When credit is due it should be given. So why doesn’t Africa a country of vast resources and significant worldly impact not receive its true credit. Merely pushed to the side as if it is nothing with several misguides false analysis of what the country really is. Africa is a large continent that has been plagued down by stereotypes that are far from untrue.
Several people tend to believe that Africa doesn't have much to offer and is suffering from poverty. William Barnett in “The Geography of Africa.”states that “...Western Civilizations have often ignored Africa, and when african history has been misunderstood or viewed from a biased perspective”¹ These biased perspective has lead to false assumptions that leave Americans with fallacious images of what the country is.
Several of these false assumptions are spread through school systems.Curtis Keim in Mistaking Africa said that "In a 1996 study of preservice social studies teachers, 82 percent thought there were tigers in Africa, 94 percent believed wild animals were common everywhere on the continent, 74 percent understood most Africans …show more content…
Keim states that “Most of the cartoon images of Africa were stereotyped presentations of ferocious large animals, lost treasure protected by evil genies and geniuses, and hungry cannibals.” Keim goes on to say “today's nature shows still tend to portray Africa as a place filled with wild animals, park ranger and naturalist who battle against poachers and crouching agriculture.” Africa actually has large beautiful cities and the people tend to never see wild animals. Yes, Africa does have areas where there are wild animals but you could say that about a number of different places across the world. Barnett also speaks to this saying “Americans and Europeans often hold skewed ideas of the African landscape, as their visual images represent extreme situations rather than typical
Several people tend to believe that Africa doesn't have much to offer and is suffering from poverty. William Barnett in “The Geography of Africa.”states that “...Western Civilizations have often ignored Africa, and when african history has been misunderstood or viewed from a biased perspective”¹ These biased perspective has lead to false assumptions that leave Americans with fallacious images of what the country is.
Several of these false assumptions are spread through school systems.Curtis Keim in Mistaking Africa said that "In a 1996 study of preservice social studies teachers, 82 percent thought there were tigers in Africa, 94 percent believed wild animals were common everywhere on the continent, 74 percent understood most Africans …show more content…
Keim states that “Most of the cartoon images of Africa were stereotyped presentations of ferocious large animals, lost treasure protected by evil genies and geniuses, and hungry cannibals.” Keim goes on to say “today's nature shows still tend to portray Africa as a place filled with wild animals, park ranger and naturalist who battle against poachers and crouching agriculture.” Africa actually has large beautiful cities and the people tend to never see wild animals. Yes, Africa does have areas where there are wild animals but you could say that about a number of different places across the world. Barnett also speaks to this saying “Americans and Europeans often hold skewed ideas of the African landscape, as their visual images represent extreme situations rather than typical