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For many Americans the mention of Africa immediately conjures up images of safaris, ferocious animals, strangely dressed "tribesmen," and impenetrable jungles. Although the occasional newspaper headline mentions authoritarian rule, corruption, genocide, devastating illnesses, or civil war in Africa, the collective American consciousness still carries strong mental images of Africa that are reflected in advertising, movies, amusement parks, cartoons, and many other corners of society. Few think to question these perceptions or how they came to be so deeply lodged in American minds. Mistaking Africa looks at the historical evolution of this mind-set and examines the role that popular media pla...
For many Americans the mention of Africa immediately conjures up images of safaris, ferocious animals, strangely dressed "tribesmen," and impenetrable jungles. Although the occasional newspaper headline mentions authoritarian rule, corruption, genocide, devastating illnesses, or civil war in Africa, the collective American consciousness still carries strong mental images of Africa that are reflected in advertising, movies, amusement parks, cartoons, and many other corners of society. Few think to question these perceptions or how they came to be so deeply lodged in American minds. Mistaking Africa looks at the historical evolution of this mind-set and examines the role that popular media pla...
For most Americans, the mention of Africa immediately conjures up images of safaris, wild animals, strangely dressed "tribesmen," and impenetrable jungles. Few think to question these perceptions or ask how they came to be so deeply lodged in the collective American consciousness. Curtis Keim's Mistaking Africa: Curiosities and Inventions of the American Mind examines the evolution of such stereotypes and examines the role that popular media play in their perpetuation. Keim addresses the most prevalent American misconceptions about Africa and demonstrates how these prevent an accurate understanding of the enormously diverse people and cultures of Africa. Mistaking Africa: Curiosities and Inv...
Western attitudes to Africa have been influenced to an extraordinary degree by the arts and artefacts that were brought back by the early collectors, exhibited in museums, and celebrated by scholars and artists in the metropolitan centres. The contributors to this volume trace the life history of artefacts that were brought to Europe and America from Congo towards the end of the nineteenth century, and became the subjects of museum displays. They also present fascinating case studies of the pioneering collectors, including such major figures as Frobenius and Torday. They discuss the complex and sensitive issues involved in the business of 'collecting', and show how the collections and exhibitions influenced academic debates about the categories of art and artefact, and the notion of authenticity, and challenged conventional aesthetic values, as modern Western artists began to draw on African models.
Comprises studies on the bibliographic control of various collections (e.g., films, museum materials, publications in African languages), background information on interlibrary cooperation, and an essay on improved online access to Africa-related materials in undergraduate collection. A companion to an exhibition developed by the American Museum of Natural History, the sophisticated text and stunning illustrations (249 in all, 128 in glorious color) trace the art history of northeastern Zaire from before the first encounters with Europeans in the 1870s to the present. The authors contrast the traditional design aesthetic with the naturalistic and representational style of art that flourished after 1900. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR
For many in the west, the mention of Africa immediately conjures up images of safaris, ferocious animals, sparsely dressed "tribesmen," and impenetrable jungles. Newspaper headlines rarely touch on Africa, but when they do, they often mention authoritarian rule, corruption, genocide, devastating illnesses, or civil war. Advertising, movies, amusement parks, cartoons, and many other corners of society all convey strong mental images of the continent that together form a collective consciousness. Few think to question these perceptions or how they came to be so deeply lodged in western minds. Mistaking Africa looks at the historical evolution of this mind-set and examines the role that popular...
Vansina’s scope is breathtaking: he reconstructs the history of the forest lands that cover all or part of southern Cameroon, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, the Congo, Zaire, the Central African Republic, and Cabinda in Angola, discussing the original settlement of the forest by the western Bantu; the periods of expansion and innovation in agriculture; the development of metallurgy; the rise and fall of political forms and of power; the coming of Atlantic trade and colonialism; and the conquest of the rainforests by colonial powers and the destruction of a way of life. “In 400 elegantly brilliant pages Vansina lays out five millennia of history for nearly 200 distinguishable regions of the fo...
Africa's wildlife heritage is under siege--and its worst enemy may be traditional conservation methods. The authors tell of new conservation programs that include more Africans in the planning, execution, and financial benefits of this multi-billion dollar business.
David E. Wright, president of the International Speakers Network, interviews several of the most prosperous people in business to reveal their success secrets.
What was it like to be colonized by foreigners? Highlighting a region in central Congo, in the center of sub-Saharan Africa, Being Colonized places Africans at the heart of the story. In a richly textured history that will appeal to general readers and students as well as to scholars, the distinguished historian Jan Vansina offers not just accounts of colonial administrators, missionaries, and traders, but the varied voices of a colonized people. Vansina uncovers the history revealed in local news, customs, gossip, and even dreams, as related by African villagers through archival documents, material culture, and oral interviews. Vansina’s case study of the colonial experience is the realm ...