Gateway Seminar: The Imperial Encounter in Africa

This course studies the concept of the 'imperial encounter' in Africa—what it involved, who it exploited, and why today we still grapple with its legacies. Over the course of five hundred years, the relationship between Africans and Europeans radically changed the ways that people on both continents now live their lives. How did this situation come about? When Europeans met Africans on the African continent, what processes and events led this relationship to becoming one of colonial domination? In answering these questions, this seminar will introduce students to the craft of History through a variety of sources: letters, poems, films, maps, and literature from colonial Africa.