Human Tradition in Modern Africa

Dennis D. Cordell is professor of history and associate dean at Southern Methodist University.

• Introduction: People and History in Modern AfricaDennis D. CordellPart I: Encounters: Two Worlds and New Worlds, 1800–1850Chapter 1: José Manuel and Nbena in Benguela in the Late 1810s: Encounters with EnslavementJosé C. CurtoChapter 2: Efusetan Aniwura of Ibadan (1820s–1874): A Woman Who Rose to the Rank of a Chief but Whom Male Rivals DestroyedToyin FalolaChapter 3: Moka of Bioko (late 1820s–1899): The Chief Who United a Central African IslandIbrahim SundiataPart II: Fashioning African Identities in the Era of European Conquest, 1850–1910Chapter 4: Hamet Gora Diop (1846–1910): Merchant and Notable from Saint-Louis in SenegalMamadou DioufChapter 5: Samuel Johnson (1846–1901) and The History of the Yorubas: Christianity and a New Intelligentsia in West AfricaToyin FalolaChapter 6: Stories of Cape Slavery and Emancipation in the Nineteenth CenturyPamela ScullyChapter 7: Mama Adolphina Unda (c. 1880–1931): The Salvation of a Dynastic Family and the Foundation of Fipa Catholicism, 1898–1914Marcia WrightPart III: The Contradictions of Colonialism, 1910–1960: Exploitation and New RightsChapter 8: Colonial Administrator Adolphe A. M. Taillebourg (1874–1934): Strict Interpreter of the Law or Humanitarian?Issiaka MandéChapter 9: Louis Brody (1892–1951) of Cameroon and Mohammed Bayume Hussein (1904–1944) of Former German East Africa: Variety Show Performers and the Black Community in Germany between the WarsAndreas EckertChapter 10: Siti binti Saad (c. 1885–1950): “Giving Voice to the Voiceless,” Swahili Music, and the Global Recording Industry in the 1920s and 1930sLaura FairChapter 11: Maryan Muuse Boqor (b. 1938) and the Women Who Inspired Her: Memories of a Mogadishu ChildhoodLidwien Kapteijns and Maryan Muuse BoqorPart IV: Globalization, Family Strategies, and New Threats in the Era of Independence, 1960–2012Chapter 12: Wambui Waiyaki Otieno Mbugua (b. 1928): Gender Politics in Kenya from the Mau Mau Rebellion to the Pro-Democracy MovementCora Ann PresleyChapter 13: Tina (b. 1942) of Côte d’Ivoire: Success in the Masculine World of Plantation ManagersAgnès AdjamagboChapter 14: Samba Sylla (b. 1948), Doulo Fofanna (b. 1948 or 1949), and Djénébou Traore (b. 1972): The Colonies Come to FranceDennis D. Cordell and Carolyn F. SargentChapter 15: Foday (b. ca. 1974) Meets the Rebels in 1991: Diamonds Are Not a Boy’s Best FriendDoug Henry

This remarkable book traces the experiences of significant actors who—without pretensions to heroism—changed society; women and men who took charge of destiny rather than submitting to it. These are stories that obliterate Afropessimism. Confronting the forces of transition, negotiating the constraints of gender, religion, and race; these individuals promoted a larger cause. Their histories illustrate resilience and the infinite capital of human creativity necessary to make their lives. The Human Tradition in Modern Africa is a great lesson in humanity, an inexhaustible resource for those who teach, and an inspiration for young scholars!