The students do a reading called Nacirema, an exerise in the way we judge other cultures. Students are introduced to the geography, climate, and vegetation of Africa through two handouts. Our study of Africa takes us from prehistoric times through the Stone Age, the Early Iron Age, and to north and northeastern Africa(Egypt and Aksum)in 1000 CE. The students learn about the trans-Saharan trade and the kingdom of Ancient Ghana. {August and September }
The students continue their study of the spread of Islam and the west African empires of Ghana, Mali, and Songhay. We then move to east Africa, visiting the Christian kingdom of Ethiopia and seeing the development of trade on the east African coast and Portuguese presence there. The students then move inland and explore the Later Iron Age societies of central and southern Africa to 1600. Special attention is given to Great Zimbabwe. Across the continent we study the slave trade and the west African states to the 18th century. This unit takes us to the fall term exam in mid November. { October until Thanksgiving and the end of November }
The students study central and east Africa in the 18th century. The look at the slave trade in west-central Africa as well as the growth of trade in this region. We then move to southern Africa and read about the first white settlement and its struggle with the Xhosa over land. Back in west Africa we look at the Islamic jihads. The Atlantic slave trade ends and in the mid-19th century and “legitimate” trade begins. Finally, the slave colonies of Sierra Leone and Liberia are studied. { December }
The students read about pre-industrial southern Africa in the 19th century. We witness the Boer Trek north from the east Cape in the 1830’s and the African resistance. We then move to Ethiopia and its reunification in the late 19th century. We study the missionary arrival in pre-colonial tropical Africa. This is followed by the explorers’ mapping of Africa as a prelude to the colonial empires. This is followed by the European “scramble” for control of east, north-central, and west Africa, and the African resistance. From there we go to southern Africa where the mineral revolution and industrialization take place. We witness the British “scramble” in this region and eventually the Boer Wars { 1899-1902 }. { January }
The students read about the early colonial rule, peasant production, and the movement of products by rail in east and west Africa. We see the role of Christianity and the early expressions of nationalism. WWI and its impact on Africa are studied as well as the protests in the inter-war years. We see the development of segregation in South Africa. Then WWII comes and its impact on Africa. Independence is won by the French and English colonies. { February }
The students begin reading ¬Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, a renowned Nigerian author whose creative genius tells of the misunderstandings that arise when the colonial attitudes and African traditions meet. The consequences are in the title of the work.
{ March }
Each students thinks of a topic he/she would like to study in depth and begins the research. Some of the topics have to be modified depending on the information available. The paper is to be 5-6 pages. This is their primary homework for the month. Class time is spent on chapters 27-29. I presented them in the form of lectures. The students learn of the independence in Belgian-ruled central Africa, British central Africa, Portuguese-ruled Africa, and Zimbabwe. We study the political legacy of colonial rule and the economic legacy of underdevelopment and dependency. The unique Tanzanian course of socialism and self-reliance is studied as well as the fledgling Organization for African Unity. { April }
The students read their papers in class and we have a chance to ask questions and to make comments. The final chapter in the book covers the “democratic process” in the 1990s and Africa in the new millennium. The students begin reading a different novel by Alexander McCall Smith. He has written several novels about a woman’s detective agency in Botswana. A question on the novels appears on the final exam. { May }
