Love can make anybody do the unthinkable whether good or bad. It can make any man or woman realize their potential, successes and even failures. That is particularly true when looking at the novel Crossing the Heart of Africa: The Odyssey of Love and Adventure written by Julian Smith. In this novel, Smith tells the stories of two men, Ewart Grogan and Julian himself who embarked on a journey to cross Africa each with a mission they wanted to accomplish. Amazingly, these true stories of these two men have been intertwined and bring out a brilliant documentation of the happenings in their lives during the adventure. Interestingly, these two journeys took place a century apart and were each meant to accomplish a different reason but all in the …show more content…
In his modern day tour, he had to take up very uncomfortable bus rides, he experienced delays while traveling using ferries and at times he took taxis. Smith started off from Beira, and he followed in the footsteps of Grogan by following the lakes and rivers of Africa, the Great Rift Valley, and the White Nile and up North till he arrived in Cairo. One funny thing about his tour is that he avoided those parts of Africa that are deemed dangerous one of them being the Eastern Congo. While going through Rwanda, he came face to face with a country that experienced one of the worst modern day genocides. Even so, he had to overcome the seemingly unending inconveniences to reach his …show more content…
While Grogan wanted to prove his worth of marrying the woman he loved, Smith wanted to prove to himself that he is now ready to get married going by the timing of his adventure. Smith left just before he got married and was sure of that woman’s love whereas Grogan went into the jungle not sure of the outcome of his adventure. But the bottom line is that in the end, both men achieve their heart desires, and it is amazing at how much their life experiences make them similar though their experiences took place centuries apart. He may not have achieved in replicating Grogan’s long trek through Africa because of the challenges each of them faced, the truth of the matter is that Julian brings out the beauty of what makes Africa what it is in present day. Smith also succeeded in pairing up his love story to a one of the greatest historical love adventures of the 19th
Thus, Smith was a very proud and boastful man. Before reaching 25, he battled in many areas, such as the Netherlands and Hungary. He fought at sea off the Atlantic coast, where he was captured as a slave. As a slave, he was rough and beaten. The Indians that captured him brought him to their leader named Powhatan. Powhatan didn’t like him, so he threatened him to death and began to plan his death. Powhatan’s daughter, Pocahontas, fell in love with Smith and gained her fathers trust. He soon became Powhatan’s son. Burned severely in a gunpowder explosion, Smith was sent back to England for recovery. He returns to America in 5 years, only this time to New England.
People go through life wanting to achieve their full potential; however, many never take a moment to analyze what may affect how their life turns out. In this essay, I will be identifying and analyzing the three most significant points of comparison shared by the character Harry in Hemingway’s “Snows of Kilimanjaro” and the narrator of T.S Elliot’s poem “The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock”. The character Harry in “Snows of Kilimanjaro” has lived a good life and has traveled throughout many countries in Europe. Even though he pursued a career in writing, he is not well accomplished because he is drawn towards living a lazy luxurious life. While in Africa with his wife, he faces a huge conflict, which causes him to be regretful for how he has chosen to live is life. The narrator of T.S Elliot’s poem “The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock” enters the dynamic consciousness of its character Alfred Prufrock whose feelings, thoughts, and emotions are displayed in an
Chapter six of “Reversing Sail: A History of the African Diaspora” is entitled “Asserting the Right to Be”. This chapter explores the rebellion of enslaved Africans and their descendants. It stresses that fact resistance against slavery and oppression have been present from the very beginning of the slavery and it has grown and evolved over time. One point in particular that the chapter discusses is the rise in the number of slave revolts in the early 1500’s. Another important topic that is discussed is the fact that people of African descent not only had to fight against slavery but they also had to fight the concept that an african ancestry was a mark of inferiority.
John Smith explains the hardships of the voyage in the “General History of Virginia” he and others endured. While finally landing on land and discovering the head of the Chickahamania River, The colony endured Disease, severe weather, Native American attacks, and starvation all threatened to destroy the colony. Smith talks about his accomplishments of being a “good leader” and how he helped in many ways. John Smith was captured by the Native Americans and brought back to the camp. Within an hour, the Native Americans prepared to shoot him, but the Native Americans done as Chief Powhatan ordered and brought stones to beat Smiths brains out. John Smith gave an ivory double compass to the Chief of Powhatan. The Native Americans marveled at the parts of the compass. After the Native Americans admired the compass for an hour Chief Powhatan held...
John Smith was born in Lincolnshire, England to a farmer and his wife in 1580. He only had a grammar school education, but with this education he was able to join the British volunteers fighting in the Dutch war of independence from Spain. While in the military, he was captured by the Turks and sold as a slave. He eventually escaped and came back to his mother land of Great Britain in 1605. He then became interested in settling Virginia in the new world. The following year, Smith sailed to Virginia with the Virginia Company’s first colonist as one of seven councilors. This was the first of many voyages to the new world for him. Smith spent much time exploring the land. By this time, the governor of Jamestown was executed for treason and Smith was then elected president of Jamestown colony. He then began building houses, churches, and fortifications. He also had a policy th...
Beryl Markham’s West with the Night is a collection of anecdotes surrounding her early life growing up as a white girl in British imperialist Africa, leading up to and through her flight across the Atlantic Ocean from East to West, which made her the first woman to do so successfully. Throughout this memoir, Markham exhibits an ache for discovery, travel, and challenge. She never stays in one place for very long and cannot bear the boredom of a stagnant lifestyle. One of the most iconic statements that Beryl Markham makes in West with the Night is:
John Smith was born in Lincolnshire, England sometime between 1579 to 1580 (Biography.com pg 1). John Smith was a man of many talents. When he was still a young boy he was apprenticed to a merchant (shmoop pg 1). His father died when Smith was just seventeen. Soon after his father’s death he became a soldier for hire in the English army, also known as “red coats,” and became surprisingly successful in his military career (biography.com pg 1). During his time in the English army, he was captured by the Turks and was taken prisoner (biography.com pg 1). Not long after being imprisoned he became a slave and killed his master because of the cruel treatment he received (biography.com pg 1). He escaped and returned to England in the early 1600s. After that, he became a sailor, an explorer and, a settler in the New World, and a writer in his later years (Mark Canada pg 1). But out of all these things he was best known for establishing “Jamestown,” and in doing so, setting a foundation for The United States of America. One of John Smith’s main reasons for coming to the New World included a taste for an adventure, but the real main reason was for money. By investing in the New World which he thought ...
During the late 19th century and the early 20th century many of the European nations began their scramble for Africa which caused Many Africans to suffer from violence like wars, slavery and inequality. Although the Europeans felt power as though they were doing a great cause in the African continent during the Scramble for Africa; Africans had many reactions and actions including factors as rebellion for freedom, against the white settlers and violent resistance.
Karen Blixen, under the succedaneum of Isak Dineson, recounts a tale of life in Africa. The book, titled Out of Africa, centers on a farm nestled in the Ngong Hills of Nairobi. The narrator begins by sharing that Africa is where she is meant to be. She views Africa as a sort of paradise for it is very primitive and basic which is how she believes the world should be. Throughout the book the readers learn very little of the details of the narrator’s life. Rather, we learn of all her viewpoints and catch a glimpse as to why she looks at life this way.
An Image of Africa Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad has been depicted as “among the half-dozen greatest short novels in the English language.” Chinua Achebe believes otherwise. In Chinua Achebe’s An Image of Africa: Racism is Conrad’s Heart of Darkness he simply states that, “Joseph Conrad was a thoroughgoing racist” [pg.5]. Achebe argues that the racist observed in the Heart of Darkness is expressed due to the western psychology or as Achebe states “desire,” this being to show Africa as an antithesis to Europe.
The Scramble for Africa was a period of time where major European countries fought over and colonized land in Africa, stretching from South Africa to Egypt. The scramble for Africa began shortly after the slave trade, and ended at WW1, and is a strong representation of the ‘New Imperialism’. The first country to act was Belgium, who colonized Congo at 1885, but soon, other countries such as Portugal and Great Britain joined in in order to not miss out. Firstly, the European could not colonize Africa easily, due to Africa’s giant land mass and the diseases that spread throughout the land. But then, came the Steam train, Maxim guns and new cures for diseases that paved the way for the Europeans to control Africa. Since one of the reasons Europeans wanted to colonize Africa was that they wanted to ‘civilize’ the people, the leader of Germany, Otto Von Bismarck, decide that they have a conference to split the land and not fight each other. Soon, in 1914, nearly all African countries were colonized by Europeans except for Ethiopia and Liberia. Different countries had different styles of colonization. For example, France was less eager to let the African chiefs take control of their colonies than Britain, who set up a African Government to their colonies. Basically, the scramble for Africa was a period of time when European countries colonized Africa.
An overwhelming majority of African nations has reclaimed their independence from their European mother countries. This did not stop the Europeans from leaving a permanent mark on the continent however. European colonialism has shaped modern-day Africa, a considerable amount for the worse, but also some for the better. Including these positive and negative effects, colonialism has also touched much of Africa’s history and culture especially in recent years.
Africa My Africa by David Diop is an excellent example of a post-colonialism piece of work. After researching the author of the poem, I thoroughly understood and enjoyed the text more than just reading it over, without knowing his personal biographical information. David Diop is an African poet, who was born in France. His parents are of the West African descent (Poets.org). Diop emphasizes the problems of Africa that were brought about by colonialism, and shares a message to Africans to bring about change and freedom through his poem, Africa My Africa. Colonialism is the political, social, economic, and cultural domination of a territory and its people by a foreign power.
His parents don't approve of his engagement to her and he has to choose between his love for her or pleasing his family and tribe. Loved it No Longer at Ease is beautifully written book about colonialism and the alienating influence it has on those Africans who lose touch with their roots as they try to adapt to the changing times. I enjoyed this rich, challenging and fascinating story. The Usurper and Other Stories, The Village of waiting, Disciples of Fortune, Anthills of the
... executed in order to set off into the world alone. The influence that independent travel has on an individual is a splendor upon riches because it does so much for a person, and provides humans with a sense of the world. How a person can makes new friends and learn about new cultures and accept other people’s way of living. With its educational purposes traveling alone can bring, offers an endless amount of living data that tops any history book or internet page. Traveling is concrete history that is continuing around everyone. It can provide people to look through different lenses and experience aspects of life that they know they will never experience again in their lifetimes. Traveling alone provides an endless journey and an empty page in the minds scrapbook that is waiting to be filled with new memories and the endless amount of true belonging and bliss.