Dress and Fashion Essay

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.

European colonialism has a lasting legacies on many African countries. European colonialism started in the late 1900’s and continued until after World War II. Colonialism is a system in which one country takes control of the political and economic affairs of another nation, and imposes policies to control another nation. In the 17th century colonizing parts of Africa became popular European countries. In the year 1677, France colonized their first African country, Senegal. Specifically, an area called Saint Louis. France was most interested in Senegal for their easy access to the Gambia river to increase access to trade routes. During this time France and Britain were fighting over African countries that had easy access the Gambia river.. Earlier, 1638 the french established trade routes in Senegal. (historyworld.net). Later, 1677 France was able to seize Senegal for the Dutch which made Senegal France 's first colonized county. European nations decided to colonize the rest of Africa during the Berlin Conference that took place. Between 1884-1885 Europeans carved up part of Africa and claimed them as their own. Senegal has a reputation of being one of the better treated legacies of colonial power. However, there are still legacies of colonial power which shapes how Senegal is today.

Middle-Eastern and North African clothing culture is distinguished from other cultures by the veil, a clothing that provokes many reactions from authors and debates between the Western and Eastern people.

Have you ever wondered what people in the Elizabethan Era wore? Fashion was just as important in those days as it is to some people today. What people were wearing mattered to others, and even the government. During the Elizabethan Era clothing, accessories, and cosmetics were all a part of daily life.

“African Perspectives on Colonialism” is a book written by A. Adu Boahen. This book classifies the African responses to European colonialism in the 19th century. Boahen begins with the status of Africa in the last quarter of the 19th century and follows through the first years of African independence. This book deals with a twenty year time period between 1880 and 1900. Boahen talks about when Africa was seized and occupied by the Imperial Powers of Europe. Eurocentric points of view dominated the study of this era but Boahen gives us the African perspective. There are always two sides of the story and Boehen tells us the side less talked about informing us of what he knows.

In Basil Davidson’s video “Different but Equal,” he outlines the European perception of Africa upon their discovery of the continent. Claims that the Europeans were making about African culture, however, were far fetched and did not depict Africa in a positive manner. History according to pre-European Africa was rich and diverse, but once Europeans saw for themselves how different their continent was from Africa, they began to make up their own version of African history.

For centuries, European nations had been trading slaves, gold, ivory, and more with the west coast of Africa. Throughout the early 1800s, Europeans barely knew anything about the rest of the country of Africa. This quickly changed as Europe grew a sudden interest in exploring the rest of the country and taking advantage of their many valuable resources. Many wonder what motivated Europeans to Imperialize Africa, or extend their country’s power throughout Africa. The driving forces behind European Imperialism in Africa were the strive for ultimate power in Africa between competing countries, the need for money and technological advancements in European civilizations, and the constant attempt for Europeans to spread their cultures throughout

To further evaluate Europe and Africa one could look at the economic consequences of European colonialism in Africa. There are several consequences to this subject. The two that seem the most important was the transformation of individual colonies into export-oriented

Looking at the clothing from the Native Americans in comparison to the modern mid 20th century American so to gain a foundational understanding of the styles unique to each time period is one of many ways in which to identify the stark differences in apparel. Investigation into the distinguishing styles of different time periods would highlight the major difference of the Native American’s loin clothing and the early European immigrants heavily clothed dress. A knowledge of the different clothing styles opens the opportunity to explore any significant events of the time that may have influenced the clothing. Sections from the book Reader’s Companion to U.S. Women’s History provide close descriptions of the adoption of different clothing styles through exchanges similar to those made by the European immigrants and Native Americans accompanied with reasons why such exchanges occurred. Some ABC-CLIO articles (e.g. Lauren Gallow’s “A Developing Economy) identify the correlation between major events--such as the industrial and market revolution--of the time period and its impact on the clothing

Society in Africa and Europe change substantially because of European colonization. In document six, a story explains how Africans were not treated as friends and brothers, but as slaves and outcasts of Europeans society after their home was brutally conquered. Missionaries arrived preaching a message of love and fellowship, but others believed that this could not be reached without first learning European culture and assimilating. From a free people, many became slaves, drastically changing the social structure of Africa. Secondly, from document three, European superiority over other races is shown through Jules Ferry’s speech as Prime Minister of France. He voices the opinions and thoughts that are normal for

Many people would not believe that there are so many similarities between modern day fashion and the fashion of the renaissance time period. Many differences may be seen between the two, but the similarities are remarkable. Throughout all of time, clothing has been the major representation of social classes. What people wear has always been the distinguishing factor between the wealthy and the poor classes of both the renaissance and current time period. The evolution from time period to time period has been vast, but the fact that what people wear represents what class they reside in is still very prevalent. From the fabrics, jewels, and accessories, you can still see many similarities from the renaissance time period to the current time

Europeans colonization stripped Africans of their culture and ability to express themselves. Document 5, illustrates the cultural bondage that Africa was stuck in due to colonization. Being tied in European cultural hindered African from stating their beliefs and

Children and Teenagers express themselves by what they wear. That is one of the biggest arguments schools have and the overall biggest problems is dress code. Teenagers and children like to feel free and wear things that make them unique. Dress codes does not really affect the way students learn. I think that children should be able to wear what they want to school and not get sent home for it being to provocative or inappropriate.

Ever since their invention many centuries ago, clothes have been used as a way of communicating. The message communicated relies on a number of factors including the social background of both the communicator and the receiver, and the context in which the message is communicated. Although at times the exact message or symbolism one is trying to portray may not be clear, it is evident that clothing has long been embraced as one of the best ways to project one’s desired personal image to those around them.

Africa is one of the most under-looked and misunderstood areas within our world. Unfortunately, this issue stems from a history of oppression and disruptive influences from outside countries. Also, it does not help that the practices of recording history in the past were not the most ethical and sensitive to the people of Africa. With that came the opportunity for stereotyping and not really seeking to understand the complex dynamic of the continent. Africa is vast in size with great diversity within. The ways of living and functioning may be mysterious to industrial civilizations, but they have much to offer and teach industrial societies. Thus, it is very important to approach and understand Africa without generalizing stereotypes and with adequate historical framework.