The African Experience: From 'Lucy' to Mandela

De: Kenneth P. Vickery, The Great Courses

Narrado por: Kenneth P. Vickery

The story of Africa is the oldest and most event-filled chronicle of human activity on the planet. And in these 36 lectures, you'll explore this great historical drama, tracing the story of the Sub-Saharan region of the continent from the earliest evidence of human habitation to the latest challenges facing African nations in the 21st century.

By learning with these lectures, you'll finally be able to bust myths and correct potential misunderstandings about Africa. For example, in Africa, the word "tribe" is used in a neutral way to connote ethnic identity. Another example: Sub-Saharan Africa was not as isolated as is often suggested by references to the "lost" continent; in fact, an ancient Greek sailing guide from 2,000 years ago clearly shows that the East African coast was already connected commercially with areas to the north.

The primary focus of these eye-opening lectures is Sub-Saharan Africa, the region separated from North Africa by the harsh climate of the Sahara Desert and traditionally the part of the continent that has been the most mysterious and most misunderstood by Westerners. But by traveling on this exciting learning experience (one imbued with a pervasive spirit of charm and adventure), you'll finally be able to strengthen your understanding of this beautiful, multifaceted region.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your My Library section along with the audio.

©2006 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)2006 The Great Courses

Excellent source and introduction

Where does The African Experience: From 'Lucy' to Mandela rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I would rank it quite high. Well read. Enough information to give you the overview and suggested readings if you want to dig further. Nice, comprehensive overview.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No. It was nice to have time to think.

Perfect

I was looking for an overview of African history and the substance and delivery was perfect. Sad to not find any more Audibles done by the author.

A good overview of a huge topic

Enjoyable lecturer with a personable style covering a vast subject matter in a manner which retained my interest.

Not what I expected

This is a good course but less comprehensive than the title suggests. The main focus is on the colonial era. I was more interested in learning about Africa before white oppression.

Highly recommended

Great overview. Left me wanting more. I was surprised that there was no mention of the conflict in Uganda, though it was nice to get coverage of Zambia in detail, which was unexpected.

I enthusiastically recommend this lecture series.

I thoroughly enjoyed this lecture series and will probably listen to it again to better absorb the wealth of information it contains.

While I had a superficial knowledge of much of the information, these lectures provided the background for the what and why of events, and provided a deeper understanding of the forces and situations that produced them. This understanding has helped to dispell many of the myths which (I am ashamed to say) I held.

Additionally, the lectures placed the Sub-Saharan African cultures and events within the greater world view. In so doing it presented a history which showed its connections and influences upon that world. Again, this was new to me. In the past my experience of African history has always been presented alone and as a topic completely separate from the rest of world history. The only exception to this was in the brief referrals to the African slave trade to the Americas, and even then the history had always been presented from the viewpoint of the white plantation owners or the white movement to abolish slavery. This isolation of Africa history allowed me to marginalize and dismiss African history as not particularly relevant. I was not even aware I held this view until after I listened to this course.

I found the course to be well balanced. The professor doesn't demonize the white races but presents their motivations in economic terms arising out of their own poverty and need for security. Nor does it glorify leaders of the native populations as heroes without blemish and innocent of any motivations toward self aggrandisement and self interest. Rather I found the professor presented the motivations of both peoples to be founded upon human needs and aspirations common to us all.

Another plus: the professor doesn't perseverate on the gory details of how each side behaved toward the other. Those in search of the sensationalism found in supermarket tabloids or frequently emphasized in movies should look elsewhere.

A negative factor is the way the professor/narrator presents his information. He has a somewhat halting speech pattern, but I did not find it that much different from the speech patterns of many professors. I believe anyone who has taken several college or university courses will be familiar with this mode of speaking and will not be put off by it. However, I believe that even those not familiar with this type of speech pattern will find the information compelling enough to listen to all the lectures, and count it as well worth their time.

A journey into Africa

Wonderfully presented and rich in valid content. My only wish is that because modern political Africa is so young it would be nice to have an updated experience that ends in 2015 and not 2005. Thank you for presenting a course on my continent and please continue to do so.

I am an Afrikaner African living in South Africa and proudly South Africa...

You need to read this to understand Africa!

This is a comprehensive and very interesting read. I took it a bit at a time mostly to remember it,then to savor it. I had no idea of the scope of history or of life in Africa.
Africa, A huge continent of countries in a inhospitable region of the world eking out life, day by day, year by year, eon by eon. This is an absolute necessary read for everyone in order to understand our world today. Read it. You will be the better for it.

Entry Level

This course is definitely aimed at people with very little knowledge of Africa (like me). As such, it provides a pretty good overview of the continent through history, although it never goes into great detail. Listen for broad trends, not in-depth analysis

Great to listen to

Wonderful professor who truly loves Africa. He explains the geography and colonization very well. Wish it was longer.