The Transatlantic Slave Trade And Africa - 801 Words

In the last two decades, scholars have analyzed and debated the transatlantic slave trade and this eventually transformed the field of Atlantic history. John Thornton’s Africa and Africans in the Making of the Atlantic World, 1400-1680 changed the way scholars view the role of Africans because of its revisionist perspective and ground breaking interpretations of the slave trade. This book clearly changed the way the scholars analyzed the role of Africans in the British and Spanish Empires because it challenged traditional notions about the institution. Thornton argues that African merchants and rulers willing participated in the slave trade; thus, the unwilling victims of slavery were active in their own subjugation. While the author clearly articulates his thesis in a cohesive manner, he overlooks and simplifies information that would support/improve his argument. The author divides the text into main sections to provide a clear distinction between events in Africa and the c ultural transformations in the New World. In the first section, Thornton examines the interactions between Africans and the Portuguese, Spanish and British on the African mainland. According the author, the development of commerce, the origins of navigation, and economic goals differed between the two groups, which affected social and cultural relations. For instance, Thornton comments that an older â€Å"romantic school of historians maintained that Europeans undertook this exploration for the pure joy ofShow MoreRelatedAfrica Before the Transatlantic Slave Trade Essay1655 Words   |  7 PagesAfrica before the Transatlantic Slave Trade Racist views of Africa In the last 50 years much has been done to combat the entirely false and negative views about the history of Africa and Africans, which were developed in Europe in order to justify the Transatlantic Slave Trade and European colonial rule in Africa that followed it. In the eighteenth century such racist views were summed up by the words of the Scottish philosopher David Hume, who said, ‘I am apt to suspect the Negroes toRead MoreThe Transatlantic Slave Trade Between West Africa And North America Essay1895 Words   |  8 Pagesto American culture in agriculture, cuisine, food culture and language. As for Cultural integration, such actions occurred during the transatlantic slave trade between West Africans and Central Africans and the European Americans was a forced interaction that cannot be reversed. The transatlantic slave trade in 1889, established a permanent link between Africa and North America as Africans sold into slavery transplanted their cultures to the New World. Many assume that because Africans integratedRead MoreThe Transatlantic Slave Trade Made Africa A Major Market For European Goods843 Words   |  4 Pages all with a purpose of securing a profit (Foner, GML, 131). Slave plantations greatly contributed to massive economic development. The first mass consumer goods in international trade were produced by slaves, such as sugar, tobacco, rice and coffee (Foner, GML,132). The high and constant demand for these products quickly fueled the rapid growth of the Atlantic Slave Trade (Foner, GML, 132). The transatlantic slave trade made Africa a major market for European goods. Cheap imported textiles Read MoreThe Demise Of African Prosperity1168 Words   |  5 PagesProsperity: Effects of the Transatlantic Slave Trade The Transatlantic slave trade, a catastrophic event in the 15th to 19th century, affected millions of Africans and Europeans alike. Slaves were ripped from their homes and sent to the foreign lands, becoming the fundamental source of labour for mining and agricultural industries in the New World. Historians Hugh Thomas, Walter Rodney and John Thornton have contradictory beliefs about the effects of the Transatlantic slave trade on Africa. Thomas argues thatRead MoreEquiano s First Hand Experience Of Being Kidnapped1518 Words   |  7 Pagesas a child in Africa, is a poignant accounting of the Transatlantic Slave Trade. This era and actions of the slavers, which we now view as â€Å"Crimes against Humanity,† lasted approximately 400 years from the 16th to 19th century (Smallwood). Many have called this forced exodus of 12-15 million African men, women, and children as a dark time where profits came at the cost of human suffering. As Equiano and many historians detailed, the a bduction of Africans occurred mostly in West Africa, the regionRead MoreThe Transatlantic Slave Trade Often Known As The Triangular1411 Words   |  6 Pages The Transatlantic Slave Trade often known as the triangular trade was described as the largest long-distance movement of people in all of history. The movement of Africa slaves to the Americas lastly for approximately four centuries and can be viewed as one of the first ideas of globalization . The ship would move from the Americas to Western Europe with raw materials, then to Africa with manufactured goods. Lastly, from Africa the Americas with African slaves. Thus the movement of overRead MoreTransatlantic Slave Trade and the Effects on the American Economy1627 Words   |  7 PagesTransatlantic Slave Trade and the effects on the american economy Transatlantic Slave Trade The Transatlantic slave trade is a â€Å"wrenching aspect of the history of Africa and America† (Colin Palmer). The transatlantic slave trade transported African people to the â€Å"New World†. It lasted from the 16th to the 19th century. Slavery has had a big impact on African culture. The Africans were forced to migrate away from everything they knew, culture, heritage and lifestyles (Captive Passage). CoupledRead MoreSlavery Through The Ages Of Humans812 Words   |  4 Pagescivilizations, Mesopotamia (Mark). In Hammurabi’s Code many of the laws had protocol that dealt with slaves and slave owners, showing that slavery was present in the civilization. Slavery has affected many civilizations other than Mesopotamia. Slavery in the Middle East and Africa is broadly portrayed in the media today. The use and capture of Muslim/African slaves began in 1453 ( Digital History). Africa and the Middle East were very rich in natural resources and items that gained the attention of EuropeansRead MoreThe Transatlantic Slave Trade During The 19th Century1521 Words   |  7 PagesThe Transatlantic Slave Trade took place through the fifth teen century to the nineteen century in the Atlantic Ocean between American, Europe and Africa. The Trade blossomed dur due to the expansion of sugar production increasing the labor supplied need , which caused a the higher demand for slaves. The expansion of sugar created organized business of seizing and selling slaves. But the transatlantic slave trade did not begin the capturing of Africans, European were capturing slave long beforeRead MoreThe Western World914 Words   |  4 Pages Throughout history, Africa has been a vulnerable player in the eyes of the rest of the world. From the slave trade to various civil right injustices that have taken place over in every century, we have studied in this class, we have been able to see the lasting impact on the continent as a ramification of certain events occurring. Using sources from the text, I will attempt to prove how the western world, exercised their power to capitalize on the African continent, in addition to the exploitation