Mistaking africa Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Mistaking africa - Essay Example It can be affirmed from a broader outlook that the critical concern of cultural bias is quite discriminative in nature (Flanagan 153). With this concern, this paper intends to provide a comprehensive understanding about own cultural biases towards Africa through reading the text i.e. Curtis A. Keim’s ‘Mistaking Africa: Curiosities and Inventions of the American Mind’. DISCUSSION The book of Curtis A. Keim i.e. ‘Mistaking Africa: Curiosities and Inventions of the American Mind’ has portrayed certain significant ideas and perceptions that have broadly influenced or imposed extensive impacts especially upon social along with cultural aspects of Africa. This particular book provides a general idea about the existence of cultural biasness within the nation of Africa. According to the findings of the aforesaid book, it can be affirmed from a broader outlook that an individual can acquire a valuable idea about diverse aspects such as the use and the misuse o f stereotypes, racism, exploitation and various other sorts of cultural aspects. The author in this book revealed that for several Americans, the nation i.e. Africa appears to be the indication of various surroundings i.e. dense jungles, safaris, strangely dressed tribesmen and ferocious animals. It is worth mentioning that Curtis A. Keim’s ‘Mistaking Africa: Curiosities and Inventions of the American Mind’ mainly concentrates upon conducting historical evolution and addressing the most widespread preconceptions along with myths concerning dissimilar cultures and people belonging to Africa (Keim 101-170). In order to present my own notions regarding cultural biases towards Africa through reading the abovementioned book of Keim, certain significant aspects need to be taken into concern and discussed broadly. In this similar context, it can be observed in Keim’s text that a huge majority of Americans considered the facets of exploitation and racism against A frica to be quite acceptable. This can be justified with reference to the fact that the Americans did enslave Africans and maintain segregation along with slavery system, though they by no means ruled colonies in Africa. According to my own perception, as the Americans did enslave the Africans, it can be stated that there laid the existence of cultural biasness within the nation by a significant level. Moreover, apart from enslaving the Africans, the treatment of the Africans as inferiors by the Americans also demonstrates the prevalence of cultural biasness within the nation at large. There also lay certain other significant evidences that have eventually developed my perception towards recognizing the prevalence of cultural biasness in the region of Africa. One of the evidences can be apparently observed in the readings of Curtis A. Keim’s ‘Mistaking Africa: Curiosities and Inventions of the American Mind’. This particular evidence which proves to be quiet effe ctive in determining the existence of cultural biasness in Africa can be related with the notion of prejudice. With reference to the reading i.e. Keim’s ‘Mistaking Africa: Curiosities and Inventions of the American Mind’, it can be revealed that with every passing decade, Americans are incessantly treating Africans with less prejudice. Though the nation i.e. Africa is growing to play an imperative role in developing worldwide economy because of its huge size, greater amount of population and accessibility of vast resources,