African American Imperialism Analysis

During the European Scramble for Africa, in the early 20th century, Africans had a peaceful reaction with anti-imperialistic sentiments (docs. 2, 3, 4, and 7), peaceful actions through the approach of diplomacy (docs.1, 2, and 3) and also a rebellious anti-imperialistic reaction (docs. 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9) towards the Scramble for Africa.

Europeans filled in the blanks of African history by using exoticism to come up with origin theories that made sense to them. Because the African population has a different physical appearance than Europeans, they were viewed as the “other” race, and therefore were inferior in the minds of Europeans. Africa, however, was a society that was equally as complex as any European nation, unique with their own kingdoms and customs. Because of this, it was incorrect for Europeans to label Africans as “savage” individuals. Africa’s culture is rich and deserves to be interpreted in the way that they see fit, rather than having European stereotypes of the past define their culture of

This partition of Africa had implicated that Europeans were superior than and could rule over the Africans, opening the door for the idea of racism to manifest in the minds of western civilizations. This made it seem acceptable to completely white-wash nearly an entire continent solely because they weren’t the same as Europe. The same concept continued through the years, especially in the western hemisphere, making the continent adopt the culture, politics, and economy of Europe, a change they never wanted. It was as if Africa had no say in what happened to their land and people. Africa’s original inhabitants were overruled, starved, and enslaved as their villages were burned with many people still

In the 19th and 20th centuries Europe was thriving and wealthy while most of their colonies in Africa were suffering under their rule. The Europeans all wanted a piece of Africa’s land with its plentiful resources and free labor. Around this time, Europe was going through the industrial revolution and because business was booming the European countries need more resources than they already had. The Africans had the land the Europeans wanted to use to continue having booming businesses, they also had African slaves and workers that they can use so they don’t have to pay for labor. In the 19th century leader of the Europeans countries want to discuss how they will divide Africa without the leaders of Africa knowing. The Europeans then started to invade Africa and take control over the citizens. As the Europeans got more powerful, the Africans become more miserable. Unable to match the guns Europe had, African countries began getting claimed, one by one with the exception of two. The Europeans ruled in a cruel way that left many Africans dead or suffering. Many countries tried and successfully broke away from Europeans after many years under colonization. The Europeans had a negative impact on the lives of many Africans in the 19th and 20th centuries, especially with racism and assimilation. People were taught to be a human they had to be like a European which led to many racist views on African people and culture and is why some nations like France used assimilation to make

In the midst of slavery’s storm, European slave traders used sales tactics that catastrophically diminished Africa’s reputation and African’s humanity. In the process, they destroyed Africa’s historical truth; and created images that Africans were unrefined savages that mindlessly roamed the grasslands with bones jutting from their noses, in loincloths, and spears in hand…simply as if they were mere human and behaved as untamed animals. Classifying Africans as inferior and uneducated is racist in theory

Between 1800 and 1914, European imperialism failed to improve the social, political, and economic aspects of the African society through colonization, creating more harm than prosperity. The industrial revolution created the need for colonization to obtain raw materials for production in order to expand the European market. King Leopold II’s rule of the Congo inspired other European nations to compete to claim African lands; this race is famously known as the “Scramble for Africa”. In order to organize the imperialization of African lands, Otto von Bismarck lead the Berlin Conference, which divided the African soil among eligible European nations. The conference was held between fourteen European countries and no African representatives were

The European history that many are presented often does not represent what occurred in actuality because “…it is the nature of those who write history to bring the ideas of their own culturally chauvinistic place and time to consideration of others.”1 This view often implies that the Africans were incompetent savages and that the Europeans forcibly asserted their will on the Africans through clear military superiority. In actuality, this view is an inaccurate portrayal of the relationship between the groups during the late fifteenth century to the eighteenth century.

Chinua Achebe, a well-known writer, once gave a lecture at the University of Massachusetts about Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, entitled "An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness." Throughout his essay, Achebe notes how Conrad used Africa as a background only, and how he "set Africa up as a foil to Europe,"(Achebe, p.251) while he also "projects the image of Africa as 'the other world,' the antithesis of Europe and therefore of civilization."(Achebe, p.252) By his own interpretations of the text, Achebe shows that Conrad eliminates "the African as a human factor," thereby "reducing Africa to the role of props."(Achebe, p.257)

Imperialism caused more problems than progress due to the destabilization of existing African tribes through unnecessary conflict caused by Europeans. In 1877, Sir Henry Frere decided that the only way to gain total control over the South African area was to defeat the Zulus, who were bordering several independent Boer and tribal states (Herbert). While warfare between African tribes did exist, it was usually fought over matters such as land. The British however, entered Africa and attempted to destabilize a tribe to make seizing power over the area easier for them. The Anglo-Zulu War wouldn’t have been fought had the British not invaded Africa and instigated the Zulu tribe. Commandment S Bourquin wrote several journal entries detailing the

The history of Africa is very complex. Europeans invaded Africa and stripped them of their culture and denied future generations their history. Despite the focus on the time of enslavement in modern history, African history expands far beyond that. African history has been consistently whitewashed and many historians have attempted to put our history in a box. In order to understand and study the African experience, one must realize that the history of Africa extends far beyond the times of enslavement and colonialism.

Initially, in “An Image of Africa” Chinua Achebe states his respect for Conrad despite his resentment toward his racist sentiments. Conrad is only acknowledged as a good writes, instead of as a racist, which Achebe feels is unfair and ‘a shame.’ To bring Conrad’s racism to light, Achebe begins his argument by explaining, broadly, that Conrad used Africa in contrast to Europe to show good versus evil. He says,“Quite simply it is the desire--one might indeed say the need-- in Western psychology to set

Conrad’s Heart of Darkness illustrates how the power from the imperialism that the Europeans have causes them to treat the native people of Congo Africa as slaves and as bodies that are meant for work. Conrad expresses the horrors of the Europeans toward the natives of Congo through the state of the natives’ bodies. Conrad describes the Congo as though it is a graveyard for all of the natives that are being treated as slaves by the Europeans. The natives in the setting are characterized as living inferior to the Europeans that come to conquer the land. In “Envisioning Africa: Racism and Imperialism in Conrad’s ‘Heart of Darkness,’” Peter Firchow examines Heart of Darkness and the allegations of racism against the novel. In response to Heart of Darkness, Firchow states how Conrad’s own experiences to Africa may play a role in his perception of the Congo and Africa in general. Firchow focuses on how Conrad draws racism into Heart of Darkness by exploring “misrepresentations of Africa and Africans”. The “misrepresentations” of Africans include how the natives are assumed to be weak and poor although their type of civilization is the opposite of the Europeans and of Conrad’s. The poor state the Africans are assumed by the Europeans to be a call for help. Misrepresentations of Africa are further described as being an opportunity to explore one’s hidden, dark inner self. The poor state that Africans live in can easily be overruled by stronger forces such as European countries. Imperialism places a strong suit in the overruling of the Africans as Europeans start to

In the article "An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness," Chinua Achebe criticizes Joseph Conrad for his racist views toward the natives of Africa. After one reads Achebe’s critique, it is clear that Conrad wanted the novella to be perceived as a racist text. Conrad depicts the uncivilized treatment of nonwhites during the period of colonization without condemning such actions. After analyzing Achebe’s famous work and Conrad’s novella I have come to agree with Achebe; Conrad “was a thoroughgoing racist.” (Achebe) Heart of Darkness portrays this position clearly. Throughout the novella, Conrad describes and represents the Africans and Africa itself in a racist way. According to Chinua Achebe, the harsh behavior of English people towards the natives, the lack of equality felt by the English towards the Africans, and the word choices of the English to and about the savages reveal Conrad's racist position in the work.

Chinua Achebe, a well known writer, once gave a lecture at the University of Massachusetts about Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, entitled "An image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness." Throughout his essay, Achebe notes how Conrad used Africa as a background only, and how he "set Africa up as a foil to Europe," (Achebe, p.251) while he also "projects the image of Africa as the ‘other

Attempting to understand the reasons Achebe claims Conrad is a racist, Phillips travels to Bard College, where Achebe teaches, to discuss Achebe’s viewpoints and reasons for his famous lecture. Two main points are made relatively quickly: Conrad’s obsession of the word “nigger” and his descriptions of Africans when he first arrives in the Congo. Conrad, according to Achebe, degrades and dehumanizes his African counterparts by only describing their limbs and appendages, treating them as animals more so than human; in the one instance where more description is given, he is out of place in society. The natives are ugly, yet somehow not inhuman; the use of litotes creates an inferior image of the people of the Congo. Some claim that because Heart of Darkness is told by the perspective of Marlow, Conrad is not a racist, but simply retelling a story and allows the reader to analyze the meaning behind it; Achebe argues that the only reason for this distance is to remove the blame and accusations upon Conrad for his views on