History of Modern Africa

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History of Modern Africa

• Michael Madill

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Agenda

• Introduction
• How does the course work?
• The basics about Africa
• How the hell will I understand any of it?
• What should I do for next week?

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Introduction
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Me

• Michael Madill
• mmadill_at_oakton.edu
• 1-312-375-3482
• http//www.oakton.edu/mmadill
• Office hours 24/7 by phone or appointment

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Introduction

• In this meeting we will discuss how this course
  will run and basic topics which are critical to
  an understanding of the course material to
  follow. We will locate Africa geographically and
  enter briefly into its recent history, and we
  will touch upon elements of historiography and
  political science which students will find useful
  in the course.

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Required reading

• None

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Supplemental reading

• Bayart, Jean Francois. The State in Africa
  Politics of the Belly
• Kapuscinski, Ryszard. The Shadow of the Sun
• Achebe, Chinua. Man of the People
• Kitching, Gavin. Class and Economic Change in
  Kenya
• Iliffe, John. A Modern History of Tanganyika
• Mamdami, Mahmood. Politics and Class Formation
  in Uganda
• Cesaire, Aime. Discourse On Colonialism
• Isegawa, Moses. Abyssinian Chronicles
• Eggers, Dave. What is the What
• Abrahams, Peter. Mine Boy

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Discussion Questions

• Is greed good?
• Who would you feed first, your family or your
  neighbor?
• Are justice and fairness the same thing? Why or
  why not?
• Do not write these up this time . . . just think
  about them

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How does this course work?
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Basic methodology

• We will investigate problems of history and
  Africa
• I will give you the basic information you need to
  know
• You will . . . hopefully . . . develop the
  intellectual tools necessary to draw insights by
  connecting the basic information I give you to
  your own observations about the world
• I am here to help

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What this means to you

• Check the website weekly for new presentations,
  usually available on Sunday night
• Do whatever research or required reading is
  necessary
• Answer the discussion questions in the
  presentation by typing ONE PAGE of comments and
  then e-mail it to me
• Use these comments as ammunition to participate
  in discussion during the class

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Grading

• ½ Participation
• ½ Final exam
• The best way for you to get a good grade in the
  class is to show up, argue with me, know your
  stuff, and learn how to express yourself cogently
• If you want to know how you are doing you must
  ASK, and if you are concerned about or unsure of
  your performance you should ask early and often

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Participation

• The most important aspect of your grade as far as
  I am concerned
• Participating means showing up, speaking up in
  class and doing your written assignments come
  prepared to argue and then actually do it (hint
  coming prepared means doing your homework)
• No fair being shy . . . Im shy . . . no, really
  see me if shyness is a problem for you and I
  can help
• No fair if English isnt your first language . .
  . I dont speak French but its never stopped me
  from trying see me if you think your English is
  bad and I can help

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Final exam

• Last day of the course
• Short essay
• Typically two or three questions and you answer
  all of them
• The entire course is fair game, but the questions
  dont test your memory . . . they test your
  ability to argue no regurgitation or multiple
  choice, so cramming doesnt help

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My rules

• I hate rules, but they made me write some, so
  here they are
• Dont be shy
• Dont be dumb
• Dont hate
• Dont cheat

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Dont be shy

• Everyone has opinions. Share them. Back them
  up.
• No fair saying "I don't know." I will poke and
  prod and push and may eventually require you to
  answer if you insist on remaining silent. But
  most people aren't that insistent.
• I will deliberately ask provocative questions so
  that most people simply cannot remain silent.

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Dont be dumb

• Think before you speak. Formulate a response to
  my questions or observations or to those of your
  colleagues which is worthy of discussion
• Personal views are good. Just make sure that you
  back up whatever you say with facts, examples
• Don't fly off the handle just because something I
  said made you angry. If I touch a raw nerve,
  good. Ask yourself why and then reply and try to
  beat me in an argument.
• It's politics for goodness sake, not a family
  feud. So use your brain

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Dont hate

• I won't tolerate racism, chauvinism or any other
  -ism.
• If I think you have done something like this by
  accident I will try to work it out with you. If
  I think you have done it deliberately I will take
  the whole thing straight to the administration
  and let them deal with you.
• If you have strong views on race, gender,
  religion or whatever that's good. Just make sure
  you express them using facts and without using
  pejoratives or epithets.
• If you think you need help on this point see me
  for advice.

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Dont cheat

• The college has a policy on academic integrity.
  Follow it. It's not hard for me to spot
  plagiarism and other forms of stealing, but
  occasionally you may be able to fool me. If you
  do, congratulations on selling yourself short.
• I'm not afraid to admit there are things I don't
  know or afraid to tell you where I got my
  information -- so neither should you be.
• Again, see me if you need help.

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Argue like a grown-up

• Listen first
• Assume positive intent
• Respond cogently

• Let them finish
• Give them the benefit of the doubt
• Make it good

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Questions so far?

• Any question about the course is fair game
• If you are going to learn from me over the next
  few weeks, you ought to know a thing or two about
  me, so ask if you are curious

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The basics about Africa
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Africa is big

• Over 30 million sq km ? almost three times the
  size of the US
• The Sahara desert is bigger than the US
• Africa is 8,000 km from north to south and 7,400
  km from east to west at the widest points
• A direct flight from Chicago to London is 6,375 km

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Africa is diverse

• Approx 1 billion people
• 1,100 recognized languages and more than 20,000
  dialects
• There are more English speakers in Africa than in
  the US
• 7 major ethnic groups with more than 100 million
  members and more than 100,000 tribe and clan
  divisions
• All major world religions are represented and
  local traditional beliefs are strong almost
  half of all Christians and almost half of all
  Muslims live in Africa
• All major climatic zones except arctic can be
  found in Africa
• 53 countries

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Africa is complex

• Most countries have a very large Gini
  coefficient, meaning there is a big gap between
  rich and poor
• Many countries are rich in natural resources but
  suffer very high rates of poverty
• So many people are sick or dying of AIDS that GDP
  is affected in many countries
• Low-intensity warfare is common

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Africa is hopeful, above all

• Rich literary and musical traditions
• Seven Nobel Peace Prize winners
• Wangari Maathai, Kofi Annan, Nelson Mandela, FW
  DeKlerk, Desmond Tutu, Anwar Sadat, John Lutuli
• Business and marketing innovations in mobile
  phone banking, solar power, logistics

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What is the History of Modern Africa?

• History is fundamentally about power who has
  it, how they got it, what they could do and did
  with it, the causes and effects of these and why
  things are they way they are. During the course
  we will discuss factors which affect those things
  in a selection of groups, states and areas in
  Africa.

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What is the History of Modern Africa? continued

• Modernity is an idea. Sometimes it describes an
  era, sometimes it describes a condition of
  development and sometimes it describes a cultural
  current. In this course we will use modern to
  denote the period which begins with the Scramble
  for Africa in about 1885 and which continues to
  the present.

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What is the History of Modern Africa? continued

• Africa is big and its important, but few of us
  know much about it. It is more than twice the
  size of the US and gives the world most of its
  diamonds, cocoa and iridium, which makes your
  mobile phone work. When social science scholars
  discuss Africa they usually mean sub-Saharan
  Africa, because the states of the Sahara and
  North Africa share cultural characteristics and
  historical antecedents that the states south of
  the Sahara do not. States of the Sahara and
  North Africa are usually studied in a group
  themselves or with states of the Middle East. In
  this course we will concern ourselves with
  sub-Saharan Africa but use the term Africa in
  describing the region.

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How the hell will I understand any of it?
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Mode of analysis
POLITY
SOCIETY
GROWTH
CHANGE
ECONOMY
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History Politics Power

• This means that History is political and that the
  telling of History is a political act
• If political power is controlled by a very small
  number of people, then History ought to represent
  the interests of those people because they are
  TELLING YOU WHAT THEY WANT YOU TO HEAR
• Ask yourself . . . why arent women, poor people,
  immigrants, non-whites, and working people better
  represented in our History books . . . where were
  all of these groups in your high school History
  course?

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Winners and losers

• History has winners and losers, and History is
  told by the winners
• History will be kind to me, for I intend to
  write it. Winston Churchill
• If more information is better than less, why do
  we accept a view of History which is incomplete?

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Might makes right is wrong

• The correct view of History is that which
  represents as broad a range of evidence-based
  interpretations as possible
• This means that the winners and the losers have
  equal parts to play . . . yes, EQUAL
• The British and French and American empires were
  built on the slave trade, but where are the
  stories of the slaves?

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Conspiracy is cop-out

• The Trilateral Commission doesnt run the world
  and neither does the Bilderberg Group
• History is not the result of a grand conspiracy
  by anyone rather, it is the outcome of
  centuries of accumulation of economic, social,
  and political power in the hands of a relatively
  small number of people who can always be counted
  on to act in their own interest
• Sometimes people at the top cooperate, but this
  would not be sufficient to explain the complex
  processes by which we have arrived at our present
  condition

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Level of analysis expected

• Your job as scholars (dont laugh) is to arrive
  at an understanding of the facts and how they fit
  together in order to be able to deliver a
  well-supported argument about the causes and
  likely effects of our world on our past, present
  and future

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Why?

• Question everything
• Trust no one
• Never stop asking why?
• DO something

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Many people have told the story of the world.
The point, however is to change it.

• Karl Marx

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What should I do for next week?
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Next steps

• Look at the Syllabus for this course on my
  website http//www.oakton.edu/mmadill
• Finish the required reading for unit 2 Paul
  Nugent, Africa Since Independence, ch 1 and 2
• Take the Political Compass survey at
  http//www.politicalcompass.org and be prepared
  to discuss your results
• Complete the discussion questions for unit 2 and
  e-mail them to me BEFORE you arrive next week