What do you know about Africa, and how do you know it?
When you read about Africa, do you expect to hear about “tragic hellholes full of starving children with flies in their eyes” (Kristof 44)?
And when you hear about problems in Africa, do you respond with what Kristof describes as a “collective shrug” and say, “Too bad, but isn’t that what Africa is always like? People slaughtering each other? . . . we have our own problems?” (41).
In “How to Write About Africa,” Kenyan Binyavanga Waianana summarizes the many ways Western writers discuss Africa, her people, and the struggles faced by many nations represented on the continent.
How accurate are her observations? Have your views of Africa been influenced by the kind of writing she describes?
Will the kind of writing/campaigns advocated by Kristof help readers/viewers to see Africa in new ways? Or is Kristof part of the problem?
As usual, respond to the blog by commenting on this prompt or on the comments of other students.
31 comments:
I am guilty. I am one of those people that Kristof mentions in his article “that respond with “…isn’t that what Africa is always like?” When I think of Africa, I think of how scary it is. Yet I’ve never been there. All I hear of is the horrible things happening in the developing nation. Although I know of the many names of countries within Africa, I wouldn’t be able to point at a map and tell you where they are. Who am I to judge Africa? The only thing I can tell you is many people are dying in Africa everyday. I mean that’s all I hear of in the media, at church, and at school. It’s that these people need help. In “How to Write About Africa”, Binyavanga Waianana shows how ignorant many people (including myself) are on their views on Africa. She emphasizes on the generalizations we make on Africa through her pessimistic tone. For example she says, “The biggest taboo in writing about Africa is to describe or show dead or suffering white people”. Her sarcasm really shows how ignorant we are and I agree. Yet, in most cases, the media focuses on the bad things rather than the good. So we can’t really help the fact that only “bad Africa” is being shown to the public. If everything in Africa was perfectly normal, it wouldn’t even end up in the news.
Now I go both ways about helping these people. It is kind of hard to actually make moves in helping when you are all the way across the globe. I mean personally, I’m so busy with my own life working a job and also going to school full time. It’s not easy. It is easy to however, live my life without acknowledging the hurt these people are going through. I mean it’s not anybody I know right? Then again, if those Africans were myself, I would want help!!!!! Of course when it’s someone you know, or even yourself- you do something about it! I mean think about voting in America. Personally, I haven’t voted yet because first, I think my vote won’t matter and second, I would only vote if it were about something that pertained to my interests. These are commonly thought of when trying to save Africa, or the world in fact. How am I supposed to save the world? What can I even do? Why should I even care? These are many of the doubts that go through my head.
From my own doubts, I can understand how hard it is for Kristof to get people to care about tragedies in the world. Kristof gives two main advices for getting people to care. 1. We should emphasize hopefulness and 2. We should focus on the individual rather than the overall group. I think it is true that we should focus on the good rather than the bad. We cannot see the results of making an effort in saving people’s lives, which makes many people not want to help because we feel as if our help is hopeless. But when people see progress or the impact they can make, it will make them WANT to help more. Showing the success of helping someone’s life GIVES hope to the giver. Also, I agree that it is good to focus on a crisis within an individual rather than a group. This allows the giving to be more personal or intimate. It is also a lot easier to show progress about this individual and what they’re up to individually. Yet, I think people do also care about the overall group. Personally it is nice to know that I am helping many lives rather than just one. It’s also unfair to those others who don’t get helped. How do you choose which individual to help over the other? By which one needs it the most? In these situations, everybody wants and needs to be saved.
Allie Bostron
To be honest, I don’t know much about Africa at all. How I would picture it though, is how Wajanana says westerners see Africa as: a desert. Like Allie, I also pushed aside the problems whenever I would hear or read about Africa; I would ignore/disregard the problem altogether either because of how it was written about (with the “starving children with flies in their eyes,” there’s too much guilt where you don’t even want to hear it, see it, or even think about it) or I felt my problems were more important, or maybe both. Kristof makes a good argument. I think a better approach would definitely be to have a powerful story about someone succeeding and overcoming their bad situation, than one of many starving children. It gives a sense of hopefulness, instead of one of despair.
I think that the article “How to Write About Africa,” was a lot of information to take in, and I wasn’t too sure on how to view it. It is a very looong list of how Africa is written about, and I think it is sort of accurate. A lot of people DO confuse Africa for being a country, not a continent. Same goes for what people here think Africans eat: monkey brains. I’ve heard of it before and I’m sure others here have too. We do see African as having “rhythm deep in their souls.” We do romanticize the animals. We do think of “prominent ribs” when we think of Africa. Westerners ARE guilty of portraying Africa in many of these ways. Maybe not all of them, but quite a few.
I think that Kristof is a not a part of the problem. Kristof wants people to tell the stories of success and not of “impoverished villages.” He wants to stay away from the stories of the African “children with flies in their eyes,” because that will not get people involved. It’s a new and good approach.
Well to start off, I don’t really know true facts or statistics about Africa, but i have heard many different stories or read numerous things about Africa. When I hear Africa, I think of a Deserted place, people dying, no form health care, flies everywhere, etc. I feel that always hearing the problems or negativity happening in Africa is a horrible way of reaching out to people to help. Maybe if people could read about or hear about a successful person’s horrible past life, then more people would help. I would have to say that I would help Africa more if I was reading about successful happenings as kristof does in his article.
In kristof’s article, he provides a lot of information that could be overwhelming or too much to accumulate. But I pretty sure that the majority of his facts are accurate and I can say that because I am guilty of some of the stuff he mentions that others see of Africa. For example, I can say that I do confuse Africa of being a country and not a continent. I think of everyone being starving and having visible ribs, or bones.
I feel that if all the sad commercials on television about children starving and being homeless, would just take the time to do further research in success happening in the country or continent, then more people would help the problem. Yeah it’s not going to make a huge impact in a day, but eventually it will have an impact. If people would just take the time and effort that Kristof does, then there would be more help being sent. I personally have no room to talk about helping because I haven’t done anything to try to help, but I can say if I could help, I wouldn’t have done so due to the horrible stories being told, but I would have done so due to the article Kristof wrote. He isn’t trying to point out the tragedy happening, but he is trying show that there is hope in helping these people. Kristof to me is trying to help the problem and not trying to just make others feel bad and obligated to help, but he is just showing that there has been successful things done. And that’s what we need.
Kenyan Binyavanga Waianana is correct with her observations, our opinions of Africa and Africans have been influenced by the Western influenced writers. Everything down to even the littlest things, I have heard before from one reading or another. We do impose stereotypes and how she describes Africa is the general Westernized stereotype.
Not only have I never been to Africa, I could hardly tell you anything about it. Everything I know from Africa comes from the article titles, pictures, and commercials. These all paint a grim and dark view of the country. Every story I have heard about Africa does have these main characters, who are supposed to represent the country. Who knows if this is really the case, like I said I have never been there and I know very little about the country.
Kristof, writes of his ideas, hence “Nicholas Kristof’s Advise for Saving the World”. He tells of the experiences he had while visiting Africa. He tells about all of the stereotypical schemes, scenes, and scenarios Waianana writes about. Kristof, is part of the problem. Every writer that writes about Africa says the same things, even if they think they are doing something good and educating the public, we have all heard it before. Everything that they write about we have heard. Don’t get me wrong I think that he had perfectly good intentions, trying to bring attention to and get help for the citizens of Africa. He thinks we need more attention, or some sort of marketing to bring attention to the country and its citizens.
I am not sure what there is that we, as individuals can do to help change the stereotypical views that we have been taught to see. I know that there is more to Africa than what we are shown, but if people like Kristof don’t help to change our views, there is not much that we can do to change how we have been programmed to think. Kristof talks about things that we can do to help Africa, but he also plays on all the stereotypical views that Waianana spoke of.
We have a set stereotype of the people of Africa, and Africa itself. We have more problems then just how Kristof writes, we have years and years of set thoughts about how Africa is.
Megan Campbell
After reading the first paragraph of the article “How To Write About Africa” by Binyavanga Wainaina I could tell she was writing in a frustrated/sarcastic tone. Come to find out, the entire article from the title to the last sentence was sarcasm. It is clear that Wainaina wants a change in the way westerners write about Africa. She is mocking westerns that act like they care about Africa. She writes in relation to Kristof, that the way writers are writing is not helping and in order to help they need to change what the way they are writing. In the article she refers to animals and how people care more about animals then they do about the many people suffering, which is similar to the story Kristof told about the Falcon. I do not know much about Africa other than the fact that there are many malnutrition people who are suffering everyday. When I think about Africa I automatically think of a safari with many exotic animals, which is most likely from the Disney movie The Lion King. Usually when I hear about Africa I do expect to hear about tragedy because that is what most westerners write about. Wainain is accurate because as a Westerner I know that all the statements that she includes in her article are similar to what I have heard about Africa throughout my life. When I hear about famines I feel bad for those suffering but I do not necessarily act on helping them. Kristof is not part of the problem at all in fact he is the opposite. Kristof’s ideas on how to write would help Africa because in agreement with Wainaina most people always write about Africa in a negative view.
From passages and articles I have previously read, I know that Africa is a struggling continent. Many of its countries are suffering and deprived of food, clothing, clean water and other basic necessities to live and survive. I've also seen pictures and television commercials that display malnourished children living in unacceptable situations. But I know from watching television that some parts of Africa are thriving with rural and urban city life. After reading Kristof's article about Africa and its "tragic hellholes full of starving children with flies in their eyes" (44) I actually expected these descriptions about Africa. When I hear things such as this about Africa I feel sympathetic toward the many people who live in poor conditions. However, I am guilty of quickly letting the issue fly past me and begin to worry about the problems I have in my own life. I'm selfish and I admit it but I am positive that I am not the only one.
In Kenyan Binyavanga Waianana's piece "How to Write About Africa" her observations are quite true about Western writers. Most writers note the poor and unhealthy conditions that exist in Africa. Very few write about the city life and fruitful towns. Maybe it is because that Western writers write according to her sarcastic comments. Maybe it is because it is more important to point out the bad parts rather than the good. But it goes back to what Kenyan says, "because you care" (51).
I do not feel the kind of writing and campaigns advocated by Kristof will help readers and viewers to see Africa in new ways. I feel like these stories have been told over and over again. A lot has been done to help the people in Africa but simply, it is not enough. I believe people such as Kristof should continue to encourage people to realize the situation and try harder to persuade others give a helping hand. Therefore, Kristof is not part of the problem.
When I think about Africa, the first thing that does come in my mind is that it is struggling with starvation, war, disease, and other horrible things but it doesn't mean that everything from Africa revolves around these tragedies. Today the way people think about Africa is mostly negative, but the way that Wainaina describes Africa in her passage "How to Write About Africa" is too horrible, and makes it sound like a hell hole. Surely not anyone believes that Africa is such in an awful situation, and there are many people that believe that Africa is doing great, just look a couple of years back when the Fifa World Cup was held there and how the whole world had its eyes on Africa. Although Africa isn't as bad as Wainaina's description of the Western's view of it, Africa does have some struggles. Everyone understands this, but just like most of us, including myself, we do not do anything to help. Thus everyone believes that their single help will not make a difference, so they don't help. Kristof understands that people are not motivated to help because they have manipulated to believe that their help will not do anything. So he has come up with two ideas, which is that we should emphasis on the individual instead of the group, and that we should have hope. If we don't have hope then people will not participate because they believe their help will not do anything and so they are just wasting time or effort. Then also, if we focus on the individual rather than the group then things will be done faster because there are less factors that will stop us rather than a group which has too many to worry about. Kristof is part of the solution because he has a plan that will promote help because at the rate that countries are going, like Africa, it will be everything that Wainaina describes and much more.
When I began to read "How To Write about Africa" by Binyavanga Wainaina I was shocked but not surprised at how she was referring to Africa. Whenever I used to hear about Africa I would always get such a negative picture in my head. Dying children, hot dry weather, and starvation. I believe that most people who read this will completely agree with Wainaina because they simply don't know the difference. I was really naive but once I began taking African Studies classes I began to learn a lot more about Africa that most people fail to see. But what else is there to expect? Most people who don't go out of their way to learn about other countries normally take what they hear and believe every single word. Wainaina speaks in such a sarcastic tone because I feel he wants readers to realize that the typical idea of what Africa really is, is really wrong. There are actually beautiful places and things to enjoy.
Kristof discusses two different kinds of people, people who care about the situation and those who turn the other way. When I look at the problems Africa faces I find myself actually interested in their problems. I feel grateful to live in a country where we are so privileged. I would love to travel around to countries and help in any way I could. But let's be realistic, most people who want to do these things can't afford to or say they want to help but never do. It's also because most people always hear the bad and never the good about the country that prevents them from getting to know more.
When hearing about Africa I believe that most people will be swayed to feel what is intended. The writings about sad, starving children are meant to make people sad and help. Those articles about the beautiful Sahara’s, and wide open skies with lovely sunset will make people want to go. I think that Wainaina’s observations are extremely accurate. When people write about Africa they pick a main idea to either discuss, or persuade people. If someone is going for sympathy towards Africa of course they will mention only the horrible acts going on there. Same with someone trying attract tourists, they will not mention the famine only the wonderful deserts full of animals.
The way Wainaina describes how to write about Africa, it makes me wonder if maybe it isn’t as bad as it seems, or that the sunset is not the most amazing thing ever. Maybe that people exaggerate these ideas to get the response they are looking for. But of course I do realize there is a problem at stake. In my point of view Kristof isn’t hurting the situation in Africa; he has a good point, that there is hope. Showing the people in America that there are way worse situations in this world, like in Africa, and people have overcame horrible life events that some wouldn’t even dream of having been in a situation similar, it will make people see Africa differently. Kristof is not part of the problem, he doesn’t blabber on about starving, lie invested children, and he speaks of children overcoming bad living styles. For instance the girl’s parents who both died and now she must care for her younger siblings. Kristof talks about how Africa has hope, although he says only show one child’s story this isn’t bad advertising. It is still the truth of Africa and if statistics show that strategy pulls more money there is no reason to not use it.
Sadly I am one of the people that views Africa the way both Kristoff and Binyavanga Waianana had stated in both of their articles. Everyone knows and understand that some parts of Africa are struggling betweens wars and genocide and starvation, but maybe writers do make much more of it than it is. Most of the time like Allie and Brenda i rolled my eyes and thought, i read this every day I can do nothing about this, I'm a struggling college student. Since we have been discussing social justice, my mind had been open to the problems of Africa and its countries and ways to solve them.
I know as much about Africa as the news papers and magazine portray. I know there is wars going on and starvation, I know that there is a lot of aid and funds going to Africa to help the people there.
Sad to say when I hear about Africa i expect to hear nothing positive. I expect to hear about aids and people dying and killing one another. I would never expect to hear an uplifting story or someone over coming the oppression that has been placed upon them. Sadly Waianana was right about the ignorance of people outside of Africa. Many people think and portray Africa to be this vast space of desert, wehre the pople are poor and impoverished living in huts and carrying guns. I feel that Kristof is the solution, even though some of the things he stated in his article are very questionable, he is far from the problem. He is helping people see Africa in a new light where people are overcoming the problems they are faced with and doing positive things with their lives. He is showing how there are people trying to rebuild Africa and help their fellow citizens. Its one very positive way to help.
Africa is one of the most misunderstood continents in the world. When I think about Africa, I think about the true Africa. The Africa full of different people, cultures, and languages. The Africa that is a continent and not a country. Africa has had (and continues to have) conflicts and sufferings, but it is a continent of perseverance. I stopped seeing the Africa that was portrayed in the media when I met actual people from countries like Uganda, Democratic Republic of Congo, and Rwanda. Learning about the history of different countries within Africa also changed my perspective. Once you meet the people and learn their histories, you realize that Africa is not so distant and foreign.
When I read about Africa, I do expect to hear about the dying children and the conflicts. Like I said before, the media has repeatedly portrayed Africa as a place full of despair and misery. Africa is never shown in a positive light. The media will always emphasize the horrible things that happen in Africa, but they will never share stories of hope or progress happening in Africa.
When I learned about the Rwandan Genocide and the current conflict in Central Africa, I felt overwhelming grief and hopelessness. I thought to myself how could the world just sit by and let these mass genocides take place? I realized that I wanted to be part of the solution, instead of part of the problem. This realization prompted me to take action and actively promote awareness for conflicts in Africa.
I found “How to Write About Africa” to be accurate as far as misconceived notions that people have about Africa. People like Waianana and Kristof are part of the solution. They are trying to break stereotypes and misguided ideals that have existed for many years. The same type of strategies and plans have been used to try and solve the problems in Africa and so far they have been inefficient. If the conflicts in Africa are to be resolved, innovation has to be the main focus.
-Chaminie Dhayalan
The continent of Africa has the greatest variation between economic wealth and poverty. I don’t expect to only read about negative things when I read about Africa. South Africa and Egypt are both very successful countries within Africa. These countries are written about often, and I do not look at Africa as a tragic hellhole, even though some people might. Although there are many stories about starving children about Africa, they aren’t written about as often as they should be. Most people do not want to hear about the negative things going on in other countries, therefore they aren’t written about that often. People do not want to hear about the poverty in Africa because I feel that it is not our obligation as individuals to help them, and couldn’t even if we wanted to. There are so many people that need help in Africa that just one person can’t fix anything, which makes it feel hopeless. There is so much violence taking place within Africa already between different rebel groups that it would be difficult to control the violence. Kristof is very accurate in his analysis of people’s reactions. It is more likely that they will donate when it is only one person they are helping, because they can make a great difference in their life. If they were to donate to more than one person, they would be still creating an impact, but a smaller one since their time or money is put into more people. The focus of donating to one person allows the donor to feel good about creating the greatest difference to one thing and visually see their contributions. If a great change were to be made it must be by force because it is nearly impossible to help the mass number of people in need of help without creating opposition. Kristof’s writings are very accurate and allow his readers to see Africa in a new way.
Before I read this article, or in fact any of the reading we have done so far, I never knew what was going on in any of these countries. Yes, you see commercials with children and bloated tummies or Oprah opening a school for young girls, but I never thought about the things that we have been talking about in class. Growning up I never really learned about Africa, I think our school system should teach more about what’s going on in our world rather than just the United States at a start of a young age such as Middle School or High School because I know I didn’t.
In the article “How to Write About Africa,” Wainaina mentions how some people think of Africa as hot, dusty, full of grasslands and deserts, a bunch of animals, and hungry people. I am guilty, because I am one of those people that think Africa is all of those things mentioned, I actually forgot that Africa was a continent and not a country and I also didn’t it had 44 countries. Wainaina also appears to use a very sarcastic tone when it comes to speaking about the western people. She shows how ignorant and selfish most of us can be, not caring and going on with our everyday lives and not grateful for the things that we take for granted and that are free resources to us. Wainaina also mentions “starving children with flies in their eyes,” I believe that many people do see thinks of these children when they hear Africa because all we see on our commercials and pictures when anything references Africa; so I believe that television, books, magazines, etc. should show the “ ordinary domestic scenes” because than we wouldn’t think of all the horrid things that are always being shown because that’s when we get our idea on how a place is.
I do believe that Kristof’s writings will help make people realize what is going on in Africa. By Kristof telling individual stories it feels more real and makes people want to help rather than hearing stories of groups of people. Kristoff is just trying to help the word spread and for people to become more aware, so no I do not think that Kristof is part of the problem.
Sad to say, but I don't really know much about Africa. Everything that i do know about that continent is whatever our media puts out for us to know. The continent of Africa, let alone the countries in it, never makes our headlines for positive things but more for all the problems that they are facing. I feel that we hear about it so that much that we just tend to flip the page since it's nothing new; It's like the bitter truth that we already know what's going on over there and don't bother to take the time to read the same information every time. It’s very disheartening to know that we are just skipping over problems that other people are facing across the world without showing any interest of helping. What can we even do? All we ever hear is about the famine, starvation, and warfare that is taking place over there. Wainaina’s observations are pretty accurate and I agree with her that Africa is portrayed in a certain way that we all think of it as a bad place with people starving everywhere and all the unpleasant things about it and that just overshadows everything else about the continent. Yes, I admit that I am also one of those people that see the problem and think, yes that’s very sad but what can I do? Kristoff’s writing was pretty accurate as well and I think will help get the message across and more support. We do tend to just shrug things off when we are asked to help many people instead of focusing on one single person and their story. I am one of those people again that think that I have my own problems as is, and I don’t see many ways to help them with theres. Yeah, we can donate money and give aid through organizations but even with that going on for years, we don’t see results. People are still dying with starvation, people are still getting killed. I feel like most people think that any sort of help on donation on their part isn’t going to do much since the situation hasn’t changed for years regardless of how much we give. It’s the little problems that get our attention that we don’t hear about that much, that gets our attention from time to time. For example, I was out shopping a few days ago and as I’m finishing up and paying for my things, the cashier asks if I wanted to buy a handmade bracelet by women in Uganda, for a dollar, and all that money is going to go to an organization that’s helping to build houses and infrastructure in Uganda. Hearing this, I felt that buying a bracelet for just a dollar and helping a cause that’s so big for others would make a difference to them. I felt that because she was more detailed on what exactly my dollar would be going to, I was more obligated to donate. This made me recall Kristoff’s writing. Honestly speaking, if she had just said, “would you like to donate today”, I probably would have just shrugged and be on my way since I was in a hurry anyways. But being more detailed and telling me that it was made by the women of Uganda and was going to help people have a roof on top of their heads and for their health and education, I felt like my dollar would go a long way and actually make a difference. It may be little, but everyone’s little amount adds up and makes a big difference. I did buy it and it definitely made me feel better that, though it was a little amount, I helped and didn’t shrug it off. Honestly, whether I still had that dollar today or not, wouldn’t have made a difference to me, and I probably wouldn’t have even noticed the absence of it, but it did make a slight difference to others and contributed to helping the village in Uganda in need. Many people in Africa are in need, and this just makes you think that you can slowly help one village in one state at a time. This is the organization that I was talking about: Cotton On Foundation
I absolutely agree with you Miss Eloiza Demate on selfishness. You are not the only one who feels that way. Let's face it, everyman is for himself. We are living in a selfish world where we care about nothing except for ourselves. This is the reason why I love Michael Jackson because in he emphasizes on the love for earth, human race, and peace especially in his two songs "Earth Song" and "Heal The World". In "Heal The World " Jackson wrote that "there are people dying, if you care enough for the living, make a better place for you and for me." If you do not know this song, please youtube it and tell me how you feel after listening to it.
Like Miss Eloiza have said, "Many of its countries are suffering and deprived of food, clothing, clean water and other basic necessities," however, those are only the surface of it. In 1990s the RUF (Revolutionary United Front) funded a war for diamond. Millions suffered through the illegal diamond and that is how the name Blood Diamond was born. Citizens were killed, sexually assaulted, amputated and enslaved as diamond miners. Yet, diamond flows freely into the world market where it represents eternity, purity, grace and "A girl's best friend." The value and the price of diamond could have made Africa a paradise but instead, the greed of their government has made this place hell on earth. So, I do not blame you or anyone of being selfish because their own government has sacrificed millions of its own people for money.
Mary Mayout
As I was reading all of what Waianana was describing as the current way most authors and journalists write about Africa, I could only testify to say that I have seen most articles on Africa based on what she has listed. Really, with the way she stated her whole essay in a sarcastic tone, she's basically showing the antithesis of how Africa should be written about. As Kristof says, do not focus on the bad, focus on the good and not make people feel guilty about not helping. In this sense, Waianana and Kristof are campaigning for the same goal to portray Africa.
As I was reading all of what Waianana was describing as the current way most authors and journalists write about Africa, I could only testify to say that I have seen most articles on Africa based on what she has listed. Really, with the way she stated her whole essay in a sarcastic tone, she's basically showing the antithesis of how Africa should be written about. As Kristof says, do not focus on the bad, focus on the good and not make people feel guilty about not helping. In this sense, Waianana and Kristof are campaigning for the same goal to portray Africa.
To be honest I am not too certain about how Africa is like. This is because all i know about Africa are things that I have read or heard. So when Binyavanga Waianana, author of "How to Wirte About Africa", was depicting the views some people have about Africa, I kind of fell into the group of people. I knew Africa has many different countries and that they are different culturally, for example I knew that South Africa has many white people living there.
When I hear about Africa I do not expect hear about “tragic hellholes full of starving children with flies in their eyes”(Kristof 44), but at the same time I think that there are countries in Africa that are suffering from malnutrition. This is not the first thing I think of when I hear the continent name Africa. Also I believe that almost all countries have starving children so just thinking that these starving children are only found in Africa is stupid. Also I kind of do agree with Kristof when he is talking about these things are always happening there and that we have our own problem. This is because as I said earlier these kinds of things are happening in many other countries so just focusing on countries in Africa is not fair to the other countries.
I believe that Binyavanga Waianana's observations are accurate to some extent. This is because people are not that ignorant so I think Waianana was being a little too extreme. At the same time a lot of people do not even know anything about Africa so anything they hear they just believe, and whenever they see one of those movies that depict kids in some African country to be starving, those people that do not know anything about Africa think that every country in Africa is like that, which of course is not true.
I believe that people are going to see Africa in a new way because of Kristof. This is because Kristof is being straight up in his writing so people will be able to open their eyes to this idea that maybe they are being a little ignorant.
While watching the news or reading current articles, its rare to come across information about Africa. Also, if we do come across information, its usually redundant information such as starving children or their poor living conditions. I direct my attention to whatever the nightly news has to offer and it rarely mentions Africa. Due to this, if someone were to ask me about statistics or random facts about Africa i would not have much to say. Wainainia makes it evident through her sarcastic tone on how ignorant almost everyone is on the topic of Africa.
After reading the article on Somalia and becoming a little more educated on the situation occurring over there, I realized that starving children and poor living conditions only scratch the surface of whats really going on in Africa. After reading Wainanina article, i realized many of my observations were poorly influenced by the stereotypes that seem to float around about Africa.
Honestly there really isn't much i know about Africa. I'm not very much into the news or reading on problems going on in the world. I believe that there are many problems in Africa but as bad as it may sound i think the existent of the problem is blown out of proportion. When i see things on Africa they're always focused on a small problem with a problem but i hardly ever see more than maybe 20 people in a photo or a clip. The reading we read on Somalia speaks on all these starving people up in the high thousands. I understand that the Brooks article explained that if we want someone to step up then we should focus on a certain individual but that just doesn't cut it for me, i need to see thousands suffer before i even think about doing something. A while ago i used to think that the situations over there were out of hand and something should be done until one day watching late night television and an infomercial came on. The infomercial started by showing a dirty area and showed it had no running water and small children with nothing to eat and all this was sad until a well dressed white male stepped into the camera and began to speak for these children. I then thought to my self "HOW FAKE!", do you really expect me to believe a man with money and an entire camera crew is just gonna sit there and let two young children starve and rummage through the sewer looking for food while they sit back and record them and talk about them? I just cant sit there and fall into the hype, i need more proof. There's probably no facts that i actually know about the things that go on in these "tough" areas of Africa but until i do have facts then i refuse to believe that things are as bad as people make it out to be.
The truth: I hardly know anything about Africa. The extent of my knowledge has come from reading the various articles in class, watching Anthony Bourdain No Reservations, and hearing a few things mentioned in church. What I know from these things is that there is a problem (whether it be the structure of society, civil unrest, violence, rape, diseases, etc)and we think we need to find a solution. All I have imprinted in my mind is depressing images. I do expect to hear only tragedies upon hearing things about Africa. I expect to be asked for help, for supplies, for donations and more charitable acts. I have received in the mail a picture of a African child (which makes me think of Russel Brand in Get Him to the Greek) and am asked to donate money to this child. And as Kristoff describes, I do give the "collective shrug" and feel there is a need for change, but do not attempt any action to acquire such change(41).
Binyavanga Waianana holds an interesting perspective. From reading the very first paragraph, I already know it was written in a sarcastic, satirical kind of way. Her writing is amusing: "Moans are good," "Treat Africa as if it were one country," and "Leave a strong impression that without your intervention and your important book, Africa is doomed" (51). Her observations are amazingly accurate. All of the information I have every heard and imagined about Africa appears to be just as she said, sad, primitive,wild, and full of starving people.
Waianana does something different from all others in that she blatantly reveals to her readers that writers and bloggers and anyone else involved in the helping of Africa have cause peopled to have distorted images of Africa; perhaps to even be fearful of helping the situation at hand. But I also think as a person from Kenya, she obviously has pride in her country. It is like portraying the United States, which is where I am from, as a greedy, waring country full of fat people and fast food restaurants. She probably wants to make it apparent that her home is not the way people make it to appear.
I do think that the kinds of campaigns advocated by Kristoff help readers see Africa in a new way. For instance, if he concentrates on the individual, the people will more likely get help. But I also think that Kristoff is part of the problem. Although he brings in more money and such into Africa, he also causes people to have a negative image of the place. They will see Africa as the place with the starving girl who has to take care of her sister because their mom and dad died or the woman who created a school after being raped and what not. So my belief is that he is and isn't part of the problem.
On the final note, I have to say that Wainanina has a very interesting perspective. Unlike a person who write of Africa from the visitor's eye, he is an insider and probably interprets things much differently than we do.
When I hear or read about Africa, I automatically think of negative images about the continent mainly because the information I know about Africa is often about its issues such as poverty, dirty environment, and the innocent people dying from starvation and/or diseases. I am not as informed about the current situations in Africa, but I can say that I gain awareness the more we read about its issues. The commercial that asks for donations to give aid to Africa also informs me about what is currently happening in Africa. Although I feel pity and sympathy about what’s currently happening in Africa, I unfortunately do nothing to help and prevent the situation from continuing. With how Western writers describe the situation in Africa as “tragic hellholes full of starving children with flies in their eyes” (Kristof 44),” these kind of pages about Africa are the ones that I usually just flip through or ignore because I think that there is just too much guilt to handle.
In “How to Write About Africa” by Kenyan Binyavanga, she describes the ways Western writers discuss about the people and the struggles in Africa. I think that Binyavanga’s observations are accurate for the reason that when Western writers write about Africa, it is never about the beautiful scenery of deserts, jungles, or savannahs. Just like what Emily implies, the good things about Africa are rarely appreciated or seen as something breathtaking. It makes it less convincing that Africa is place for a vacation. I agree that Western writers are writing to persuade its readers to help the suffering people in Africa, so therefore, they often write dramatically. According to Binyavanga, when you write about starving African children, they are described as someone “who wanders the refugee camp nearly naked, and waits for the benevolence of the West” (15). I believe that this statement implies that Western writers write in ways that make the West seem more superior and it is definitely their honor and responsibility to aid those that are in desperate need. I think that this could be another reason why Western writers write in a different type of persuasion. With the kind of writing Binyavanga describes, these are the aspects that greatly influence and contribute to the negative views most readers and I have about Africa. I believe that this type of writing or campaign advocated by Kristof does not help readers to see Africa in a different way for the reason that not everything about Africa is mentioned. In this type of writing, Kristof could just be part of the problem because he presents issues that only accommodate the readers’ attention. It would be best if readers know both the good and the bad side of what is currently happening in Africa because the continent itself deserves to be recognized by something beautiful.
Carlos Arroyo-
After reading the first paragraph of the article “How To Write About Africa” by Binyavanga Wainaina I could tell she was writing in a frustrated and concerned tone. It really hit me when Wainaina began to write about animals and how people care more about animals then they do about the many people suffering. When it comes to the discussion of Africa I am really confused on how it is really over there. I hear all this talk and see pictures and videos of these children really skinny and flies on their eyes and yes it is distubing and sad. It would make any american to feel guilty, that we could be doing something to help them; but what? I honestly feel guilty myself knowing that there are people living that way but whose not to say we dont have problems over here either; yes they might not be that bad but lets make ourselves sustainable before we think about risking our lives for other. I do agree with everyone else I do feel remorse and have sympathy for these people but I work with a person from Nigeria, Africa and he talks about his hometown and how it is; it doesnt seem as bad. This friend is married has children and he is very intelligent he went to college over there and has a very philisophycal mind. So, I dont understand if it is just different parts of Africa but I do care none the less.
The first thing I pictured when talking about Africa is a dessert with elephants and giraffs. Everyone else might have a different picture in there mind but I think that is why Kristoff is not the problem. I feel that he is just trying to inform people of the things that are happening around the world not only for us to feel guilty but to appreciate what we have and not make assumption on how we picture a different area of the world.
What I know about Africa and how I know it comes from articles or reported accounts on the history or discovery channel. What I see and read is coincides perfectly with what the author, Binyavanga Wainaina of How to Write About Africa states. I see naked women holding children who look sad. What I know about Africa and how I know it comes from the reports of western reporters. I do not assume to hear of the tragedy that in Africa, I know it to be a vast and beautiful, but that is what is reported, that is what is written down. When I hear about problems in Africa I do NOT respond to what Kristof describes as the “collective shrug” people who do so disappoint me, I don’t exactly buy the next ticket to Africa and arrive with solutions either but I’d like to think that I contribute when I can, spread awareness of campaigns that help contribute aid and hopefully sometime in within the next two years buy a ticket and help as I can. I feel that Binyavanga Waianana’s observations that she discusses in her article are accurate to what I have seen and heard of Africa. Other than the Lion King I can’t recall of another account that describes Africa in beauty and abundance. I don’t believe that her views have been influenced by the writings of others to the contrary I believe they have provided her with the strength to see more positive’s in Africa. I feel that it is presented in her article by her strong tone against the anti-Africa. I hope that articles such as, Kristof’s piece along with Waianana’s, helps readers realize that we can do more for others. I feel that my generation is too involved within them selves to look up for a minute and thinks selflessly let alone act on it. I hope that reading articles such as this people everywhere can become more proactive, what people don’t realize is that it wont take too much to help some one they just choose not too. I do not think Kristof is a part of the problem, I feel that the point of his article was to point out that people are not doing enough when they can. People put time and energy into what will make them feel good. I think Kristof’s article was just an eye opener for those who were unaware to world problems.
Rashele Rodriguez
I have learned about Africa in school a couple different times. I learned about Darfur my freshman year of high school. I learned about invisible children my sophomore year of high school. And I just learned about Somalia my sophomore year of college. All have been full of really sad stories and unfortunate situations. And yes when I hear or read about Africa I do except it to be a sad story and a "tragic hellhole full of starving children with flies in their eyes". It's just how Africa is known other than massive AIDS. Again yes, I am one of those people that respond with the shrug and say, “Too bad, but isn’t that what Africa is always like? People slaughtering each other? . . . we have our own problems?”. Because it’s true we do have our own problems. And like I have said in previous assignments who am I or anyone to say that we do not want to go over and help ourselves or that we don't have enough money to give, but yet we expect others to do it instead. That's not right.
In Kenyan Binyavanga Waianana's piece "How to Write About Africa" her claims on what she says must be said and what must be left out kind of bother me. It leaves me with a feeling that she wants people to lie by leaving out that there are good parts of Africa where people are fine and children are schooled and the fat that Americans that have gone over to HELP have been killed. I'm sorry but I believe that before someone goes over to help they deserve to know such awful things. They are risking their life as well and if that stops them in the end from going then so be it. But keeping such important facts such as those or at least the ladder are not right. So no I have not been influenced but her writing just disappointed.
I believe Kristof for the most part just wants people to donate and says that one should ask for donations on one person instead of a bunch or even two, and I think he is right in saying that because people do react differently to the number they are provided. So I do not think he is part of the problem. I just think he shouldn't get so mad at people when they might not have the money, or they just do not want to give it and it is their hard earned money for them to spend as the wish.
When picturing Africa in my mind all I can imagine is deserted small villages with no electricity or any type of developed city. I know, it seems somewhat ignorant to think the whole country is like that, but when you are surrounded by articles which speak of only the less fortunate side of Africa you cannot help but have that be the picture that pops in your hear when you hear the country’s name. I have never been to Africa, or known someone who has, so all of the knowledge I have on the country is from common articles on starving children, or disease epidemics, or the terrible conditions in which these unlucky people have to live in. And whenever I see any type of article regarding Africa I always assume it will be on exactly those topics. I see that they are obviously trying to get help to those parts of the country, so the best way to do that would be to make people feel so sad when they hear about the standards of living in which these people have to live in that they feel an obligation to help out the cause. Kristoff mentions people do the “collective shrug” when hearing things like these, however I don’t believe I could do that. If I was in a better financial state and I was able to aid the developing part of the country, I would. Yet there are those people who really don’t care, or say we have our own problem, however I believe it isn’t the fact that they don’t want to help, it’s the fact that they feel almost helpless because the cause is so large, and there are so many people affected that they believe their aide is almost insignificant. I don’t know anyone who would really see a starving child and not help; it is just the fact that many of us don’t have the resources to actually do something. In the article “How to Write About Africa,” Kenyan Binyavanga basically makes fun of the fact that the only thing that is written about Africa is everything I have written about African above, plus much more tragedy. It is true, authors stick to the sob stories, mainly because they work for pulling people in and help get funds. My view haven’t changed much, they just reminded me that there are other parts of Africa that aren’t the way they seem on newspapers and articles. My views have not been influenced in any way by Binyavanga because if this is what writers need in order to get the help parts of Africa need, then so be it. I believe after a life time of picturing Africa as what Kristoff described as “ tragic hellholes full of starving children with flies in their eyes”(44) not much can be don to change the views of readers and how they view the country.
My knowledge of Africa consists of what was shown in the Disney Channel Original Movie: The Color of Friendship and the Invisible Children: Rough Cut documentary. Both films are complete opposites from each other. The Color of Friendship, set in the 1970s tells the story of a black American family welcoming a white South African exchange student into their home in the midst of the apartheid that separated blacks and whites in South Africa. It’s a cheesy feel-good film that follows a predictable plotline and leaves the viewer with no lasting impressions. Invisible Children, on the other hand tells the story of three college age students, one who attended my high school (!!), who travel to Africa, specifically Northern Uganda, in search of adventure and leave filled with fire and passion fueled to tell the story of countless children who must migrate many miles every night to keep from being kidnapped by the Lord’s Resistance Army.
When I read articles and stories about Africa, I generally expect to hear stories of the unimaginable suffering faced by those who live there because honestly, a story about horror and anguish mixed with a little bit of hope sells much better than a story of happiness and joy. I agree with Kristof in his assertion that people enjoy hearing stories of triumph in the face of desperation. I don’t even think there necessarily has to be triumph as much as hope-the smallest inclination that things are improving-to get a reader to finish reading an article. But like Wainaina pointed out, in How to Write about Africa, the good things in Africa-the thriving, healthy, educated Africans-rarely make headlines. When the general masses perceive the whole of African continent as a violent disease filled cesspool no one wants to hear stories of flourishing and prospering individuals.
When I come across articles about the devastated countries, I am always moved to help, but I often feel like helping is an impossible task. No one should have to suffer as much as those affected by the LRA and other rebel armies do, but there’s only so much we can do. Maybe this is selfish, but I feel like if we get involved and send military aide to those in need, we’ll be entering into another 10+ year war. Sending food and supplies to those Africans in need will do nothing to solve the problems they are facing. It might postpone death for a few months, but in the long run, sending out food and supplies will make them become reliant on our hospitality and hinder them from becoming self-sufficient. And at what point would we decide that we’ve sent over enough supplies? What happens when everyone’s stomachs are full, but they still face constant threats from the LRA? What happens when we defeat the LRA but leave the devastated countries with no stable government? Where does the funding come from? How long do we stay and help? 10 years, 15 years, 20 years? Where would it end? Africa is not the only continent with suffering people on it. How could we say yes to them and refuse someone else in need?
I hope that the writings and campaigns advocated by Kristof and Wainaina help readers and views to see Africa in new ways, but I honestly would have never read these articles if I wasn’t in this class. Publicity plays a huge role in what the average American is exposed to and right now, articles like the ones written by Kristof and Wainaina don’t get a lot of attention. As soon as that changes, I think the American public as a whole will have a better understanding of both the problems and normalcy experienced in Africa.
To be honest, I don’t really know much about Africa. I just know that it is a very poor place because I have seen a lot of images of very thin, starving children on T.V. commercials and they also show the type of environment they are surrounded in. When I read about Africa, I do expect to hear about “tragic hellholes full of starving children with flies in their eyes” (Kristof 44). I have noticed that most of the writings or articles about Africa are not about positive things happening there, but about tragic problems that are happening to the people. And when I hear about these problems, I kind of in a way respond similarly to what Kristof refers to it as a “collective shrug” and say, “Too bad, but isn’t that what Africa is always like? … We have our own problems?” (41). When I hear about these problems I usually think that I as an individual can’t really do anything to help them when I am dependent upon other people such as my parents, but I would love to help those people in Africa and make a change in someone’s life. And after thinking that I also think that first I have to deal with my problems and feel pity towards the children in Africa. Also I wouldn’t even know how I would be able to help them. I think that if a group of people came together with a common goal, that would make an impact and be more powerful to be able to help them instead of just one person on their own. I think that Waianana’s observations are accurate just like explained earlier, Waianana clearly describes how her country is perceived as to “Westerners.” She has influenced me to think more about the conflicts instead of the positive things when talking about Africa. I think she does a well job describing her argument because I found myself agreeing to her descriptions on how Africa is viewed. It is more concentrated in seeing the tragedies instead of the accomplishments in Africa.
I was born in Alexandria, Egypt and lived there for the first 9 years of my life. Living there gave me the chance to see the change in culture and the struggles that people go through. Now I know that Egypt is a lot different than what we are discussing in our class ,but I have witnessed similar situations like this in Egypt. Although a lot of the people have a shelter and food to eat, there are a lot of families who have no shelter and struggle to find food, and it is very common to find beggars out on the streets.
Africa has to be the most beautiful continent in the world, with all of its natural beauties. But it is also one of the saddest places to be with all of its struggling people. Whenever I hear of stories of the struggles that the African people are going through it makes me very sad and anxious to help but I think it is very hard for people to just donate money because you don't really know what's going to be done with it. I believe people would rather help in a more hands on kind of way because it is definitely more satisfying.
Nicholas Kristof noticed that people weren't giving much attention to Africa so he did some research and found out that the media needs to do a better job in their messaging and use marketing techniques to draw people to the issue. From his research he found that "we intervene not because of desperate circumstances but when we can be cheered up with positive stories of success and transformation"(42). So basically people want to hear more about the positive changes that are happening rather then the negative stories because "it just reminds them of all the world's miseries"(43). I definitely agree with what kristof is saying but i don't believe that it is all true, because people need the motivation to help and they won't have that if they don't hear about the negative stories; so i just believe that we should hear about both positive and negative stories.
Kristof brings up a very good point when he says "educating and empowering women is the most effective way to fight global poverty and extremism"(42). Education is key for Africa to rise up from its situation because a lot of these struggles can be avoided if there is a well established government to run things and to take care of its people. Most of the countries in Africa have very corrupt governments and I believe this happens because of the peoples lack of education.
After reading the piece by Waianana I just thought of a very angry person who is not very thankful because I believe a lot of the things she says are very exaggerated and not true, and she shouldn't be made about what people are writing because they are just trying to find a way to touch people so more people can be helped. In the end, when it comes to saving lives, i doesn't really matter how you do it as long as it is getting done.
When I think about Africa the first thing that comes to my head is the safari and the animals. It’s sad to see that when thinking about Africa the people are the last to come to mind. When the people finally come to mind all I think about is mainly the violence and exploitation that’s going on. I also think about how uncivilized the people there are compared to people here in America. They seem to not be able to understand the simple process of fairness and respect that we complete on an everyday basis. Also, I think about the starving children, poor families, and scarce resources available for everyone there. However, it’s even worst to think that when I hear all of this I don’t’ react in any kind of shocking or unhappy way. It almost seems normal to hear these things and pretend like nothing really serious is going on.
After reading “How to Write About Africa” by Binyavanga Wainaina I felt like I was being punished for the way I think about Africa. She had a sarcastic even almost upset tone about the way everyone talks about Africa. It is obvious that she wants all this to go away and she wants Africa to be perceived in a different way. She seems like she’s making fun of all the people that have a certain idea of Africa and don’t stop to think about all the good things there is there. It’s even hard to see that there’s people that have been successful in that country.
Kristoff’s ideas of how to save the world seem like something so obvious everyone wants to do. Why wouldn’t we help those that are in need especially when it’s a lot of them and there’s also a big number of people dying or getting hurt. It’s disappointing to think that we rather help a bird than a starving child. Focusing on a certain kid is the only way that we are inspired to help. We should be able to help just because.
Kristoff and Wainaina are right for being upset at people for not being able to look ahead and think about a situation as whole and actually trying to make the world a better place.
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