The Effects of British Colonization on Zimbabwe Women
The British began their colonization of Zimbabwe in 1890 as part of their project of capitalist expansion and world domination. Colonial expansion was a means of complete control of territories and furthered the expansion of their capitalist political economy. Africa provided the British with slaves, minerals, and raw materials to help them in their capitalist development. To help support capitalist expansion, the British asserted colonial discourse of power and superiority over the colonized. This discourse, or a system of representation, provided a way for the British to produce a position that the West was a superior civilization. In such a discourse the British were able to impose their cultural beliefs, particularly beliefs about gender, on the people they colonized. The imposition of colonial discourse, therefore, greatly affected colonized women.
In her somewhat autobiographical novel Nervous Conditions, Tsitsi Dangarembga shows us how the women in Rhodesia, now called Zimbabwe, were affected by this colonization by the British. Through different female characters, she shows us how colonization alienated women physically and psychologically through the lack of education, poverty, and relegation to the private sphere. Her novel not only tells about the effects of colonization but also emphasizes that women, despite restrictive gender roles, can develop the critical awareness, determination and strength to fight against their alienation and emancipate themselves from the restrictions of colonial discourse.
Before the British came to Zimbabwe, the family worked together as a tribe to help provide for everyone in that family and keep each other above high water. Every me...
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...talism, discourse, and patriarchy. After watching her female family members and taking note of everything they experience, and using the opportunities she earns and gains from an education, Tambu is able to educate herself with the critical awareness and strength to emancipate herself and overcome the burdens of gender and alienation of colonization of Zimbabwe. After reading the novel, Nervous Conditions and doing research, I have learned that the colonization of Zimbabwe forced the women of Zimbabwe into very hard roles to play. I have learned that through these processes of colonization, capitalism, discourse, patriarchy, and as a result alienation, women were, as Maria Mies puts it, "externalized, declared to be outside civilized society, pushed down, and thus made invisible as the under-water part of an iceberg is invisible, yet constitute the base of the whole."
In the book entitled Abina and the Important Men, by Trevor R. Getz and Liz Clarke is about a woman named Abina, who wakes up one morning and decides that she wants to change the way that women are portrayed in society. Although slaves in the 19th century were considered free, women had a more difficult time achieving freedom due to, how the culture was shaped, inequality between men and women and negative effects on society as a whole. Western and African cultures believe that all women should be silent, they are not allowed to say what is on their mind. Women’s opinions didn’t matter; they were considered useless. They were accepted to be housegirls, where females had to cook, clean and nurture their children if they had any.
Women had no choice but to follow whatever society told them to because there was no other option for them. Change was very hard for these women due to unexpected demands required from them. They held back every time change came their way, they had to put up with their oppressors because they didn’t have a mind of their own. Both authors described how their society affected them during this historical period.
Throughout history, British imperialism has influenced many countries’ culture and heritage for the worse. The competition for resources and markets made empires colonize different parts of the world to systematically spread their influence and force the colonized to forget their heritage. One of the most important African writers, Chinua Achebe was strongly concerned with political and social effects of British colonialism in the Igbo society. His novel, Things Fall Apart, is not an exceptionally positive one, utilizing the story to delineate a pioneer control that enters and afterward realizes the demise of the Igbo society (How Does Chinua Achebe Portray Colonialism Using Things Fall Apart?essay). Achebe paints a picture of how the colonizers treat the colonized and to what the local people are forced to accustom to the new culture that was forced upon them. Throughout the whole book, you can see diverse impacts on the tribe and the connections between the white and dark man (Colonialism in Things Fall Apart). The constant question of "Does the white man understand our custom abou...
Alzheimer’s disease is a form of dementia which is a brain disorder that impairs mental functioning. Dementia attacks the part of the brain which controls memory, language, and thought. It makes everyday tasks like remembering to brushing your teeth, or to pay your bills next to impossible to do, which is why so many people who are diagnosed with this disease are in complete care. This disease has different phases, the first being slight forgetfulness and then the persons emotions may heighten as well as language impairment, violent outbursts, loss of bladder control and from there it keeps getting worse until complete dysfunction of the brain occurs and eventually death, which most of the time is the result of infection.
Moreover, black African, Afro-African and Caribbean women were all the same in the sexual eyes of their white master. Women had struggle for economic and political independence. Also, women struggle for the respect and jobs to be equal for them as men. They are sought out to be part of the tradition task that was forced upon them such as, being a servant, child bearer, and housekeeper. Women have suffered a great deal after colonialism more than men. They were faced with white racis...
Alzheimer’s, the most common form of dementia, is a disease that afflicts more than 4 million older citizens in the US. Alzheimer's is a degenerative neurological disorder that leads to impairments in memory, thinking and reasoning. AD is the most common cause of dementia in older people, and mainly affects people 65 and over. Within the last few years, there have been drugs that can temporarily treat the patients, but it remains a form of dementia that is irreversible. The disease is very hard on both the person who receives the diagnosis and on his or her family and friends. Aside from medical help, those affected by the diagnosis may want to consider counseling and support groups to help them cope.
Alzheimer's disease is a disease of the brain. This may be considered a steady loss of memory and other mental functions. Alzheimer's is the most common form of dementia; a term stating to loss of memory and the ability to think, reason, function, and behave properly (Clinic, 2013). The word dementia derives from two Latin words, which mean away and mind, respectively. It's different from the mild forgetfulness normally observed older people. Over the years of this disease, people with Alzheimer's disease no longer know who they are or know much about the world around them.
The first sign of Alzheimer’s is memory loss, followed by personality changes and then progresses to loss of control over bodily functions. These changes happen over a long period of time. The early stages of Alzheimer’s disease, the symptoms are not immediately present but the patient starts to suffer from short memory lapses (e.g. forgetting faces of familiar people).
Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive degenerative disease that attacks the brain and results in impaired memory, thinking and behavior. Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia. Dementia is the lost of thinking, remembering and reasoning so bad it screws up ability to do daily functions and eventually resolves in death. Dr. Alois Alzheimer’s first discovered the disease in 1906. Since then research has developed a deeper understanding of the changes in the brain. Warning sign’s of Alzheimer's are memory loss that affects home and job skills, problem in speaking, poor judgment, and difficulty in learning. The last stage of Alzheimer's disease is when you’re unable to take care of yourself. The disease can last from 3 to 20 years from the time of onset of symptoms. Alzheimer’s disease affects as many as 4 million Americans. It can affect almost any age but still is more common in the ederly. As ageing population continues to increase, so does the disease. Today, 3% of the people ages 65 to 75 have alzheimer’s, 10% of those aged 75 to 85 have alzheimer’s and half the age 85 may have it to. Without a new cure it is estimated that alzheimers will affect over 14 million people by 2050. The elderly are the most infected with the disease and its still spreading. Other disease in common with Alzheimer’s is multi-infract dementia, Huntington’s disease, Pick’s disease, and Parkinson disease. People wonder if Alzheimer is genetic “meaning runs in families” the answer is the evidence isn't clear. Doctors and Physicians say if you have a by blood family member with Alzheimer's there's a slightly greater chance of getting or having the Alzheimer's disease. Many wonder if memory loss is a natural part of aging. The answer is yes and no, everyone has forgotten where he or she parked their car or the name of an acquaintance a one time or another. And many healthy individuals are less able to remember certain kinds of information as they get older. The symptoms of Alzheimer's disease are much more severe than simple memory lapses. This chart will kinda help you understand the difference.
Liberia, located in the west part of Africa, was a settlement to native Africans in the 1800’s would eventually stablish a settlement consisting of thousands of individuals, freed or non-slaves. This was an attempt of resolving the moral issue of enslavement by colonizing Liberia with freed, or ex-slaves. Not only were freed black men transported across the Atlantic, but women as well. No provisions had been made to ensure equality as a foundation to colonize which causes the issues misogyny and with the lack of historical content of women in Liberia the need for further analysis it is noted that women were hardly acknowledged and only seen as an object in creating a bigger population needed
Chinua Achebe analyzes a culture he is not accustomed with. The Madwoman in the attic theory comes into play as a westerner writing about “savage Africa”. Things Fall Apart provides an important understanding of Africana identity and history for those in the West who may be unfamiliar with African culture. Achebe tackles female identity within this book with delicacy keeping with the Ibo view of female nature in the background of the story but the forefront of the reader’s mind. A discussion of womanhood must touch upon manhood because they operate as a complementary, opposing, and equal entity.
While Collins does a succinct job of examining the economic and political factors that heightened colonization, he fails to hone in on the mental warfare that was an essential tool in creating African division and ultimately European conquest. Not only was the systematic dehumanization tactics crippling for the African society, but also, the system of racial hierarchy created the division essential for European success. The spillover effects of colonialism imparted detrimental affects on the African psyche, ultimately causing many, like Shanu, to, “become victims to the white man’s greed.”
Alzheimer's is a type of dementia in which parts of the brain stop working, causing memory loss, and instability in judgement, reasoning and emotions. Dementia, such as Alzheimer's is usually more frequent in elderly people. Approximately 15 percent of people who are over 65 will develop some form of dementia; by the age of 85 that percentage increases by at least 35 percent. Alzheimer's is the most common dementia, nearly four million Americans suffer from it.
Chinua Achebe’s book, Things Fall Apart, was based on a story and the culture in Nigeria, Western Africa. Women’s roles and responsibilities have transitioned over several of years. The book arises a situation of how the Ibo women were treated and looked upon. In the Ibo culture, the women did not only suffer a great loss of their dignity, but also their pride as women. The whole role of women in the Ibo culture is different in various ways compared to the female race in modern society. The modern society in Nigeria, women are not so powerless, and also have the opportunity to work alongside the opposite gender.
A feminist analysis on the other hand shows that Anowa is a woman who is struggling against the 1870’s African feminist identity (the identity of weakness). The drama surrounds the story of a young woman called Anowa who disobeys her parents by marrying Kofi Ako, a man who has a reputation for indolence and migrates with him to a far place. Childless after several years of marriage, Anowa realises that Kofi had sacrificed his manhood for wealth. Upon Anowa’s realisation, Kofi in disgrace shoots himself while Anowa too drowns herself. In a postcolonial analysis of “Anowa”, we can see some evidence of colonialism.