European colonialism in Africa was heterogeneous and complex, with multiple interest groups often competing for resources or clashing over the fundamental purposes of their endeavors. Without a doubt, the vast majority of European colonial enterprise in Africa was exploitative in nature, either tacitly or implicitly. The rise of geographic societies and the field of anthropology did a lot to raise awareness of the realities of exploitation and attempted to offer alternatives to rabid exploitation of human and non-human resources (Tilley, 2011). Set against the geographers and anthropologists, more traditional and conservative colonialists in Britain adopted what can be somewhat ironically called "constructive" imperialism, in which British interests were expressly designed and implemented under the guise of making improvements to local African infrastructures, offering economic assistance or support, and other elements reflective of the "white man's burden" mentality (Hodge, 2007, p. 22). So-called constructive imperialism was systematic, and entailed intervention in local systems of governance and social systems as well. Constructive imperialism was where colonialism and imperialism blended in a sinister attempt to rule African people and develop African lands in ways that served the interests of European and British powers. British and other European colonial powers viewed their targets...
22). Anthropologists during the late 19th century attempted to refute such outlandish claims, but to little avail. Colonialists, capitalists, and imperialists were blind and deaf to the endeavor to illustrate how traditional African societies functioned. The value of nomadic lifestyles was lost on those who believed, sincerely, that industrial development and urbanization in the European model was a beneficial trend for all people.
Africa's Political Crisis Most African colonies became independent in the 1950s and 1960s amid hopes that this would be the prelude to an era of democracy and development (Cooper, 2002). By the end of the 1980s, Africa was plagued by instability, authoritarianism, poverty, war and famine. In some countries, the state itself had begun to disintegrate. There are many reasons for Africa's current state of political instability. For one, continuous rivalry between
It would depend on one's view of the legitimacy of psychoanalysis and its patchwork utility in describing a mental complex. Basil Davidson recognizes the alienated consciousness of Africans, albeit from a politico-historical rather than a psychological perspective. He phrases it in terms of forced African rejection of its own history under hopes of prospering in the new modernization the colonial system pushed for: "The future was not to grow out
He notes that "anticolonialist critics have sought to "demystify the national myths" of empire and to write an alternative history of the colonial encounter" by focusing on "the politics of the early modern English-Native American encounter" with an eye towards "moments of textual rupture and contradiction in early modern texts such as The Tempest" (Cefalu 85). One may identify the scene of Prospero's accusation as one such moment, and
Africa so Poor? Why is it that Africa, despite the aid and help and support that she gets from different sources all over the world, is still very much impoverished and in a state of poverty even now? It is a fact that this continent has been availing of outside help and has also been a site where numerous large-scale experiments have been performed over the years in order to
Ngos & Human Rights in Africa Non-governmental organizations have had an unprecedented effect on international human rights in the African system. NGOs have been recognized for their forward thinking ability in improving international human rights in Africa. NGOs participation in the African Human Rights system has been in two ways. The first is through international and government commissions like the OAU, with some having rights to participate in public meetings. This presents
African Development Countries which have not technologically or sociologically progressed through the years are considered under-developed. This means that most or much of the population still live as they did in past centuries. Most of the population lives in poverty and there are not enough schools or hospitals. There is not enough drinkable water and children in the regions still die from conditions which have been easily treated for decades in
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