As you see from the words of Angelina Jolie, actress and United Nations Goodwill Ambassador, many people have misconceptions about this part of the world:
"Africa is a strong, beautiful country and has potential to be so much."
Although our focus will be on the country of South Africa, you can include your thoughts about Africa in general. Here are some ideas that you can submit for this post:
1. What perceptions do you have about Africa?
2. What do you know for sure about Africa?
3. What would you like to find out about Africa?
You can mention any books, movies, people, places and events that connect with Africa.
As you might know, South Africa is the host of the next World Cup of football. Here's a video in which one of the commentators says, 'In Africa, soccer is religion.' The video is a mini-documentary about how soccer is being used to help fight against HIV/AIDS in the southern African country of Zambia.
44 comments:
I know that the Republic of South Africa has the largest economy in Africa. I understand that it has the 25th largest economy in the world (please correct me if I am wrong). South Africa is a very well developed country, possibly the most developed country in Africa. I also know that South Africa is different from other countries in Africa because in the past there was immigration from Europe. South Africa has a history of conflict between white people and black people. I would like to know more about what has happened and/or what is happening to solve this conflict.
Even though I am no expert with Africa, I at least know that Africa is beautiful. Since Africa isn't polluted like other industrial continents like Asia, America or Europe; Africa has the fresh air, numerous kinds of wild and unique animals and beaufiul looking rain forests. Africa might be the only continent that parades its beautiful nature. I am glad to learn about Africa throughout this semester.
I perceive Africa to be a third-world continent suffering from poverty and diseases (traumatic considering the richest ancient great empires came in the form of Egypt, Nubia, Ghana, etc.); although I know that while it may lack in materialistic things, it makes up for with its vibrant culture. To clarify my first comment, I know that Africa has some great countries rich from oil, precious metals, etc., but the fact is that the percent of countries considered "third-world" is much higher in Africa than in, say, Europe (not that this detracts from Africa). It doesn't help that much of the continent is unhospitable thanks to the Sahara Desert. I want to know more about African history, including the effects of slavery and Nelson Mandela's role. I have also seen parts of Blood Diamond (I didn't enjoy it too much)-- a movie that documents the brutality existing around diamond trading-- but from what little I saw and from what I've heard, it depicts a startling perception of Africa that, according to many, is all too true.
before i borrowed the book'South Africa' from MS library. Actually, at that time, i borrowed this book by Myungin Davis. because she told be to prepare Humanities class.(Thank you Myungin!)
and i got many basic or new thinking or perspective from this book. and also i heard about South Africa a little bit.
before read and heard someone, i thought that African is really poor and nasty. I think many Asian still think like that or even white people. but when i came thailand and get into international school, i realized that i was wrong. it's just perception! and i was shame on me.. really....
and in this book (South Africa), i knew that African is not poor. pictures in this book were so increidable! because it was wonderful and beautiful. Even i couldn't believe that pictures are South Africa! cause it looked like just ISB like international and looked so happy. so i was really embarrased myself.
and my teacher(i mean tutor) told me that in Africa, many white people live there for their buisness or something like that. but they punished African to over mountain and they occupied their village. and i asked to my tutor "So... do they contribute or help them?" and she said no.
and i got shocked. i think from these story that i told you upper,it's really embarrass things and wrong perceptions. so we have to behave ourselves
I believe that Africa is a continent that is suffering from poverty and diseases, even though I’m not a real expert in Africa but I have seen from the news on tv that Africa is still suffering from these problems. In relationship to the problems that Africa has, Africa still has excellent things in its continent. Referring to Rahul’s comment I also agree that Africa has rich amounts of oil and precious metals making some of the countries in Africa have a pretty high economical status. Africa is also known to have beautiful rainforests and great weather. Since Africa is not as polluted as other continents, like Asia, it has fresh air there. Referring to Taehoon’s comments I agree that Africa has lots of unique wildlife. I would like to learn more about Africa’s history and how human life started out from Africa (I might be wrong with this theory) and I’ve also watched the blood diamond like Rahul said and I saw the violence going around in diamond trading which made me think more about how Africa is like…
According to the comment of Angelina Jolie, I thought again that Africa is misunderstood by even famous people. What I know about Africa is there are a lot of countries on the continent and the most well-known country is South Africa. I know that African countries have wildlife. But there are so many things to learn about Africa and there are many things I don’t know yet. So, I want to learn a lot of things as possible I can but especially I am interested to research about the nature of Africa.
I believe that Africa is a continent that is severely suffering from poverty and diseases. However, there aren't only negative things about the continent of Africa, since the continent isn't modernized or developed there is still alot of beautiful wildlife left in Africa. For example, the plains are still there in Africa unlike most of the other continents that have buildings and factories over all the plains and forests. Referring to Rahul’s comment I also agree that Africa has rich amounts of oil and precious metals making some of the countries in Africa have a pretty high economic status.
To my knowledge, I have considered Africa to be a continent with people perishing due to lack of food and money. But after I looked carefully at the inside, the true Africa, it is much more than that. The sites at Africa is so beautiful that it could not be describe with words. I would like to find out about the current issues of Africa, the denizens that live there, and mostly the scenic spots.
I movie that relates to Africa would be Blood Diamond. This movie goes over the conditions in Africa of illegal diamonds imported from Africa. (Caution: This is good movie but it contains a lot of violence and blood.)
I know that most people misunderstand and think every African is poor. My perception is that Africa is a really hot continent and the economic development is very slow.
Also many Africans are dying because of malnutrition. There is a lot of hunger in Africa.
There is a lot of poverty in Africa.
I also learned a little bit about blood diamonds in Environmental class. A lot of diamonds are from Africa. I wonder what language they speak most and which country is the most developed.
1) I cannot be mad that people call Africa a country because sometimes I make the same mistake. Although now that I have met and learned about Africa more, I do not usually mix them up.
2) I know Africa has many problems with poverty and money. Although many people think everyone in Africa is poor, it is not true. There are many people throughout the continent of Africa that do have money and do not suffer from poverty,
3) I would like to learn some of the African traditions, religions, occupations, and the foods they enjoy eating.
I agree with Krit that people in Africa are now suffering from poverty and diseases.
What I know about Africa is that Africa has a wonderful and unique music and dance. The life expectancy of the people in Africa is very low.
In this unit I want to find more about the economic of Africa, the people in Africa, and the different places in Africa.
My perception of Africa is poverty, people are super poor there. War, i seen a lot of movies about Africa and it's more about Africa's past. For example the civil war which happened east of Africa. My perception to Africa is bad so when i tell that Africa is a bad country in Africa i would be hated
It is true that many people have the misconception about Africa, such as referring this beautiful place as poverty.
People like to say Africa is a poor country; however it's still a wrong perspective, because Africa is actually a continent where contains about 53(may be) countries and some of them also has the very high technology.
It's true that some of the country in Africa has the defect on economy, but that's doesn't mean they are poor; they just need to have people who has the better knowledge to give them a hint to discover riches, because as the movie Blood Diamond we notice that the land is fertile in Africa.
My best friend Sam is from South Africa, and from what I have seen, (pictures, stories, etc.) it is a growing country. People in South Africa range from being rich to being very poor. I personally agree with the comment which Tara submitted last year, about the underestimation of wealth and the general stereotype of Africa being very poor and in great need of food and water, yet I know that it is unfortunatly true, in some areas. I dont like it when people use racism and make general ethnic comments about people from Africa, because it is a big place, and I'm sure they are similar, yet very distinct.
The first thing that I think of when I hear the word "Africa" or hear something about this continent, I think of the wild life. What i know about Africa is that it is the world's second-largest. I also know that Africa has a very large population with 46 countries in it.(Not including all the island groups)
I am looking foward to study about this topic, Africa, because I don't know too much about this continent and it is one of the important continents in this world.
I remembered that back in second grade, we also learned about Africa, the wildlife, and the beauty of it. After looking back at my second grade portfolio and my work, I remembered a few things I learned about Africa back then. Africa is the world's second largest continent and it is full of nature and wildlife. Due to corrupt government and slave trade, Africa still is the poorest continent even though it has a lot of natural resources. In Global Studies, I learned that Africa there are are a lot of people who are suffering from malnutrition where they live on less than $1 per day. I would like to know more about why Africa is suffering from these things and why are we not doing anything about it. I would also like to make a galimoto, a toy vehicle(such as a bicycle, an airplane, a truck...) that kids in Africa played with made out of old wires!
In my opinion Africa is one of the most beautiful continents in the world from my experience. I know how Nelson Mandela was imprisoned on Robin Island of the coast of Cape Town of South Africa. I also knew that Nelson Mandela was later voted president of South Africa. I also know like Robin that South Africa had the most established economy in Africa. I know there are 53 countries in Africa and I can name a few off the top of my head: South Africa, Kenya, Namibia, Botswana, Sudan, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Madagascar, Egypt, The Republic of Congo, Nigeria, Libya, and Morocco. I want to know more about how Africa is politically divided, I believe that it is divided into five different ways. I also want to learn more about Nelson Mandela and what he did to fight for African people’s rights. My favorite movie set in Africa is ‘The Lion King’
I have once watched some clips of the movie "Blood Diamond". That movie really displays the brutality of Africa. Africa has had alot of experience with povery, famine and diseases. People have been suffering with these affects because of the poor government in Africa along with the over population. This is all i know about Africa but really am interested to learn more about his truly poor continent.
Diseases,famines draughts often make countries in Africa become the headlines of newspaper.I know this doesn't represent the whole Africa.Africa has come a long way in last 100 years.By the end of the nineteenth century,10000 African ethnic groups had been combined into 40 European colonies.By the end of the Second World War,there were 4 independent states in Africa:Egypt,Ethiopia,Liberia and South Africa.Today there are 53 independent countries in the continent,many of them get their independence in 1960s.
I'm really fascinated about the history of Africa.If today the perception of Africa is pessimistic,then i would like to know what went wrong.
I have no idea of the Africa. But I tried to find some knowledge of the Africa.
1) Before I ask my father, I had no idea about africa, but I have one idea now. That is Africa was slave of many countries. Example, Americans used Africans to pioneer the country. I think that is very sadness real.
2) I know about Africa has many culture. It still has 3 culture. And they have each religion so now has some influence yet that area.
3) I would like to find out the Africa's history but, Africa is very big so they has many history. So I would like to find out "South Africa". The reason of I choose South Africa is 1 week ago, my father said I should know about South Africa's history because that history has deep meaning. So I would like to find out the South Africa's history.
I have interest of the Africa because Africa is big so they have many history and I want to know many history of the Africa.
1) Some things that I'd like to say about Africa is that it's not a country, justl ike what Alexis said.
2) I know for sure that all of Africa is not rich, and even though many live in poverty people are changing their lives by donating. I also heard that throughout Africa everywhere is beautiful.
3) Some things I would like to find out is their language, and some of their tradition.
1).My perceptions on Africa is it has lots of violence, But still I would want to go explore there style of music and I think people has a lot of creativity there because the drum beats and the rhythms came from Africa
2) Some of the people in Africa is dieing from starvation and some are really happy with there money. In some parts of Africa they don't have electricity. In Africa there had been lots of problem about HIV and Aids.
3) I really want to find out there music because I am a drummer and so this is why I want to see it. I want to try there food because I had never tasted African food before, and lastly I would like to know people and makes friends in Africa to know what their life is like in Africa
3. I am looking forward to studying about africa because it is a place i know very little about and want to know a lot more about. I have never been there and i want to be able to understand their culture, their philosophy on life, what they eat, their environment and so on. I know there are a lo of poor people in Africa but that does not mean all African people are poor. I think in general Africa is the continent which most people have the smallest amount of general knowledge about. I watched a movie about Africa called Blood Diamond. It was about people using Africa as a place to get drugs from and they made African people do their dirty work and they did not get paid a lot. They also tested unofficial medicine on African people. I think all of this is wrong and it should be stopped.
The first time I recognize the name of Africa was when I saw the Walt Disney movie called Lion King (which was about 8 years ago). I always picture Africa as a beatiful country where lots of animals inhabit there and have a good amount of useful natural resources. Now the fact that Africa is a poor country because of government corruption is clear, many transnational company begin to help solve major problems that are occuring in Africa. The G8 meeting is also occuring every year trying to help shape Africa.
Like Krit, I know that people in Africa are suffering from poverty, diseases and droughts. I also know that Africa has a lot of wildlife and many tourists visit Africa to see the animals and forests. Africa contains the Nile River, which is very important to people because they use it for transportation, food, laundry, shelter and more. The Nile River is also one of the longest rivers in the world. I know that in the past, African people were traded as slaves for the white people. Nelson Mandela also had something to do with the history and he was a very important person in Africa’s history. What I want to learn about Africa is more about the history.
There are only a few things I know about Africa but I don’t want to live in Africa. I know that Africa is a beautiful continent but they are suffering from poverty and diseases. According to my friends who lived in South Africa, there are many robbers and sometimes there are even gunfights so we can say that Africa is very dangerous.
In my opinion, Africa is not a good continent. But after I learned about Africa, I hope that my perception will change. (Because I’m judging only by what I already know, and I don’t know any good things about Africa yet….)
I don't really know about Africa (overall), but what I know is that part of Africa is very poor and most of Africa are still undeveloped country. I never went to African countries, but I would like to visit the Pyramids, I read the comic about the Sahara desert, it say that Pyramid got some kind of power but I don't remember what it does.
When we hear about the word “Africa” you assume that this continent is poor, dirty, and disease ridden. In fact, it is quite true that many people, especially children die from hunger. I have heard that every 3 seconds, a children’s life passes away. However, I realize that this country is not merely living in death with no hope of a future. South Africa is the strongest, richest and most developed country in Africa. I also believe that the stereotype about Africa is an illusion. There are many things that we can enjoy in Africa, safaris and outdoor pursuits are probably the most popular at present. There are also many varieties of creatures that cannot be seen anywhere else on this planet.
I’m curious about this country and look forward to learning about the people and cultures of this ancient land.
I have never been to Africa and Actually, I have a little bit knowledge of Africa. But In History, I learned that other countries colonized Africa and local people is sold into slavely. But now, many countries support Africa and Africa is growing economically.
Sometimes, when people mention
Africa, some people tend to think things in the negative way, like how many, many people starve and die of hunger there. But I think Africa is a great continent with so much to give. Like every country, it has their negative sides, but all countries have negative sides. I just don't get why people tend to think Africa is such a poor continent, because I know that it is not. In some areas, yes, but every continent has some poor areas too, it's not like Africa is the only place.
Although I have never been to Africa, but I would like to, and one day, maybe I will :)
So that's why I am pretty glad that we are learning about Africa for our second semester.
I know that most people in Africa are very poor and many countries in Africa were colony of europe countries. And now, many people die by starvation because they don't have enough food to share with everybody, so many countries support Africa.
What I was thinking about Africa was just a poor country, and dying from hunger. I also think that Africa has freedom. Africa also has lots of animals like lions, tiger, elephant, and more other animals. They are living with freedom, not like in the zoo. They also use natural things to live their life. I want to know how many countries in Africa, and how many languages they have.
I already know that Africa is a beautiful place. I also know that Africa has a down side and has had and is still having many wars and tribal disputes. I know a few people from Africa and it sounds nice for the most part, but not a place that I would want to travel to now or in the future.
I already know that the whole Africa is still a developing continent. I also know that Africa is an appealing place. Africa has many stunning sites. They have heaps of animals and African Plains. I would like to know about why Africa is a strong, beautiful continent because a quote from Angelina Jolie said that it is a strong, beautiful country. I don't think that she is talking about the sites, such as plains, desert, and so on.
I remembered from global studies class that Africa is considered the third world class which is still getting help from other country and social society. Some transnational company such as apple is working on the Ipod red to help raise money for protecting people from HIV. The G8 is being a great help to this continent with the food and supply.
I think africa in general has a different feel from the rest of the world. People live their lives either in security and seclusion or in a fight for survival with your neighbors or tribespeople.
Often times, people say that Africa is a place of poverty and corruption. I say they have no food and no water, but they have the will and spirit that can overcome their economic and social issues.
Obasanjo, the recently retired Nigerian president, earned a reputation for corruption more rampant than any before. This was his legacy, and now, Nigeria is still trying to cure the wounds. Money that could have gone to the roads or hospitals has gone to a mansion owned by the former politician. There's even a joke saying "the stitching on Obasanjo's pocket reads:school funding". If they can fix bribery and larsony in Africa, they will be ready to develop into rich and working nations.
A lot of children in Africa really want to learn to read and write but most children cant because schools in Africa charge fee's and most of the parents of the kids don't have enough money to pay for it. Kids who can afford to go to school have to walk hour to get there. In Africa a lot of people are poor. I have never been to Africa, so I don't know much about it. I would like to go to Africa.
My perceptions on africa was having a very hard life over there because of the racism between the black and the white. Some of the Africans don't have many money so they often died with starvations. Some had many money and they are the lukiest one. I want to know more about the life in the Africa.
I don't really know that much about africa but all I know is that Africa has a lot of contries in it. also Afica is known to have many spectacular sights to see and very interesenting pllaces and people. I also know that there was an apartheid which was very well known. I want to learn in this unit everythign abotu Africa. Like Pammy said I also have learned about Africa sometime in elementary school but I can't think of anything and my memory about Africa is very fuzzy. I think that it will be very interestign to learn about Africa thsi Quater.
After reading the other blogs, I am sad to say that they hardly know Africa the way I do. The ways and traditions of Africa may seem weird to others but, I just find them unique. Most of the other blogs mentioned that Africa is a place full of wildlife which I agree but, Africa is also full of ethnic groups that are just about as interesting as the animals. The people there are very rural; they hardly ever had contact with western cultures making their culture very rich and distinctive. The animals there are very abundant, but for some animals can be only found here in Africa and some of these animals are almost extinct. The extinction of these animals is caused by poaching. This is a very big problem in African Game Park.
I think Africa is amazing, I know lots about the continent but I want to know more. Human life started there and the are 1,000s of languages and ethnic groups. African cultures are some of the most interesting in the world and I would like to learn more. I know Apartheid hurt South Africa but there is great culture and beutiful landscape in South Africa. I mainly know about the geography and history of Africa but i would love to learn about what is happening right now.
I can't wait to learn more about Africa.
These are the few things I know about Africa :
-is hot and dusty with rolling grasslands and huge herds of animals and tall, thin people who are starving.
-Africa is big: fifty-four countries, 900 million people many are starving and dying
- wildlife
- lots of hunting to do .
I think Africa is a continent full of deserts, jungles, highlands, savannahs etc.
I would like to know more about Africa (cultures, languages, etc.)
My perception of Africa is there are more plains, fields and open spaces than city areas. When I think about Africa I will see a predator hiding behind bushes. When suddenly it jumps out and start chasing after a prey.
when i think of africa i think of povert and hhunger but i also think about a developing continent, the next world cup is taking place in South Africa and to host a world cup you must have a pretty strong economy so Africa has also good things, and a huge culture and backgrounbd.
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