which
did not actively participate or align themselves with any particular power (the East
or the West) during the Cold War.66
The historical backdrop of the Cold War is very important in assessing decolonisation,
as it largely influenced the course that various independence movements took. In 1955,
during the Bandung Conference, delegates were generally inspired by the possibilities
and promise of independence. After many years of colonisation, the attainment of
independence finally seemed tangible and close for many territories and regions.
They could finally become the authors of their own destinies and could distance
themselves from colonial policies as they worked with one another in international
solidarity towards the achievement of new national sovereignties.
A major thinker in ideological notions of decolonisation was Frantz Fanon. He was
born in 1925 in Martinique, a Caribbean island which was a French colony. Fanon
studied in France and became a qualified psychiatrist. During his stay in France, he
became disillusioned at the bias that he faced because of his race. In 1952, he published
Black Skin, White Masks, which detailed, amongst other things, the dehumanising
aspects of racial discrimination.
His tenure as a psychiatrist saw Fanon move to Algeria to practice medicine. During
his stay in that country, he persevered in contributing to the developing philosophy of
decolonisation. His notions of decolonisation were based on his first-hand experiences
as a black occupant of Algeria, while that nation was moving towards liberation from
its French colonisers. Fanon was also an active proponent of the Algerian War of
Independence and a member of the Front de Libération Nationale, the principle nationalist
party opposed to French colonisation. The Algerian War of Independence spanned
eight years, from 1954 to 1962. After many thousands of deaths, on both the Algerian
and French sides, the War culminated in Algeria gaining its independence in 1962.
During the war, Fanon traveled internationally to deliver lectures on his theories
of decolonisation. In France, he formed a friendship with the French philosopher,
Jean-Paul Sartre. This relationship and their shared ideological beliefs led to Sartre
composing the foreword for Fanon’s widely-acclaimed book, The Wretched of the Earth,
which Fanon composed during his final months of life. He died of leukemia in 1961
at the age of 36.
66 As time progressed, the term has come to carry a more negative connotation. It is often synonymous
with developing countries and the issues which they face, such as disease, poverty, as well as political
and economic instability. Several of these problems, however, stem from the legacy of colonialism.
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LEARNING UNIT 4: Ideological and religious change in africa and the world
Fanon’s work, particularly The Wretched of the Earth, was so revered by his contemporary
peers that the book is often regarded as the ‘bible of decolonisation’.67 It influenced
people in many different contexts, as diverse as the American black power movement,
the Black Panthers, in the United States and the South African Black Consciousness
leader, Steve Biko. Both these movements sought to uplift black people politically,
socially and psychologically in racially segregated societies. The Wretched of the Earth
has been translated into 16 different languages, a testament to its influence in many
different contexts.
In reading Fanon’s work critically, you need to be aware of the historical milieu in
which he wrote. Notably, issues which were prevalent during the Cold War, such
as socialism versus capitalism, as well as the role of the ‘Third World’ in this global
struggle, are prevalent in his work. However, despite the historical context of his book,
Fanon’s theories still permeate society today. They are constantly being reassessed
and applied by individuals in their pursuit of decolonisation.
Essentially, The Wretched of the Earth focuses on some the following aspects of
decolonisation:
• Violence
• National culture
• National consciousness
• Grandeur and weakness of spontaneity
In the first few pages of his book, Fanon argued that decolonisation demanded
that the ‘last shall be the first’.68 This means that oppressed individuals who were
traditionally placed last in society during the colonial period would become leaders in
all aspects of society in their new post-colonial environments. As a result of Fanon’s
vocational background as a psychiatrist, a significant part of book focuses on more
intangible, but equally important, aspects of decolonisation, including psychological
and cultural liberation, as well as the abolishment of a colonial vocabulary.
Fanon also stated famously that ‘Each generation must discover its mission, fulfill
it or betray it, in relative opacity’.69 Emerging nations, according to Fanon, should
invest in their people as their most valuable asset, while remaining committed to
the fight for national liberty. Fanon also hypothesised that the most effective way
of ensuring decolonisation is through meaningful wealth distribution, extending
beyond mere moral reparations. Fanon warned against the influence of religion, as
it was effectively used historically by colonisers to subjugate indigenous people. In
Fanon’s opinion, religion was also used to pit indigenous people against each other.
Essentially, Fanon warned against the desire to become European in the process
of decolonisation. Instead of basing societal models on European examples, a
decolonised nation should create a society which is suited for, and unique to, itself.
The process of decolonisation should thus simultaneously be transformed into a
process of nation-building, creating a new humanism and unique society.
67 E. Burke, ‘Frantz Fanon’s “The Wretched of the Earth”’, Daedalus, 105, 1 (1976), 129.
68 F. Fanon, The Wretched of the Earth (New York: Grove Press, 1963), 2.
69 Fanon, The Wretched of the Earth, 145.
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The strongest critiques against Fanon focus on his interpretation of violence as a
means of achieving decolonisation. However, several academics claim that this is
due to the misinterpretation of Fanon’s work. They argue that readers often confuse
Fanon’s elucidation of violence with that of Jean-Paul Sartre, who wrote the foreword
to The Wretched of the Earth. They contend that Fanon is in favour of egalitarianism
and reason, as opposed to violence, but that Sartre distorted this view. Fanon stated
that violence is not liberating for individuals in their pursuit of ridding themselves of
colonialism’s influence. In addition, Fanon conceded that while the decolonisation
process is often by default a violent one, violence is not a truly acceptable response
to facilitating the process.
Ultimately, Fanon’s perceptions of decolonisation and decoloniality influenced
several generations of individuals who have grappled with the legacy of colonialism
and are committed to the process of liberation of individuals and societies from
colonial influences. The appeal of The Wretched of the Earth lies in its universalism. This
means that it can, and will, be reinterpreted by new readers in different contexts as
disenchantment with social injustices remains prevalent in the world.
Learning activity 4.11
Access the following article by Richard Pithouse, ‘Violence: What Fanon really
said’, published in the Mail & Guardian, 4 July 2016:
http://mg.co.za/article/2016-04-07-violence-what-fanon-really-said
(Accessed 15 October 2016)
Work through Pithouse’s opinion pertaining to Fanon’s stance on violence. He
states that violence is not an acceptable outcome of decolonisation.
With reference to the material in this learning unit and this article, how did Fanon
suggest that meaningful change could be reached in the pursuit of decolonisation?
History of Pan-African Congresses70
Various political leaders and intellectuals from Europe, North America and Africa
had met between 1900 and 1945 to discuss colonial control of Africa and to develop
strategies to bring about the political liberation of Africa.
After completion of this section, you should know and understand the goals and
objectives of all these six Pan-African Congresses and evaluate their impact.
Pan-Africanism emerged in the late 19th century in response to European colonisation
and exploitation of the African continent. Pan-Africanist philosophy held that slavery
and colonialism depended on and encouraged negative, unfounded categorisations
of the race, culture and values of African people. These destructive beliefs in turn
gave birth to forms of racism, the likes of which Pan-Africanism sought to eliminate.
70 This section is largely based on Saheed Adejumobi, ‘The Pan-African Congresses, 1900-1945’, Black
Past (30 July 2008), https://www.blackpast.org/global-african-history/perspectives-global-africanhistory/pan-african-congresses-1900-1945/#:~:text=While%20previous%20Pan%2DAfrican%20
congresses,working%20or%20studying%20in%20Britain.
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LEARNING UNIT 4: Ideological and religious change in africa and the world
The roots of Pan-Africanism lie in the collective experiences of African descendants
in the New World. Africa is important for blacks in the New World for two primary
reasons:
Firstly, the increasing futility of their campaign for racial equality in the United
States led some African Americans to demand voluntary repatriation to Africa.
Secondly, for the first time the term Africans, which had often been used by racists
as a derogatory description, became a source of pride for early black nationalists.
Hence, through the conscious elevation of their African identity black activists in
America and the rest of the world began to reclaim the rights previously denied
them by Western societies.
In 1897, Henry Sylvester Williams, a West Indian barrister formed the African
Association in London, England, to encourage Pan-African unity; especially
throughout the British colonies. Sylvester Williams who had links with West African
dignitaries had believed that Africans and those of African descent living in the
Diaspora needed a forum to address their common problems. In 1900 Sylvester
Williams organised the first Pan-African meeting in collaboration with several black
leaders, representing various countries of the African Diaspora. For the first time,
opponents of colonialism and racism gathered for an international meeting. The
conference attracted global attention, placing the word ‘Pan African’ in the lexicon
of international affairs and making it part of the standard vocabulary of black
intellectuals. This initial meeting featured 30 delegates, mainly from England and
the West Indies, but attracted only a few Africans and African Americans. Among
them was black America’s leading intellectual, W.E.B. DuBois, who was to become
the torchbearer of subsequent Pan-African conferences, or congresses as they
later came to be called. Conference participants read papers on a variety of topics,
including the social, political and economic conditions of blacks in the Diaspora; the
importance of independent nations governed by people of African descent, such as
Ethiopia, Haiti and Liberia; the legacy of slavery and European imperialism; the role
of Africa in world history; and the impact of Christianity on the African continent.
Perhaps of greater importance was the formation of two communities. One group,
chaired by DuBois, drafted an address “To the Nations of the World” demanding
moderate reforms for colonial Africa. The address implored the United States and
the imperial European countries to ‘acknowledge and protect the rights of people
of African descent’ and to respect the integrity and independence of the free Negro
states of Abyssinia, Liberia, Haiti, and so on.
The address, signed by DuBois and others, was sent to Queen Victoria of England.
Despite these ambitious plans, the appeals of the conference participants made little
or no impression on the European imperial powers who controlled the political and
economic destiny of Africa.
It was not until after World War I that DuBois revived the Pan-African congresses.
Following the war, European and American politicians gathered for a peace conference
in Versailles, France, DuBois, who attended the conference as a special representative
of the National Association for the Advancement of the Coloured People (NAACP),
appealed to President Woodrow Wilson. In a letter to Wilson, he urged the American
government to initiate a comprehensive study of the treatment of black soldiers.
Moreover, DuBois expressed hope that the peace treaty would address “the future
of Africa” and grant self-determination to the colonised peoples. President Wilson
subsequently released a fourteen-point memorandum, which suggested the formation
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of a League of Nations and called for “an absolutely impartial adjustment of all
colonial claims, based on the principle that the interest of the population must have
equal weight with the equitable claims of the government.” Clearly the loudest voice
on behalf of the oppressed blacks in the New World belonged to the participants
of the Pan-African Congress.
Galvanised by the gathering of world leaders and the discussion of colonial Africa’s
future, DuBois proposed the formation of a Pan-African Congress. In 1919, the
Versailles Peace Treaty deliberations ran their course, DuBois, with the support of
Blaise Diagne, a member of the French Parliament from the West African colony of
Senegal, and funding from African American civil rights and fraternal organisations
such as the NAACP, the Elks and the Masons, convened a Pan-African Congress
in Paris. The Congress participants adopted a resolution calling for the drafting of
the code of law “for the international protection of the natives of Africa.” Other
demands called for direct supervision of colonies by the League of Nations to prevent
economic exploitation by foreign nations; to abolish slavery and capital punishment
of colonial subjects who worked on the plantations of European colonial powers in
Africa, especially in the Belgian Congo; and to insist on colonial peoples’ rights to
education. Moreover, the gathering stressed the need for further congress meetings
and suggested the creation on an international quarterly, the Black Review, which
was to be published in several languages. While congress attendees insisted that
African natives should be allowed eventually to participate in their own government,
they did not demand African self-determination. Despite the moderate nature of the
demands, the European and American powers represented at the Versailles Peace
Conference remained non-committal.
The Pan-African Congress reconvened in London in August 1921 and a month later
in Brussels, Belgium. Both meetings featured representatives from the Americas,
the Carribean, Europe and Africa who echoed earlier Pan-Africanist reformist ideas,
denouncing imperialism in Africa and racism in the United States. Moreover, the
delegates demanded local self-government for colonial subjects and DuBois stressed
the need for increased interracial contacts between members of the black intelligentsia
and those concerned about the political and economic status of colonial peoples.
In 1923, the Pan-African Congress met in two separate sessions in London and
in Lisbon, Portugal. Noted European intellectuals such as H.G Wells and Harold
Laski attended the London session. The Congress addressed the conditions of the
African Diaspora as well as the global exploitation of black workers. The 1921 and
1923 congresses were important for various reasons. Firstly, they kept alive the idea
of an oppressed people trying to abolish the yoke of discrimination. Secondly, these
international gatherings laid the foundation for the struggle that ultimately led to
the political emancipation of the African continent.
Delegates reconvened for a fifth Pan-African Congress in New York in 1927. The
congress featured 208 delegates from 22 American states and 10 foreign countries.
Africa, however, was represented only sparsely by delegates from the Gold Coast,
Sierra Leone, Liberia and Nigeria. The small number of African delegates was due
in part to travel restrictions that the British and French colonial powers imposed
on those interested in attending the congress, in an effort to inhibit further PanAfrican gatherings. Most of the delegates were black Americans and many of them
were women. Similar to previous Pan-African congresses, participants discussed the
status and conditions of black people throughout the world.
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LEARNING UNIT 4: Ideological and religious change in africa and the world
The Pan-African Congress was suspended for 18 years due to the Great Depression
and World War II. In 1945, the Congress was revived in Manchester, England. This
meeting was a turning point in the history of the gatherings. For the first time
representatives of political parties from Africa and the West Indies attended the
meeting. Moreover, the conservative credo of the forum gave way to radical social,
political and economic demands. Congress participants unequivocally demanded an
end to colonialism in Africa and urged colonial subjects to use strikes and boycotts
to end the continent’s social, economic and political exploitation by colonial powers.
While previous Pan-African congresses had been controlled largely by black middleclass British and American intellectuals who had emphasised the amelioration of
colonial conditions, the Manchester meeting was dominated by delegates from
Africa and Africans working or studying in Britain. The new leadership attracted
the support of workers, trade unionists, and a growing radical sector of the African
student population. With fewer African American participants, delegates consisted
mainly of an emerging crop of African intellectual and political leaders, who soon
won fame, notoriety, and power in their various colonised countries.
The final declaration of the 1945 congress urged colonial and subject peoples of the
world to unite and assert their rights to reject those seeking to control their destinies.
Congress participants encouraged colonised Africans to elect their own governments,
arguing that the gain of political power for colonial and subject peoples was a necessary
prerequisite for complete social, economic, and political emancipation. This politically
assertive stance was supported by a new generation of African American activists
such as the actor and singer Paul Robeson, the minister and politician Adam Clayton
Powell, Jr., and the educator and political activist William A. Hunton Jr. who took
an increasing interest in Africa.
While the Pan-African congresses lacked financial and political power, they helped
to increase international awareness of racism and colonialism and laid the foundation
for the political independence of African nations. African leaders such as Kwame
Nkrumah of Ghana, Nnamdi Azikiwe of Nigeria, and Jomo Kenyatta of Kenya
were among several attendees of congresses who subsequently led their countries to
political independence. In May 1963, the influence of these men helped galvanise the
formation of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), an association of independent
African states and nationalist groups.
4.7
CONCLUSION
We hope that this learning unit has provided you with a valuable overview of some of
the important global ideologies over the course of the past four centuries. Ideologies
are important, because they are the thread that is entwined into the fabric of all
societies.
Although this learning unit was succinct, you should now possess a basic understanding
of liberalism, religion, pacifism, communism, nationalism and decolonisation.
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GLOSSARY OF TERMS USED IN LEARNING UNIT 4
African diaspora:The scattering of the black community in North and South
America due to the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade
Bolsheviks:A ‘majority’ faction within the Marxist Russian Social Democratic
Labour Party
Caliphate:A government under the leadership of a caliph (a religious
successor of the Prophet Mohammad)
Civil disobedience: A peaceful form of protest against laws that are regarded as
discriminatory and unjust
Egalitarianism: The belief that all people are equal and deserve equal
opportunities and privileges
Jihad:An Islamic religious war, with the purpose of converting
non-believers
Manumission:The act of freeing a slave
Mulattoes:The term used to denote persons of mixed-origin in Haiti,
usually an individual who has one black and one white parent
Ottoman Empire:Also known as the Turkish Empire, it was a powerful and vast
empire which stretched over parts of Europe, Asia and Africa
from the thirteenth to the twentieth centuries
Sanskrit:An ancient language in which Hindi scriptures are often written.
Several Indian languages are derived from Sanskrit.
Satyagraha:A particular form of passive-resistance developed by Mahatma
Gandhi, which means the ‘higher truth’
Sharia Law:Islamic laws, as codified in the Quran, where there is no
separation between religion and the state
Learning activity 4.12
Look at the list of ideologies or events below. This list aims to assist you to
summarise the ideologies and events that have been discussed in this learning unit.
Try to provide the main period in which the particular ideologies or events occurred.
Aim to provide a succinct and clear definition or description of each of the ideologies
or events listed.
• Liberalism
• The Enlightenment
• The American Revolution
• The French Revolution
• The spread of Christianity
• Mission stations in Bechuanaland
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LEARNING UNIT 4: Ideological and religious change in africa and the world
• Mission stations in Dakota
• Haitian slave revolt
• Ashanti Kingdom
• Pacifism
• Communism
• Nationalism
• Decolonisation
• Pan-Africanism
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SOURCES FOR FURTHER READING
There are numerous potential sources for further reading about themes related to
this module, many of which are extremely valuable.
The following list is highly selective, but those of you who wish to pursue themes
discussed in greater depth can consult the following:
Abbott, M. ed. History Skills: A Student’s Handbook (London: Routledge, 1996).
Bentley, JH & Ziegler, HF. Traditions and Encounters: A Global Perspective of the Past (New
York: McGraw-Hill, 2011).
Black, J & Macraild, DM. Studying History (Basingstoke: Plagrave Macmillan, 2007).
Collins, RO & Burns, JM. A History of Sub-Saharan Africa (Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press, 2007).
Marks, RB. The Origins of the Modern World: A Global and Environmental Narrative from
the Fifteenth to the Twenty-First Century, 3rd ed. (Lanham, Boulder, London and
New York: Rowman & Littlefield, 2015).
McNeill J, et al. eds. The Cambridge World History: Production, Destruction and Connection
1750–Present (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2015).
Perry, M. Western Civilization: A Brief History (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company,
2008).
Shillington, K. History of Africa (Basingstoke, Palgrave Macmillan, 2005).
UNESCO, General History of Africa, Volumes I-VIII (1989-1999).
Worger, WH, Clark, NL & Alpers, EA. Africa and the West: A Documentary History,
2nd ed. (2 volumes) (Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press, 2010).
100