Register to read the introduction…
As Iliffe notes, the majority of early twentieth-century Africans saw their immediate local area as the ‘relevant political arena’; this kind of localised attitude made the development of nationalism challenging to say the least. Cultural and linguistic divisions within ‘territories’ arguably made forming people into one united nation a highly complex task; as Bill Freund explores, the nationalist guerrilla campaigns such as those co-ordinated by the Land Freedom Army in Kenya were weakened by a lack of unity between people. Bruce Berman and John Lonsdale also note how the various conflicting ‘ethnic nationalisms’ in Kenya resulted in violent politics and confusions of ideology. However Enocent Msindo argues that ethnicity in some circumstances actually ‘complemented nationalism’. He claimed that not only did ethnic groups provide prominent nationalist leaders but pre-colonial ethnic histories and monuments actually ‘sparked the nationalist imagination’. Cultural and linguistic divisions arguably remained a challenge to nationalism. Iliffe highlights a common language as the ‘normal base of nationality’; in Africa a common language seldom exists to unite a whole country. Another fundamental obstacle to the development of nationalism in Africa is arguably the fact that territorial boundaries drawn up by European colonial governments were ‘quite
…show more content…
As highlighted by Freund the rise in education was key in integrating African youth into the ‘colony-wide political and social networks’. The role of the Western-educated elites in inspiring nationalism was also essential. As Cooper notes the Western educated were at an advantage because whilst they could continue to improve their knowledge of ‘traditional myths and local histories’ in order to develop unity and national consciousness they were also being introduced to new concepts and agendas. Western education was arguably the main explanation for the growth in numbers of African elites in the early twentieth century. As outlined by Jonathan Derrick while the majority of Africans were still illiterate by the 1930s those influenced by Western culture were now numerous. He argues that there were ‘no longer small elites’ and it is no surprise that he suggests colonial schools ‘bred many nationalists’. However it is important to note that – as Derrick puts it, ‘education did not turn out uniform products’ – plenty of well-educated Africans remained loyal to their colonial rulers at the beginning of the twentieth century. Peter Stearns suggests however that when talking about African elites we must not confuse it with European conceptions of class as the definitions are a lot more diffuse. The ability of elite leaders of African nationalist movements …show more content…
Roger Louis, eds., The Transfer of Power in Africa (New Haven and London, 1982)
-Hargreaves, John D., Decolonization in Africa (New York, 1988)
-Henderson, I., ‘The Origins of Nationalism in East and Central Africa: The Zambian Case’, Journal of African History, 11, 3 (1970) pp591-603
-Iliffe, John, Africans: The History of a Continent (Cambridge, 2007, second
As highlighted by Freund the rise in education was key in integrating African youth into the ‘colony-wide political and social networks’. The role of the Western-educated elites in inspiring nationalism was also essential. As Cooper notes the Western educated were at an advantage because whilst they could continue to improve their knowledge of ‘traditional myths and local histories’ in order to develop unity and national consciousness they were also being introduced to new concepts and agendas. Western education was arguably the main explanation for the growth in numbers of African elites in the early twentieth century. As outlined by Jonathan Derrick while the majority of Africans were still illiterate by the 1930s those influenced by Western culture were now numerous. He argues that there were ‘no longer small elites’ and it is no surprise that he suggests colonial schools ‘bred many nationalists’. However it is important to note that – as Derrick puts it, ‘education did not turn out uniform products’ – plenty of well-educated Africans remained loyal to their colonial rulers at the beginning of the twentieth century. Peter Stearns suggests however that when talking about African elites we must not confuse it with European conceptions of class as the definitions are a lot more diffuse. The ability of elite leaders of African nationalist movements …show more content…
Roger Louis, eds., The Transfer of Power in Africa (New Haven and London, 1982)
-Hargreaves, John D., Decolonization in Africa (New York, 1988)
-Henderson, I., ‘The Origins of Nationalism in East and Central Africa: The Zambian Case’, Journal of African History, 11, 3 (1970) pp591-603
-Iliffe, John, Africans: The History of a Continent (Cambridge, 2007, second