Minutes of Glory

The Kenyan feminist and environmental activist, Wangari Maathai, explores the legacy of colonialism and oppression in her native country through her moving 2006 memoir, Unbowed. Maathai explains that over the course of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Africa experienced a massive influx of white settlers. In an effort to solidify control over recently acquired colonies, many European powers had encouraged large numbers of their ethnically white citizens to make a new home on the African continent. As a result, thousands of native Africans were displaced. Maathai’s ancestors, the Kikuyu and Maasai peoples were among them. The majority of these forced dislocations took

In 1949, many African nations began their surge for independence, and the native people did not accept the social modifications forced upon them. The revelation of the setting comes through the name “Ndume Central School” which is a school located within the African nation of Nigeria (595). Later, the setting reveals the deep divisions that take place in Africa at the time and allows the reader to understand why the villagers resists change. The separation between the school and village symbolizes the division, and this separation captures a modern school fighting a traditional village. Obi enforces the separation with the moving of the path and states that this new path should “[skirt] our premises” (597). The setting enhances the conflict between the villagers and Obi because the Africans at the time resisted the change that Obi enforced within the school. The setting of the school and village enhances the conflict because the school represents the transformation of society, while the village captures the stubborn, old way of living.

| An example from text that denotes author’s style * And now for all the people of Africa, the beloved country. Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika, God save Africa. But he would not see that salvation. It lay afar off, because men were afraid of it. Because, to tell the truth, they were afraid of him, and his wife, and Msimangu, and the young demonstrator. And what was there evil in their desires, in their hunger? That man should walk upright in the land where they were born, and be free to use the fruits of the earth, what was there evil in it? . . . They were afraid because they were so few. And such fear could not be cast out, but by love.

Glory is the story of Civil War Colonel Robert Gould Shaw, who leads the war's first all-black volunteer regiment the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry into battles and discovers along the way he has to confront the moral question of racial prejudice inside and outside of his regimen. Colonel Shaw was the commander of the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, also known as the Massachusetts “Fighting” Fifty-fourth, which was a position he has been thrown into and felt that he may not be fit for the job. At first Shaw was a little cowardly, during the battle, bomb fragments almost hit him and he passed out. He later seems guilty and not very motivated, but with the help of his friend Forbes and some time, Shaw turns himself into the leader that his men need. At the end Colonel Shaw’s courage shows when he volunteers to be the leading regiment in the assault on Fort Wagner and then during battle he forges on when the battle seems to a lost cause.

Europeans, such as the English, yearned to escape the harsh conditions of the everyday England lifestyle. The dreaded overpopulation, decrease in food production, and lack of opportunity for the poor are only a few of the reasons that drove the Europeans off to the New World. However, both the New England and Southern colonies desired the luxuries that resulted from the discovery of gold. Europeans felt they had a sacred obligation to spread their faith to the new lands yet to be discovered. Along with these possessions comes the glory and ultimately the respect from their homeland. God, Gold, and Glory served as vital motives for the European conquest of the Americas. It becomes evident that one does outweigh the other when considering the

The historical novel Segu by Maryse Condé is set in the African country of Segu during a time of great cultural change. The African Slave Trade, the spread of Islam, and personal identity challenges were all tremendous and far-reaching issues facing Africa from the late 1700s to early 1800s. Condé uses the four brothers of the Traore family, Tiekoro, Malobali, Siga, and Naba, to demonstrate the impact that the issues of Islam, slave trade, and identity had on African people through the development of each character. The oldest of the sons, Tiekoro exemplifies the influence and spread of Islam through out Africa at the time.

In a freezing class, two brilliant minds unlocked the fiery passion that is their talent one an artist the other a writer. Bringing to light a history long forgotten creating abstract thoughts arbitrary to our own. Komi Olaf the artist and Okey Ndibe the writer not only enlightening the class but also the world with each brush stroke and each word. Every creation stemming from the hands of these masters tell of issues at the heart of Africa from colonialism to existential dilemmas. Thru spoken word, hip-hop, art, music, poems and literature issues close at heart to the artists and to Africa are portrayed. This paper will focus on the art exhibit by Komi Olaf and Foreign Gods inc by Okey Ndibe as spoken by them during their discussion in the class on October 13th. Where the talks focused on the key course objectives being stereotypes, post-colonialism, youth culture, and resistance.

In Derek Walcott’s From in a Green Night: A Far Cry from Africa, the author explains and dives into the topic of colonialism and self-reflection through his own experiences of being trapped between his Kenyan and British descent. Similar to Fanon’s concept of complicity, Walcott also understands both sides of the story in an unbiased manner. In his poem, he uses imagery to describe the violent past in which Kenyans and British people have committed to each other, the ‘savage’ nature of humans during colonization, and his own internal speech where he himself is confused of his cultural and social identity. This paper will explore the core concepts of Walcott’s writing and further explain it through Fanon’s lens to amplify the meaning of the poem.

Chinua Achebe was a Nigerian novelist, poet, professor and critic. He is mainly known for his trilogy that investigates, using fiction, the history of Nigeria. The trilogy begins with Things Fall Apart, followed by No Longer at Ease and ended with Arrow of God. Furthermore, in this critically analytical essay, through a feminist perspective, a chapter of his second novel, No Longer at Ease, published in 1960, will be discussed. The setting of the novel is Lagos, Nigeria and Umuofia, Nigeria during the 1950s, before Nigeria attained independence from Great Britain. The novel, No Longer at Ease begins with Obi Okonkwo on trial, charged for accepting a bribe. However, using flashback, the author takes us back to the point before Obi’s departure

Wangari Maathai’s Unbowed exhibited a story of a fight for human rights, the struggle and hardships of discrimination, and the pursuit of a human being believing in what is right. After reading Unbowed it really shed some light on previous historic events and political leaders she had in common with. I found that Maathai drew many comparisons to Gandhi and Nelson Mandela. Two leaders that both fought for equality for their people Unbowed drew similarities to Marcos “The Fourth World War,” when Wangari explained Kenya’s rapid change in the early 1960’s and Alice Conklin’s “A Mission to Civilize.” These are just some of the main themes that I found coincided with the Wangari Maathai’s Unbowed.

The novel wrote by Ferdinand Oyono’s, titled Houseboy speaks about issues relating to colonialism and imperialism. These communications took place in Africa. The novel allows the audience to obtain some awareness as to how the people of the African culture changed, how they were trying to live, and be like their colonizers. Within this era, the book illustrates how a young African boy from Cameroon suffered cruelty and abuse in the home. The discoveries of physical abuse from his father caused the boy to run away. When Toundi ran away, he acknowledged and understood that he have to leave behind his tribal, values, and cultural ties. Toundi hopes that he never has to face his family again. He began to change his life by going into the colonial

Though Kenya’s impoverished and underdeveloped conditions were certainly not highlighted in the film, I believe it is important to observe. These conditions are best displayed by the state of the primary school. In the film, students were forced to sit 5 students to a desk and were crammed into a tiny room. Moreover, the Kenyans were highly grateful for the concept of free education. This highly contrasts the state of American schools, which are typically well funded. Americans are used to the concept of free education, so much so, that people now desire free higher education. I believe this theme is important to note because it is the key difference between the Kenyan and American

Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart is a modern example of postcolonial literature and is one of the most influential pieces of its genre. Postcolonial writing presents important themes and lessons of justice, equality, and freedom that can be applied to present times. It reminds us of how important our freedoms are and why we need to protect them. The colonized write about their exploitation and show how there is persecution in their colonized society. Postcolonial authors use specific methods to undermine their colonizers and reveal their backward logic. Things Fall Apart has various examples of meta-narrative, decolonization struggles, and colonial discourse worked in throughout the novel. Chinua Achebe’s writing styles showcase these techniques to subvert his European colonizers.

Jomo Kenyatta’s ethnography, Facing Mt. Kenya was written in the 1930’s about Kikuyu society during 1890-1910, the early years of British colonialism in Kenya. Since the coming of the early colonization the Kikuyu people have tried to develop a religious attitude that would define it’s own culture while adapting forcefully to the European conforms of religion.

1. 1.the story opens in the Botswana border and The chapter begins full suspense and intensity as the author does not reveal any names and only describes the surroundings and qualities of the character. The protagonist who is described as a preserved and mysterious person “infact the inner part of him was a jumble of chaotic discord, very much belied by his outer air of calm, lonely self containment”.