ALEJANDRO, Jeremie F.

WRITTEN OUTPUT 1-1

BSED 3-1A

Read and analyze *David Diop’s Africa and Gabriel Okara’s Once Upon a Time. In an essay
of not more than 500 words, discuss the following:
 
1. Describe the Africans and explain why they are always looked down upon by other people.

 Being enslaved and exploited for centuries, first by the Muslims from North Africa, then
by the Europeans, plays a big part. Exploited for centuries, Sub-Saharan Africa lags
behind in development, compared to Europe, Asia and North Africa. Kept as slaves in
other continents, the African Black were deprived from development, too. So they are
ghetto-ized and marginalized. Religious beliefs like that they had no souls and were
lesser humans fomented racism, that is still a thing. Being exploited for centuries, and
deprived from development, everywhere they went, they were behind the rest of society.
That fomented the belief that they are inferior to all other races, a belief that exists
virtually everywhere in the world. Colonizers also parted Africa into territories that kept
conflicting ethnicities together, causing civil wars after the countries gained
independence. These conflicts make any development harder. We were never exposed to
much about African cultures and are almost completely ignorant about them. And
whenever the media shows Africa, it’s all about starving people and anthropological
documentaries about tribesmen dancing around bonfires. Showing anything without the
purpose of making big news, eliciting pity to get donations, or exotic tribes does not
bring audience. For decades, I myself (shamefully) believed Africa was a big savannah
with people living in straw huts and mud houses, with a few war-torn cities in between.
Fortunately, this is changing. Africa is fast developing. African cities have luxurious
buildings and skyscrapers. Africans share their culture on Internet. Black people around
the world are aware and proud of their heritage and beating prejudice, becoming
successful people in their chosen fields.

2. How did the poem “Once Upon a Time” show the impact of Western colonization
on traditional African society?

 It shows the Western Colonization by changes of the manner of the people in Africa.
There is a big change in terms on how genuine their emotion back then, In the poem it
said that in his time the people manners is really nice but when the impact of western
colonization began the everything changed, for example when they welcome someone
in their home, they welcome that person whole heartedly but now it’s opposite. Also
back in the past the smile of the people is genuine but know they’re just smiling
without feelings.

3. In your own little way, how can you help ameliorate the sad plight of the Africans?
 As a student, we can make a little way to ameliorate the sad plight of Africans by
respecting their culture, tradition and beliefs. In this simple ways if we unite this as
one it can change their sad plight into a happy one.

OTHER SOURCE:

https://www.quora.com/Why-have-Africans-been-looked-down-upon-throughout-history
https://owlcation.com/humanities/Analysis-of-Poem-Once-Upon-A-Time-by-Gabriel-
Okara